Please HELP! We have a 5 week old baby girl and compared to our 2yr old boy shes a nightmare. We cant get her into any sort of routine, her feeds are all over the place, she will go from a couple of ounces to 5 ounces, she is gaining weight and filling her nappies tho. She hardly sleeps and when she does its for a max of 3 - 4 hours. then shes awake for 6 - 7 hours. weve tryed everything we know and have run out of ideas, so any tips or advice would be much appreciated.
2007-01-21 00:48:45 · 20 answers · asked by Mad Dog 1 in Pregnancy & Parenting ➔ Newborn & Baby
Hi
1st congratulations!
As some of the others have said all baies are different and it does take a while to get into a routine.
Our baby girl was a dream and quickly got into a routine after she got home and still sleeps well. My friends baby is a boy and still doesn't sleep all the way through and is nearly a year.
She sounds like she is doing well if she is active alert, putting on weight and having wet and dirty nappies.
I would have a chat with your HV and explain your concerns
Good luck x
2007-01-24 23:31:12 · answer #1 · answered by lovelylittlemoo 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Give her time, she is only 5 weeks old! I have a little girl too, now 14 weeks old and she was exactly like what you're describing. It tok me 2 months of that before I decided right, its time to take control. After 2 months I put her on the milk which was the next stage up (which I wouldn't recommend for your baby at the mo as she still needs frequent feeds to fill her tiny tummy) and decided on a bedtime (around 9-10pm) and was amazed to find that she slept all night! It took a few attempts and a lot of patience but now she sleeps all night and wakes up at around 8pm the next day. I always find giving her a feed just before bedtime seems to do the trick too. It will happen eventually I'm sure.
The best of luck!
2007-01-21 01:15:35 · answer #2 · answered by Louise B 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I had a girl first and she was a dream baby, then came the boy lol 14 months later and that child did not sleep for more then 2 hours at a time for 9 1/2 months. I know others that have had it worse. Hang in there, before you know it ,they will be all grown up and you will be wishing for the days that they needed you so much : )
2007-01-21 01:43:09 · answer #3 · answered by ladydaisy 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Try to relax. Your first child adapted to the outside world easily, your second shild is simply having a more difficult transition. As long as she continues to gain weight and fill her diapers, you have nothing to worry about.
Some babies are resistant to following any sort of schedule - the term used to describe this is simply "irregular" and it applies to eating and sleeping patterns. If mantaining a schedule is important to you, you might just have to tolerate more fussing and crying that you did with your first child. If you can be flexible and go with the irregular routine, you might have a more content baby. You have to decide what will work best for your family.
Now that you know there is nothing physically wrong, perhaps you can relax and get some rest. Good luck to all of you!
2007-01-21 01:12:49 · answer #4 · answered by not yet 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
all babies are different.Try keeping her awake more in the day.Then leading up to bath tome, try and make her environment calm so she knows its winding down time. Bath her about 8 o clock, give her her bedtime feed, read her a story (shel learn to associate this with bedtime), then put her down to sleep. When she wakes for feeds, dont talk to her or play with her. Make the light in the room dim (i put the lamp on behind the settee). She will then learn to distinuish between day and night. It may take time, but it should work! My son stopped waking for feeds at 9 weeks, and thats what i did!
Good luck, let me know how she goes!
2007-01-21 00:57:10 · answer #5 · answered by Mich 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋
She is only 5 weeks old. Give her a chance. Sometimes it takes awhile to establish a routine. It has nothing to do with her being a girl, it is just her nature. She will settle into a routine eventually. Just sleep when you can, it does get better:) Congrats on the new baby!!
2007-01-21 00:53:26 · answer #6 · answered by Shawn 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
people have the common misconception that baby girls are different or worse than baby boys but its not that way at all, it just depends on the baby.
unfortunately alot of babies are like this and you are lucky if you get one that sleeps all the time. I take you are bottle feeding? Maybe you should talk to your health visitor about whether or not the milk she is on is okay or if you should change it. If you have already done this then your just going to have try and relax and get used to it until she gets older.
Sorry if this hasn't helped.
2007-01-21 01:28:40 · answer #7 · answered by angelcakes 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Sounds like the thing that needs to be worked on is your attitude towards your daughter. She's a BABY! What you're describing is NORMAL!
Though it sounds as if she's formula fed, correct? That could be upsetting her tummy. Try ensuring she has breastmilk, you may see a HUGE difference.
Beyond that, calm down and enjoy your baby!
2007-01-21 01:21:59 · answer #8 · answered by reereebsm 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Hi,
Firstly i think its not just girls its babies in general, My first was a nightmare did exactly the same as your bubba, my second was a veritable angel, all bubbas are different, I think the best thing you can do is grin and bare it and it will get better! Both od mine were girls my sister had both boys and first was bad and second was good, her 3rd is a girl and is an angel!
Rx
2007-01-21 01:12:48 · answer #9 · answered by Renee 2 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Try to make sure she doesn't fall asleep while you are feeding her, make sure she gets almost the full 5oz, that may help her sleep longer.
No 2 babies are the same, your first basically spoilt you LOL...welcome to parenthood the 2nd time round :)
2007-01-21 04:17:09 · answer #10 · answered by debs1701 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