Newborn strange sleep problem

Chuchu

Hi All... this may not be as unusual a problem than I think once I get some experienced parent feedback!! But at the moment my OH and are are just headwrecked.
We have a 3 week old newborn who doesn't appear to be suffering too badly from wind. During the day she is napping in between feeds no problem at all, in the cari cot in the pram in whatever room I'm in.
Anyway the problem is this... she just will not settle at night in our room, we thought initially is was cause she was lying flat and maybe had reflux, we've tried both the moses basket and I even got a crib the other day thinking it was the moses basket... but still no joy, she struggles and squirms when we lie her down at night even after we think she is well winded, she makes wheezy noises too which are quite worrying (again doesn't do this during the day). Once she is lifted it stops and OH discovered last night once she is put in the cari cot in the pram at night she seems to settle too... the pram has a slight tilt... could this be it? Or that its a bit more snug? Or could it possibly be that it is dark in colour and the others are not? Anybody else have this strange sleep problem? We are at a lose end and need some sleep so apologies for long post!!:o

loismustdie

id ask your phn, your sure to be seein her soon? you hav thought all possibiilities through and they all seem possible, is the room she is in at night very dark? and what temperature is it? sorry can't be more help but you seem to hav done al the ruling our yourselves. maybe let her sleep in pram at night if it means you get sleep? or put lots of blankets to the side of moses basket to make her more snug and black out the windows?

Nevyn

They say a flat surface for new borns so that their head will even out.
But I found that with my first he didn't settled pretty much as you described and
I found that folding up a baby cardigan and putting under the head of mattress of the moses basket gave just enough of an incline that he would settle and sleep.

Chuchu

Thanks guys for replies... yeah getting her weighed on Wed so will ask nurse then for sure... also will try cardigan idea, just the slight incline might do the trick! Its all so mad and such a learning curve for us! She was an emergency C-section so was inclined in the hospital for the first few nights dues to mucus so that's why I'm thinking along those lines, complete coincidence that the pram is on a slight incline.

loismustdie

if your baba already had a mucus problem then i'd say the incline is definitely pivotol, to stop the mucus gettin clogged up. the cardigan idea is brilliant for this and has been tried an tested by previous poster whcih is always nice

laughingtoaster

my sister used to put a phone book under the top legs of the cot - I've heard this from a number of other people too.

hang in there - it does get easier (eventually )

Moonbeam

Maybe it is because it is a strange please,rather then putting clean sheets and blankets in try putting the ones from her pram in and one it is familiar she might settle.

Congrats on the new baby:)

Eoineo

Congrats!

If it is an incline that the baby needs to settle there is a wedge you can get in most babystores - it's also meant to prevent flat head. I got on in Sm***, cost €25. It can be used up to 6 months and has blocks on either side to encourage the baby to lie in a correct position on their back.

We used 2 large books on either foot of the cot to tilt it as our baby had reflux so needed to be on an incline but you can get "cot blocks" as well. Saves stubbing your toe on large cookbooks in the middle of the night.

Have you tried settling the baby to sleep in the cot during the day at all? If you are up to putting the baby in the bedroom for every second nap they might get more used to it too.

PullOutMethod

You might try the Slumber Bear.

Basically the idea is that the baby has been in a noisy environment for 9 months.
Mothers heartbeat specifically is quite loud in the uterus.
It is very alien for the baby to adjust to a quiet room.

Chuchu

These are all great suggestions thanks, will be giving them a try over the next while as she's still hard to settle even with the incline... I've become a bit of a dummy catcher over the past day or two as that now seems to be the only thing to settle her... ah the great dummy debate, I swore I'd only use it in moderation but whatever works is the stage we're at!!

leisurelady

Hi,

I have read all the replies and everything I would suggest has been said, the only thing that has not been mentioned which I do myself and always have (I have 3 1/2 year and 4month old) is to swaddled them as they like the comfort and snugness, appartently makes them feel safe.

Hope one of the suggestions work and you get a good night sleep before too long.

One other suggestion is to take it in turns at the weekend to have a night off and sleep in the spare room and the other half looks after baby so at least you both get the chance/turn of a goods night sleep which is so important.

Good luck.

Voltex

Hi OP...funny we had the same problem with our second child. He was grand all through the day..but as soon as he was put down for the night it all kciked off.
Its very hard indeed...have you maybe tried giving her a feed just before bed?...maybe the sense of a full belly may help induce sleep?

I totally feel for you...and as many have said it does get eaiser..although that maybe of little help to you right now.

Hope all works out for you.

run_Forrest_run

this sounds oh so familiar! Our first had problems with mucus and we tilted the head of the mattress too, probably helped but to be honest with ya, time will work its magic (not much help when you want some sleep NOW I know!).

We have a 8 week old little lad now and he's a bit of a tricky one to settle at night too...what is it with the lil characters, they may not know much but they seem to have some innate ability to tell when the two fools (aka mammy & daddy) want to get some sleep

Chuchu

Hi guys thanks again for the tips... I forgot I even put this thread up... she's 5 and a half weeks now and I'm afraid to say that things have been worse and we've had very little sleep these past few weeks other than when 'nanny 911' gives us a night off (we're very lucky I know!! both sets of grandparents only too happy to help!)
Anyway we now know what it is, but there's very little we can do other than what one poster suggested.... sit it out and it'll be better by 3 mths!! She has VERY bad down wind... plain old farts to you and me! She just struggles and strains to get them out and always at night like clockwork and most of the night the poor pet, hardly ever during the day. We have tried everything, but as a last resort we have moved to Aptimal easy digest and as a very last resort we will try Dr Browns bottles next week if its the same... there's so much on the market for 'up' wind and colic but nothing for flatulence (sp?) anyway as one of my friends put it; by the time you think you've found a solution she'll be 3 mths her system will have settled and it'll be a thing of the past.... here's hoping (nods off on laptop keyboard!!:D)

Nevyn

Are you breast feeding? if so it could be somethingin your diet.
If you are not breast feeding then have you tried changing the forumula you have her on?

