Baby is now 2-6 weeks old. I'm afraid to say you will probably still be in the WTF-period. Everyone goes on about how 6 weeks is a massive turning point. I remember sitting in the pub with a friend and a nice cup of tea (hmmm, okay, it was wine) at this point with both of us shattered and confused wondering where this miraculous 6 week turning point would happen (at 6.5 weeks!) ... Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but it doesn't just happen. Maybe at about 8-10 weeks you'll suddenly realise you're a bit more on the ball and a bit more confident about how to deal with baby. And then gradually your confidence will get stronger and you'll look back and see what people meant. But please don't expect this big cloud lifting - it didn't for me and you're perfectly normal if it hasn't for you.
Other infurating questions your co-nct-ers and co-parenting class people may say 'do you do tummy time?', 'do you have nappy off time?' and/or 'has your baby gone through yet?' ... If answer is no to all the above - DON'T WORRY. Sod them. None of these really matter at the moment and you could drive yourself bonkers if you're trying to keep up with the Joneses. For me, I was now getting into my 3-hour feeding routine (and just to be clear to those who may wonder - it's 3 hours from when you started the feed. So if you started the feed at 10am but it took 50 minutes to do, still start the next feed at 1pm). You can play along with your peers at a later date when it's more relevant! For now, just nod and go home, panic with your partner that you haven't done it and then remember it doesn't matter for now!
Baby may settle brilliantly in the day but not in the evening, or vice versa - but if you aim for your routine, you're also helping to sleep train baby. Oh yes, that old adage that will freak out earth mothers - baby is small and young but it doesn't do any harm getting into a routine now to help baby know when they should sleep. I'm sure some bo-ho mothers will disagree, but it's worked for me brilliantly and after all, this blog is all about me, so there we go!
Oh, and colic is another that comes into play here. Does baby have colic? Is baby crying A LOT in the evenings? One point to mention here about winding - wind and wind and wind some more. Even after baby has done a huge burp and isn't seemingly going to burp anymore - keep patting and rubbing for another. You might be surprised the noises that come up 2-3 minutes after you wanted to stop. And please remember this time of day - i.e. it's late afternoon/evening. If you've been up at 7am doing your 3-hourly times, baby will be exhausted by now. She's tired and needs lots of sleep. She's probably feeding to settle herself more and more. And this is one point where the overfeeding comment in my previous post does slightly contradict itself ... one piece of advice I found invaluable was from Gina (I hated her less at this point!) - if you find yourself feeding every hour/90 mins just to help settle baby in the evening - you're not allowing baby's tummy time to digest everything. So she may have wind/tummy cramps just trying to allow it all to get through her system. Maybe try not feeding through the evening but try a little water? Or try a cuddle and a nappy change? We did this and after 2 days the constant crying had subsided and I realised that my theory about sleep training was right again - yes yes, some may feel you can't sleep train a 6 week old - I don't mean leaving them to cry by any stretch of the imagination - I just mean if your mind thinks you're sleep training, you'll be less likely to resort to feeding to settle and more likely to find something else to help them settle. Then feed them at 10pm (or whenever your 3 hour routine takes you to) and see them take a massive, satisfying feed, that they're ready for.
Does that last bit makes sense?! I hope so - it does to me, but it's easier to understand in hindsight. Do ask questions if it doesn't and you're not sure ... And of course, if baby is crying chronically for other reasons, do speak to your health visitor or GP (obviously the latter - still can't bring myself to contact the former as they offer no help to me whatsoever) - maybe there's something else to be looking out for.
I still have no 'views' - maybe someone, somewhere, will come across this soon ...! Fingers crossed. Am interested to know if this is of any help/use/interest to someone/anyone!
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