5 week old will not sleep?

Question

My son is 5 wks old and lately WILL NOT sleep unless I'm holding him - even throughout the night. He falls asleep (seemingly sound asleep) & as soon as I lay him down, no matter how quietly,slowly, or gently I do it - he wakes up fussing. I am getting very little sleep & nothing done (like dinner, showers, homework help) & I feel bad because I am afraid the rest of my family (2 girls ages 14 &12) are not getting any attention from me because I am always having to hold & tend to him. He's also very colicky (which has gotten better since switching to lactose-free formula). My husband & I have tried everything - feed him, change him, rocking, put him in swing, vibrating bouncer, car rides, bouncing on exercise ball, swaddling ... still cries when I put him down. Co-sleeping scares me to death (my husband is a big guy & moves around a lot). So today In desperation I laid him down, left the room & let him cry - & in less than 5 min. he was asleep! Am I bad for doing this?? HELP!!

Yes - he has been a 'gassy' baby since day one. We use the mylicon drops with every feeding & that has helped tremendously (no more crying because of belly aches). Now it's just when I lay him down.

Answer 1

Girlfriend, this is #3 and it should be a breeze. Of course all babies are different, however, you have heard a baby cry b4! You have to let your son cry it out or he will run you. You must put him down or you will NEVER have time to do anything. Remember you have two other children who need you as well. Lucky for you they are old enough to understand that a newborn needs special attention. In order for your family to function day to day you must get that bebe into a routine or you will go insane.. Take it from my I have 3 sons ages 2, 6, 11. The youngest one was the same as yours and eventually I had to give in and let him cry... It took about a month and he was sleeping through the night...

Answer 2

No, you are not bad for doing this. If it works do it. My daughter had the same problem. That did not work for me. I just held her til she fell asleep. Sometimes I had to lay her down a half dozen times before it worked. She is a year now, and I still have to do that but she goes down usually after the second attempt. Some babies need more attention than others. Mine hardly napped and if she did I had to hold her. Never could resolve that part. I have a teenage daughter as well as a two year old. They say if there is something you have to get done with your other children lay the
baby down even if she or he cries because the older child will remember, the younger one will not. As long as you dont do this excessively, Iwish you a lot of luck. It is difficult. You should try laying down during the day while baby naps even if you have to lay with her. You can put something in between you and her , if you are a deep sleeper. As far as at night I wouldnt I have the same problem my husband is a big guy. Good luck Janine.

Answer 3

No your not bad for letting your baby cry a little, you need your rest to, and will be a better mum for it. He obviously likes the warmth and comfort of you when going to sleep and can feel when you are not there. Have you tried him in a baby sleeping bag, not sure where you are from but most baby retailers sell them. My two children used them, they are zipped or buttoned in them up to their chest with their arms free but it makes them feel cosy. Some babies like to be swaddled which is wrapping them in a blanket with thier arms tucked in, this also makes them feel secure. Or you may have to try leaving him for a few minutes to cry when you put him down, I know this is hard to do when you have other family members to consider but if it worked once it may work again, even though you do feel guilty about doing it you are not going to do him any harm, as long as he is not hungry, wet or soiled he will be ok. If all else fails try asking your health viisitor for some advice. And try and get some help if you can from parents and friends so you can get some rest. Don't know if any of this was helpfull but good luck x

Answer 4

Don't ever take the sleeping pills route!!

1. They will damage your liver big time and you can get into serious health problems.

2. You will get hooked up on them and you won't be able to have a normal life any more if you don't take your pills everyday.

The sleeping pills industry is damaging our health by capitalizing on our ignorance, and by distracting people from effective and natural ways to deal with this problem. I had been taking prescription sleep medications [Ambien] for over 5 years. It stopped working and I simply took more. Still did not work. Nights were very difficult - medication put me to sleep but I would wake up after 2–3 hours with a strong sympathetic response (fast pulse, pounding heartbeat, wide awake alert). It was a very difficult cycle to break. I was really in bad shape due to lack of sleep.

After years of struggling I was able to cure my insomnia naturally and pretty fast. I followed the Sleep Tracks sleep optimization program, here is their official web -site if you want to take a look: http://www.insomniacure.net

Ohhh..and Good Luck!

Answer 5

He only cried for 5 minutes and then went to sleep??? You're lucky! Some women try this method and the baby cries for over an hour.

You said he was colicky? Well my son was the same way and he liked to be held with his belly against my chest. It was how he felt comfort and the warmth from me helped his belly. I wish I could tell you something that will make it all better but sometimes you just have to wait it out. Soon it will be something else.

And you aren't bad for letting him cry.

Answer 6

This Site Might Help You.

RE:
5 week old will not sleep?
My son is 5 wks old and lately WILL NOT sleep unless I'm holding him - even throughout the night. He falls asleep (seemingly sound asleep) & as soon as I lay him down, no matter how quietly,slowly, or gently I do it - he wakes up fussing. I am getting very little sleep & nothing done (like...

