[help] infant/toddler cannot sleep

[xlionelx]

Hi all mummies!

Im helping my wife to post this and seek help & advice. Really hope someone can help especially if you have been in the same situation before.

My toddler is 5 weeks old now. She’s having difficulty getting herself to sleep. We have tried all these methods after feeding formula / breastfeed:
1) swaddle
2) play shoosh sound from YouTube and we also tried to use our mouth to make the sound
3) play lullaby from YouTube
4) play bed time story from YouTube
5) cradle and rock about gently (her eyes kept looking at me the whole time like wondering what I’m doing instead of trying to sleep)

My wife and I tried all these methods above but baby girl still not sleeping. Currently, the only way she gets to sleep is .. cradle to breastfeed then let her feed till she naturally sleep .. so my wife have to like almost 24 hours / 7 days hold her in cradle position but we know that’s not sustainable coz she’s getting very heavy.

any mummies faced the same situation as us before? Can help advice what u did to resolve the situation to help baby sleep easier on her own / sleep on her back? We really about to go crazy coz can’t troubleshoot this problem ..

many thanks in advance!

 

[CupofTea]

Congratulations on your little one

Babies cannot fall asleep on their own from birth, and it is completely normal for them to nurse or be held to sleep. They also take a few weeks to understand day-night differences.

Your best chance is to persist with a bedtime routine (dim light at night, then story, swaddle, feed then pat etc). The baby will soon associate those cues with sleep. Mom can also try other comfortable nursing positions that don't strain her back and allow her some rest. As a last resort, if you're really desperate and breastfeeding is well established, you can introduce a pacifier if you think baby is associating sleep with suckling.

The newborn phase is always the hardest, take turns and pull through it. Baby is learning her way around the world too, and you may be surprised at her pace in a few weeks

 

[xlionelx]

Thanks for the advice!

okay, will try to persist a bedtime routine and see if it works. All other methods not working so no harm trying your advice.

pacifier not working also .. she will just spit it out .. =/

this phase is really really very tough .. how long will this take? Roughly first 6 months? Haha

 

[CupofTea]

Thanks for the advice!

okay, will try to persist a bedtime routine and see if it works. All other methods not working so no harm trying your advice.

pacifier not working also .. she will just spit it out .. =/

this phase is really really very tough .. how long will this take? Roughly first 6 months? Haha

Haha the sleeping gets better by 2-3 months for most babies. Hang in there

 

[Uptheair]

Hi all mummies!

Im helping my wife to post this and seek help & advice. Really hope someone can help especially if you have been in the same situation before.

My toddler is 5 weeks old now. She’s having difficulty getting herself to sleep. We have tried all these methods after feeding formula / breastfeed:
1) swaddle
2) play shoosh sound from YouTube and we also tried to use our mouth to make the sound
3) play lullaby from YouTube
4) play bed time story from YouTube
5) cradle and rock about gently (her eyes kept looking at me the whole time like wondering what I’m doing instead of trying to sleep)

My wife and I tried all these methods above but baby girl still not sleeping. Currently, the only way she gets to sleep is .. cradle to breastfeed then let her feed till she naturally sleep .. so my wife have to like almost 24 hours / 7 days hold her in cradle position but we know that’s not sustainable coz she’s getting very heavy.

any mummies faced the same situation as us before? Can help advice what u did to resolve the situation to help baby sleep easier on her own / sleep on her back? We really about to go crazy coz can’t troubleshoot this problem ..

many thanks in advance!

Did you try checking if her wake time was appropriate for her age? In the event you miss that sleepy window, she might just get overtired and makes it tough to fall asleep. That is the best bet why she is always looking at you despite trying to get her to sleep.

Mummy can also try to put her down for sleeps once she falls asleep if cradling is the only way which works so that mummy can get some rest. It will take a while for you to catch her tired cues and then put her down for sleep or help her to sleep. Help her by giving her a conducive environment to signal sleep like suggested, a routine. It could be a standardise set of stuff like a changing nappy, darkened room, lullaby and a kiss to sleep. She will learn but not immediately so you just have to persist.

Afterall, she is only 5 weeks old. Don’t be too hard on her and yourselves. Even acclimating to a new job, we need more than 5 weeks, so that is definitely an uphill task for new parents and a newborn.