Wizard007

Have you tryed using one of those anti-colic bottles. They are some on www.mothercare.com Alot of people find them very good.

Cordner

Get the Dr Brown Bottles!!! My DD was the exact same- lots of wind moving downwards- unsettled sleep etc- first time I gave her a Dr Brown Bottle she slept for so long during the day I called my mum- I was worried she was sleeping too much!! (Spent 6 weeks thinking she was sleeping too little!!). They are expensive but worth it- we saw immediate results. Buy a two pack and see if they work for you but I can tell you if I go for no2 I will be using them from day 1!

Chuchu

Thanks guys... ok got the bottles, now quick Q, considering that less air is meant to get in there with these, how much winding do you do/burps do you get up during a feed on one of these bottles... the same as with regular ones??

wolfpawnat

There should be less wind. I used infacol and the Dr.Browns with my little fella, who as a coincidence was also an emergency c-section and has very bad breathing at night still (8 months old now).

They are very slow bottles so some children get cranky at the speed, so dont mistake that for wind! They are a godsend!

Cordner

I agree there should be less wind- my DD just used to get one good burp after a Dr B Bottle. You can get different size teats, so slow feeding shouldnt be a problem. Best of luck- I would say you will see a real difference.
Funny you say it- my DD was also an emergency C section- and to this day gets mucus at night when she has the hint of a cold- never connected the two before... having said that she is a sturdy wee madam, after we changed the bottles we never looked back. (she hated infacol & spat it out no matter what we did)

Eoineo

For a small baby you wind every 2/3 oz. For a larger baby (under 6 months old) you wind halfway through the bottle. Once they can sit up unaided then generally they will wind themselves - ah the joys!

Darthhoob

my eldest slept in his bouncy chair for the first few weeks, he didn't really have bad wind during the day, and slept alot like your little one, but seemed to at night...possibly felt like heartburn..a slight tilt helps. when he was about 6 weeks old he slept in his moses, all night.

i was advised to do this by the visiting midwife/healthvisitor and it worked. though it would be best to talk to your HV bout it

JimsAlterEgo

Eoineo wrote: »

Congrats!

If it is an incline that the baby needs to settle there is a wedge you can get in most babystores - it's also meant to prevent flat head. I got on in Sm***, cost €25. It can be used up to 6 months and has blocks on either side to encourage the baby to lie in a correct position on their back.

We used 2 large books on either foot of the cot to tilt it as our baby had reflux so needed to be on an incline but you can get "cot blocks" as well. Saves stubbing your toe on large cookbooks in the middle of the night.

Have you tried settling the baby to sleep in the cot during the day at all? If you are up to putting the baby in the bedroom for every second nap they might get more used to it too.

where SM***?
Pm if you don't want to post!

thks

Billiejo

Chuchu wrote: »

Hi All... this may not be as unusual a problem than I think once I get some experienced parent feedback!! But at the moment my OH and are are just headwrecked.
We have a 3 week old newborn who doesn't appear to be suffering too badly from wind. During the day she is napping in between feeds no problem at all, in the cari cot in the pram in whatever room I'm in.
Anyway the problem is this... she just will not settle at night in our room, we thought initially is was cause she was lying flat and maybe had reflux, we've tried both the moses basket and I even got a crib the other day thinking it was the moses basket... but still no joy, she struggles and squirms when we lie her down at night even after we think she is well winded, she makes wheezy noises too which are quite worrying (again doesn't do this during the day). Once she is lifted it stops and OH discovered last night once she is put in the cari cot in the pram at night she seems to settle too... the pram has a slight tilt... could this be it? Or that its a bit more snug? Or could it possibly be that it is dark in colour and the others are not? Anybody else have this strange sleep problem? We are at a lose end and need some sleep so apologies for long post!!:o

PHN> May say> Look at all possibilities and disregard ones which dont apply.

Firstly. New babies like and thrive with skin to skin contact. Also the constant smell of mother. Breast milk smells like Vanilla.
Is she a breast fed baby. If so try leaving a hanky smeared with breast milk near her to enable her to feel Mom is near.
Is the night crib warm. Is the bedroom too warm. > Dry air will cause her nasal secretions to dry up thus making her irritable and her breathing sound like tissuepaper.
Does her day time crib/chair have any rock/swing/motion/or tilt. This is what she will expect and very habit forming. Even to this age she may be happy with her day time habitat.
Its ok to raise the mattress a little but not to use a pillow. Also make sure her feet are to the bottom of the cot.
When does she have her daily bath. If its before bedtime change it to morning and visa versa.

Billiejo

Forgot to say. Not strange at all. Hear it every day.

Eoineo

JimsAlterEgo wrote: »

where SM***?
Pm if you don't want to post!

thks

Large Irish-owned Toystore chain, begins in S - ends in THS. I got mine in Drogheda but I have seen them on sale in Swords as well.

Chuchu

Hey just thought I'd post an update as this was quite an old post, but thanks for all the advise. Our 7 month old is now sleeping great (but hope I've not jinxed it by typing this!!) we finally got the the bottom of it and it was silent reflux after all, she has been on infant gaviscon and we are now weaning her off it as her solids are increasing. But I have to say, esp as we are now in this new forum (great idea btw) once they get to 4 or 5 months it all gets so much easier, its just when you're in the middle of it all in those early days it seems like it'll never end! We're just so lucky to have our healthy happy little one, sleeping through or not.
PS we did stick with the Dr B bottles so they may have helped with the down wind too