Getting Baby on a Schedule - Hartsville,SC

Infants should be fed on demand. They are great at knowing what they need, when they need it. As for the napping, look into a sling or a wrap. It keeps them close to you, where it's warm and comforting, and lets you go about doing what you need to do. At this point, putting your son on a schedule would most likely mean lots of crying... which causes stress for you both. And in a baby his size, that stress translates to increase in cortisol (stress hormone), raised blood pressure (not good in anyone), and decreased oxygenation of the blood (which means not as much oxygen getting to the brain, vital in this stage of life). In the words of a very well know lactation consultant, Kitti Franz, "Remember, you're not managing an inconvenience; You're raising a human being."

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I was NEVER able to get any of my kids on a schedule until about 5 to 6 months old. I nursed on demand and when they were tired, they'd sleep ON ME. When my babies are newbies, they only wanted to be near mom, so I wore them. I carried them..yes carried them for their naps. Otherwise, they wouldn't sleep hardly at all during the day. I'd say it's too early for schedules right now.

Mother of 4

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Hey! You are going to get so many different responses on this one! :) Remember these are all just opinions and you have to gauge what is right for your son. You are the best judge for him! :)

In my opinion, 2 months is a great time to start a schedule, especially for a formula-fed baby. Get a copy of "BabyWise" by Ezzo and Bucknam. Most bookstores will have it, as will online bookstores, as well as the library. I found it to be the best guideline on scheduling a baby.

Congratulations and best of luck to you! :)

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As a mom of twins I can tell you being fed on demand does not always work, and it will not be detremental to any child for them to be on a sleep/eat schedule...they are all tied together. That said, 2 months is a little early for that if you are breastfeeding. Our twins came home from the hospital on a schedule of eating every 3-4 hours. We unfortunately could only supplement with breast & gave mostly formula. This could be the reason they went longer. There was hardly any crying and the schedule was less stress all around...we had to wake them at times (I know most say never wake a sleeping baby, but you have to in order to keep them on a schedule & remind them their little bodies need to eat). It is definately too early for the sleep schedule though...ours weren't taking scheduled naps/nighttime until the mid-to-end of three months. We did keep the night feedings dark & quiet, so they knew the difference between night/day. I have also heard that the book Babywise was NOT a good book by the experts. We love Baby 411, and they recommend several different approaches to this...one is a book by Ferber...again this will come in a couple of months from now. Check out "Baby 411" if you can...it was a life saver for us. Good luck no matter what you decide.

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Hi A.,
I'm a person like you who likes schedules. Unfortunately, despite all my efforts, nothing really worked with my two girls until THEY were ready. The good news is that in my experience, babies usually start setting THEMSELVES on a schedule when they are around three or four months old. You'll save yourself a bunch of headaches if you can just be patient and wait a month or two.
But, if you want to attempt it....here's a few things to try. Most babies usually fall asleep 2 hours after they wake in the morning. Try to keep him up until then. Then you'll have another constant everyday. I found that it helped to write down what they did during the day and what time. Then, after a week, I'd look for patterns. I've always found that trying to be consistent about the order of things helps too. For example he wakes up, then immediately eats, then plays for a little while, then sleeps...then do it all over again in the same order all day.
Also, in regards to eating all the time and never knowing when the hunger will strike.....that's so frustrating! I feel your pain as I just went through the same thing with my four month old. Try not to be too rigid because they do go through growth spurts where he'll need to eat VERY often (my daughter ate every two hours 24 hours a day for three days during her two month and four month growth spurt. I thought I would die). Anyway, if he's fussing and he's just eaten, try to see if he's not just tired before you feed him again. Once I figured that one out, my daughter fell into a four hour schedule almost immediately.
Two other things that I've learned the hard way and wished someone had told me with my first (even though you didn't really ask for this advice). When it gets dark outside, make it dark inside...if the lights are on babies have no idea that it's night and time to settle down. The other thing is cuddle your baby until he's almost asleep and then put him down...if he never gets used to being rocked or held to sleep, he won't start expecting it. We eventually had to let my 2 year old cry it out (terrible experience) because she got used to being rocked to sleep. We put my four month old down from day one and it's so much easier for everyone. Anyway, hope this helps. Good luck and enjoy every minute!!!

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You should be aware that "Babywise" has been disavowed by every single pediatric expert, and several children have died (or parents been prosecuted for neglect) while following the Babywise program: http://www.salon.com/life/feature/1998/08/cov_06feature.html

He's an infant, and will not schedule easily this early. You can encourage sleep and a schedule, but you can't make him "comply." It's a tough go at first, but he's the boss right now.

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I would recommend reading Tracy Hogg The Baby Whisperer. We use that and our little guy had an amazing routine by 2 months. Another book that is similar, but a bit more structured is Babywise. Good luck!

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First off, congratulations! Second, it sounds like he has a bit of a schedule, so that's great.

But none of my children were "schedule" people, despite what success stories I heard -- it's probably partially who your child is, because they are definately their own person even at this age.

You cannot at this age get them to "comply" with anything -- their bodies are in charge now, not your willpower, and they will do exactly what their individual body needs, and nothing their body finds "hurtful" or "contraproductive."

So don't stress too much, you've only begun, and please continue feeding on demand, allowing sleep on demand -- around 4 mos, even my unscheduled kids got into their own routines. GOOD LUCK AND GOOD STRENGTH TO YOU:)

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I also think 2 months is a great time to start a scheduel, I also used the book baby wise with both of my children and had excellent results, people always say oh you're so lucky that your baby sleeps thru the night and eats so well, it wasnt just luck it was training. I don't think schedueling your baby is dangerous, unless your baby is sickly, premature, or otherwise unhealthy, many studies have shown that putting your baby on a scheduel helps them thrive & have more confidence and cry less because they know what to expect and wehn to expect it, it helps regulate them into a sleep eat play pattern. The key with doing a scheduel is to be slightly flexible just as long as you are getting your baby into a common routine even experts say that routine is good for children. I say if your interested you should at least read the book.

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I had so many people suggest that I read the book Babywise when I was pregnant & it really worked for me. I started it when my little girl was born & she was sleeping completely through the night by 12 weeks. It basically said to feed your baby every 3 hours during the day & if they were sleeping, to wake them up to feed during the day but to let them sleep at night until they woke up by themselves. The book said the most important thing to remember is that during the day you feed the baby, then have some "playtime" and then put them down for a nap when there's about an hour left before you feed them again. At 2 months, babies still need about 4 naps a day (2 in the morning & 2 in the afternoon). At night, it said to feed them & then put them right back to bed. Keep everything dark and quiet at night so they know the difference between their days and nights.

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You need to learn his signals in order to get his schedule. I did the same thing a month ago where I was feeding the baby and she was hardly eating. Turns out she was just really tired, wanted a pacifier and some sleep. Once I figured out what was hungry and what was sleepy, she started eating full meals and sleeping more. Now at 3 months, I have a happy baby and mama and a pleasant schedule.

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I'd say its too early. At about 10 weeks is when I began to notice a more regular sleeping/napping pattern in my now 5 month old. But it changes...be flexible though because its more in a time range vs a specific time. Enjoy!

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