Answer 7

You're not a bad mom......you're just reaching a point of exhaustion and desparation. If you need a break, get yourself a break. Have someone else help with the baby for a while. Put him down and walk away long enough to collect yourself if you are feeling overwhelmed.

But please don't leave a 5 week old baby to CIO. Even the "experts" who do suggest CIO do not suggest it until the child is at least *6 months* of age. When a 5 week old crys, it is to communciate with you. It's the only way he knows how. And he's not being manipulative, he's communicating a real need.

At 5 weeks old, being held IS a real need. It's a survival instinct! Just 5 weeks ago he was inside you and he could see/hear/feel/taste/smell you every second of every day. Right now, he doesn't fully understand yet that the two of you are different people. He doesn't even fully understand yet that you still exhist when he can't see/hear/feel/taste/smell you.

You're only 5 weeks post-partum. Don't hold yourself to the same standards reguarding cooking and cleaning and such as you had prior to the birth. You're still recovering and adjusting to having a new baby around the house. Let some things slide. Ask for more help from friends and family if needed.

Your girls are 12 and 14? Get THEM to help cook dinner some nights! They are old enough! Set a couple of nights a week where they are in charge of dinner. They are also old enough to help out extra around the house or with laundry and such. Let them know having a new baby in the house is a big job and EVERYONE has to pitch in to help with the adjustment. Don't try to be Supermom.

Get a baby sling or front carrier and wear him while you do things around the house. Then he has the close contact he seems to need but you are free to do other things.

When you do lay him down, try "not letting him feel gravity." Instead of using your arms to lower him from your body down to the crib mattress, lean your body over as close as you can get to the mattress and then slide your arms out from around him. This was the only way to lay my oldest down when he was little. You might also try warming the spot you will put him down with a heating pad or a warm rice sock before you lay him down. (Take it away when you put him down.) Maybe the extra warmth will help him stay asleep.

If he is in a bouncy seat or swing and alert, talk or sing to him while you are doing other stuff.

Multi-task. Help the girls with their homework at the kitchen table while you are cooking.

Shower in the morning before Dad leaves for work or in the evening when he is home to be in charge of the kids.

Where are you trying to have him sleep? Crib? Bassinet? Maybe a smaller space than a big wide open crib would be better for him. Keep him in a bassinet or if you don't have one, put his carseat in his crib and let him sleep in that. Little babies prefer more enclosed spaces and don't want a lot of room....after all, think of their accomadations for the previous 9 months! Also, try swaddling him if you aren't yet. Get the book, "Happiest Baby on the Block" which (I think) is by Dr. Karp.

Try some white noise like a fan in his room or play some gentle music.

Try cosleeping but don't put the baby between you and Dad. Only let the baby sleep on your side of the bed. Get a bed rail or push your side up firmly against the wall. Get a cosleeper. Take one side rail off the crib and wedge the crib between the wall and your side of the bed.

Answer 8

baby girl i have 4 kids and some times as a parent even though it seems wrong and it hurts us we just have to let them cry a little if he was changed feed burp and nothing is wrong . let him cry a little some times baby's become spoiled a little they know that if they cry mommy is gonna come running to the rescues there only way of speaking to us is by crying so that's what there gonna do just make sure that the new milk is doing him good and theres these colick pills really small there white i cant remember the name at this moment but they work really good .they mealt in there mouth so they don't choke on them .but don't worry try rubbing his little feet and tummy ,arms with lotion and lay him straight across you lap and pat his back softly bouncing your legs just enough to kinda rock him see if that works .good news this will stop and you will get to sleep again ................good luck and god bless

Answer 9

I have 2 tips: get a "Snuggle Nest" if you plan on co-sleeping ( it's kind of like a little box that goes in bed with you, baby can't roll out, and you would definitely notice the box before you rolled on it.
The other is to try swaddling him tightly, and laying him next to a warm water bottle. You can try him on top of a heating pad set on low, but you have to be careful with that & remember to shut it off after a few minutes. It sounds like what he misses when you lay him down is the warmth from your body, and the warm water bottle or heating pad will replace that, and cool off slowly enough that he won't notice.
With the colic, if he has a crying fit, try swaddling him, holding him along the lenth of your arm with his head in the palm of your hand, and kind of "jiggle" him. Also give him a pacifier if he takes one, or your clean finger if he doesn't.

Answer 10

your not at all bad ,especially if he went to sleep in just a few minutes. experts say crying for up to 30 minutes is ok and may help development of lungs letting him cry it out may be all he needed ,holding him so he'll sleep is obviously a habit you need to break and you took the first step and he's just fine right. also my baby was just this way shes almost 1yr. now i had to get her to sleep in her baby carrier and then put it into the crib with rolled blankets on all sides( to prevent tipping) and shed sleep for most of the night .this wasn't ideal but it didn't harm anything and we all got a little sleep ......and yes he may just want to be close to you ,but its ok for him to know he will be ok if you put him down.
you can bond with him when you bathe him or feed him or play with him babies need to develope a somewaht of a sleep schedule it good for them.