Sleeping at Night - Atlanta,GA

They are all different. Try to be patient and keep trying different things - is she warm enough? too warm? That really effected my kids sleeping. Is she getting enough to eat at each feeding? Maybe try swaddling again? It can be frustrating, but it will improve. Hang in there!

Sorry momma, your friends are wrong. Breastfed babies digest their food a lot quicker then formula fed babies. That means more waking at night. However let me say this, my formula fed babies woke just as much as my breastfed babies. Your baby is 7 weeks old, nowhere near close to have any real schedule with any real length.

Some babies do, some momma's get very lucky, but on average most babies are doing what your little one is doing.

There is no "should" per an infant. If that were true, then ALL and every single 7 week old infant would be sleeping the same. But they don't.
Each baby is different. And their metabolism of intake.

I exclusively breastfed both my kids. They had GINORMOUS appetites, and I had tons of milk produced, and I would nurse them on both breasts each session and they would drink me dry.... and I nursed on-demand per their cues, and day and night they nursed anywhere from 1 hour to 3 hours all day and all night.
Also remember, that developmentally, an infant will also "cluster feed." This means, they feed even every single hour, and this is normal. Thus, you need to nurse, by their cues. It reflects their intake needs, which cannot be predicted by a clock.

You nurse, on demand, when baby needs to.
And yes, this includes during the night too.

Infants nap often. But, they all nap/sleep differently.
Some need absolutely NO noise, and some can sleep through noise.
Some need the same routine everyday, and some can sleep even if in a stroller or on the go. My kids... would not and could not, sleep/nap anywhere, except at home in their crib. I KNEW that. So I was home whenever it was nap time and bedtime.
I nursed each time, before a nap. And then after they woke.

Your infant, is normal. Normal, Normal.
Having an infant means no sleep for Mom.
Because, we have to nurse them.
And a baby needs to nurse, when they need to nurse. Not by a clock.

A baby, will typically get tired and need a nap, after about 2 hours of being awake. Even a bath at this age, is an activity for them and they get tired.
When an infant is over-tired or over-stimulated as well, it will make it hard for them to sleep.
So the bottom line is: know your baby's cues... for tiredness and hunger.

Your baby is only 7 weeks. They do not, have a set way of things yet.
All this time, they were in your womb. Now they are not. It takes adjusting. Adjusting for baby and Mom.

Just a tip: using a pacifier to get a baby to sleep... can also interfere with a baby's need for nursing. In other words, a baby may be HUNGRY and then be restless or wake because of it... but if you stick a pacifier in their mouth instead, they will STILL be hungry. A pacifier does not, replace... feedings or a need for a feeding. So you need to discern, that aspect as well.

The reason for swaddling is: a baby naturally has a "startle reflex." They have NO control over their limbs or motor movements. Thus when they move around, they wake. BUT, this is just their reflexes. No baby sleeps still as a statue. BUT so swaddling... makes a baby all wrapped up to lessen their movements/startle reflex... and thus, for some babies, they sleep better this way. But not all babies like to be swaddled. My daughter liked it, my son HATED it.
Each baby, is different.
So you need to know your infant's cues and needs.

BUT the bottom line is: even if you swaddle or give a pacifier... you STILL need to wake when baby wakes, and nurse baby. Day and night.
They need intake, and this is developmental and per their growth needs. They need a certain amount of intake, daily, night and day.

Your friends are wrong.

well, your friends are wrong.
most 7 week olds still wake every 1-2hrs.

remember her tummy is only as big as her fist,not much fits in there.
keep feeding her on demand and making sure she's getting enough and sleeping more will happen in her own time.

Get the book Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child by Dr. Marc Weissbluth. It is a great help when it comes to infant sleep. I recommend it to EVERYONE on here with sleep issues! :-)

Also, it might sound silly, but have you tried having her sleep in her car seat or in a bouncer or swing (not in motion)? I found, with my son, that he slept better those first few weeks being propped rather than laying flat.

Get the book - It is a HUGE help!! :-)

You might want to speak with your ped/ lactation consultant. Our baby had "colic". He would cry incessantly, while being held, while feeding, and would sleep only for short stints.

I suspect part of the problem is that we were BFding too often, as often as every hour. (My MIL who grew up in an era where you were to feed only every 4 hours and not a minute earlier, would tell me that the baby was hungry. I a first time momma, defered to her advice, probably a mistake).

Feeding too frequently can have its downsides. 1. baby doesn't have a chance to digest. 2. baby is gassy and uncomfortable. 3. baby can't sleep well because they are uncomfortable. 4. baby can't sleep well because they have been crying and are actually hungry again. 5. baby gets fed again, but they fall asleep while feeding, never getting the richer more satisfying hind milk. WASH RINSE REPEAT.

If you can't go to a lactation consultant, consider doing the following.
1. don't mistake every cry as a cry for hunger.
2. if baby is fussy, and seems hungry, try playing pass the baby where you each take turns with a fussy baby for 5-10 minutes, trying to extend the time between feeds.
3. Aim to feed no more than every 2 or 3 hours at a time. The feeds and the sleep will improve if there's a bit more space between them.

Good luck to you and yours,
F. B.

What I used to do is lay a heavy blanket on my sons chest of course it was winter n that seemed to help, I'd also place a heating pad in his crib where I would lay him to warm up his spot n take it out as soon as I put him down cause the warmth of me to a cold bed would wake him up n as I payed him down in his warm crib I would just settle him bk to sleep... Good luck

Get the book, read some things, try everything! I know you are exhausted. My 1st was a terrible sleeper. At almost 3 months I brought him home from church and he slept 3 hours. I wanted to wake him up to see if he was ok because he never slpt that long! I think, looking back that it was reflux. Propping him up might make it better but mine hated the swing. I tried the vacuum cleaner for white noise and it worked so we taped it! But when we shut it off he cried. There is a guy who is an expert at swaddling and shushing the baby to sleep, kind of a baby whisperer, try to google it. Pretty loud shushing because that's how loud it was in utero. We tried putting my son on top of the dryer in a carrier, didnt work. Heck there were times I wanted to put him IN the dryer, just kidding! But do remember there are times you need to put her down and walk away. Take a shower, call a friend a neighbor, a family member, I called my pastor's wife! Don't try to do it all. She will get through this. This too shall pass.