Is it ok to encourage sleeping like this?

[PinkPalace]

Well little Ashley is home and her sleeping patterns are different from the hospital at night... it is quite confusing.

ATM she sleeps around 2 hrs at a time during the day. She will wake, have a feed and then it takes around 30minutes to burp and settle her (sometimes she will be happily awake without needing the settling but generally as she gets sleepier she needs settling to fall asleep).

At home i have her sleeping in a portable carry cocoon (the one with a hard base, soft sides and handles you can pick up) and she sleeps soundly. HOwever come to about 9pm at night when we go to go to bed and put her in the bassinett she is a mess. She takes sometimes an hour to settle, sometimes i need to do a feed (about 30minutes) and then burp then try to settle her whilst holding or on my lap etc - if this doesnt work she will usually settle after another small comfort feed. HOwever as soon as i put her in the bassinett she cries or will sleep for 20minutes and cry uncontrollably. She doesnt do this at all during the day - it doesnt make sense.

I find i have to feed her more frequently during the night just o settle her - is the the right thing to do. And the only way i can get an hour of full sleep is if i let her fall asleep with me in bed - either during a side feed (when we both fall alseep) or on my belly.
She doesnt oversleep during the day - still demand feeds about ever 2-3 hrs.

Does anyone else have this problem or any suggestions or solutions.
I wonder if it is the bassinett? It has a sheepskin under the sheet - would the softness of it stop her from falling asleep compared to the hard mattresses in the cocoon and hospital bassinets? SHould i remove it?

Can i put the cocoon in the bassinett and see if she will sleep in it (even though it has soft sides?)
Should i just co-sleep overnight?
Also she only seems to poo overnight /late at night (2-3 pooy nappies)... so i wonder if the wind and discomfort of pooing keeps her up.....
Is there anything that we can do to change the cycle?

I am a little confused as you can tell and would appreciate advice!

thanks everyone

[PinkPalace]

Thanks Caro. IT is so hard to know what is the RIGHT thing to do when it comes to bub i guess. And i guess the change in her mood from day to night is so vast!

[~Raven~]

And i guess the change in her mood from day to night is so vast!

Absolutley and remember that they don't know the difference between day and night.

Babies usually have an unsettled cycle. Angus was at 10pm for a feed or two and Caleb was from about 3am to 5am (my little morning feral man I called him )
There isn't much you can do to tweak this. Just live by her routine for a bit and sleep during the day when she does.

You could try sleeping her on a firmer surface. I found the opposite in that situation though. A huge nappy blowout resulted in me having to wash the underlay and for the few days it was off the cot Caleb was very restless. When I put it back on he slept better.

If you're comfortable with co sleeping then give that a try. I co slept for the first couple of weeks till DH went back to work.

[Snacks]

Hang in there, Princessmya! You are doing a great job.
I think it was our fourth night that I nearly lost the plot - Natalie was crying and crying and so was I, LOL. DH had his hands full that night One of my nurses said that babies can be a bit 'angry' the first few days as they try to work out what's going on. I don't know about 'angry', but certainly I found after a few days Natalie settled down a bit more. (Though she still was unsettled most evenings before bedtime.)
So just keep on plugging away. If you want to try different things to settle Ashley, like the cocoon inside the bassinett (as long as its safe - is the bass big enough?) then give it a go.
I know some people on BB swear by baby hammocks for sleeping in too - I reckon I'm going to get one for my next baby. That could be worth a try?
Perhaps it is her digestive system that's unsettling her, but if so, she will get used to it... There's nothing you can do to change when she poos
Does Ashley like bathing? You could always jump in the bath with her...

[PinkPalace]

Thanks girls. I asked my early discharge MW the same questions and she has said mostly the same as all of you. Even suggested bathing her in the middle of the night too snacks! lol
We are going to try putting the cocoon in the basinett, our MW said that she probably doesnt feel secure in the size of the bassinett (even thou she is wrapped tight and it is smaller than the cot) and that the cocoon should be safe as she doesnt move much as a little catapillar!. So we are going to give it a try tonight ... fingers crossed!

[widdly]

if it were me i would just let her sleep in the cocoon at night and see if that works, Archie perferred his cocoon to his bed at that age too.

Goodluck sounds like u are doing a wonderful job!

PS Just read your birth story, what an adventurous and most perfect birth, well done.

[MelH]

Hi PrincesMya,

We have the exact thing happening here. The only bits of sleep I'm getting at night is with Tyler sleeping on me while I'm half propped up on the lounge with a rug and pillow. He hasn't slept well at night since he was born. I figure sleeping like that is better than no sleep. We did the same thing with Dylan in the early days as it was the only way to settle him too. It ended up passing and he was a great sleeper eventually. I was wondering if I just have less milk at night too since it is still early days.

[Snacks]

Wishing your babies lots of sleepy vibes! Hope tonight is better

[PinkPalace]

Hi Mel H!

Well i saw your little one was born on the 8th in a very spectualar quick entrance too!
COngratulations!

Talking of milk. My milk came in within 24 hrs and I am sure Ashley is getting enough as my breasts feel drained (and so much more comfy) after the feed. And she was bareweighed this morning and she has put on 30grams! yay... The doctors were worried about her putting on weight but she is doing so well.

I am looking forward to trying the cocoon tonight. ! :P

Arent they just so gorgeous at this stage (and can you believe they are coming up to 1 week old! wow!).

[Lilly-Pilly]

What a gorgeous name you've picked

[JoMarie]

Nicholas was exactly the same when we first bought him home. He hated being in the bassinet and the only way we got any sleep was to have him in bed with us. I gave up in the bassinet after three weeks and put him straight in the cot, which he loves and also loves being swaddled really tight. Now, he is sleeping really well, although at the time, I thought I might lose my mind!

Best of luck, and you are doing a fantastic job, xx

[luua]

Ella's last sleep use to be difficult for us too. (and sometimes still is) I thought it was because at the end of the day they just get over stimulated and it's hard for them to wind down. But i would definitely try the cocoon.

Good luck

Ann