Should i be concerned if my 6 week old sleeps very little ?

Question

She sleeps no more than 9 hours in a day ...ofcourse in parts .The day naps that i force on her last no longer than 20 minutes .In the night she wakes up with a gap of 2 hours for breastfeeding sessions.

I have hyper lactation.

Falls asleep easily when i am holding her ,but wakes up as soon as i keep her down.

Answer 1

That may get better in time. My friend's daughter didn't start to sleep through the night until she started solid foods as well.

Answer 2

My daughter, who is now 22 months old was exactly the same. She would never, ever go down to sleep unless she was being held by me. I found it really frustrating and was so worried about her lack of sleep (it totalled only about 8 hours a day in short bursts) that I asked my health visitor if she thought there was something wrong with her. She told me it was unusual, but there are lots of babies that are like that. Luckily, a friend of mine recommended a book called "When your baby cries" by Deborah Jackson, which made me feel like less of a freak! You might find it helps as well.

If it's any consolation, my own research amongst friends etc with babies the same age found that the ones that are breast fed seem to wake up a lot more often. It's probably because that is what is natural, as opposed to the ones who have formula, which is padded out with bulking agents, which makes them feel fuller and sleep longer. A lot of the previous answerers have hit the nail on the head - my daughter didn't start sleeping for reasonably long periods of time until she was weaned. I suspect that the food filled her up for longer periods.

In the end, I resorted to using a sling to carry my daughter around. It meant that I could do stuff around the house and keep her quiet at the same time. I also put her cot right next to my bed and slept holding her hand, which seemed to calm her down a lot and gave me a chance to get some sleep at night. After careful consideration, you might also want to consider bed-sharing at night. I also did this with my daughter and while there are risks, it something that is done in many cultures around the world. Deborah Jackson also wrote a good book on bed sharing called "Three in a bed". The NHS website has advice about the do's and don'ts of bed-sharing.

Good luck - don't forget this bit doesn't last very long and no matter how tired you are now it does get better I promise!

Answer 3

my daughter was the same way. She rarely napped and was up lots at night. Nothing to be concerned about unless you think there is something troubling her or wrong with her. Some babies sleep more than others, those are the fortunate ones.

Answer 4

My son never slept for more than 2hours in one go until he started on solid food. Wouldnt worry too much about it as long as she is feeding ok.

Answer 5

speaking from experiance our daughter was the same, it get better as they get older some kids just dont sleep much untill they start school.

Answer 6

that's why after my first child i swore i would never breast feed again every 2hrs round the clock had me exhausted, but it does get better and its nothing to worry about

Answer 7

phew! poor you i wonder how you keep going. Sounds like she is hungry baby and wants to know it all. no suggestions am afraid just speak to your H/V

Answer 8

Give her a shot of Jack. That will knock her out.

Answer 9

maybe your child is getting hungry speak to your doctor and see if they can suggest something if your that worried about it

Answer 10

yes coz then you do not get any sleep.