6 week old baby doesn't nap - normal?

[lillymonster]

I was wondering if it's normal a 6 week old, actually 7 weeks starting today, doesn't nap during the day. Well sometimes, yesterday she napped for 2 hours about 3 times, but most of the time, she doesn't nap at all, she wakes as soon as I put her down. She sleeps okay at night, sleeping anywhere from 4 to 6 hours straight, then another 3-4 hours, but I can't get her to fall asleep easily or early. Usually it's after 11pm.

How hard should I try to get her to nap at this age? I have a very needy "spirited" almost 4 year old who is not in preschool which makes devoting time to a sleep routine hard because she is demanding all my time, and I am still recovering from a rough c-section - I tore a stomach muscle while attempting a vbac and got a staph infection in my incision, so I can't hold or rock or bounce her for a long time, and taking a walk is is very hard - plus we are still covered in snow here. I can't even get out of bed without needing assistance, pulling myself up using furniture.

I know there is a 6 week growth spurt - how long does it last? because I feel like I have nursed her non-stop every hour for about 8 days now, again, it's hard to do this with a 3 year old who constantly needs hugs or help doing stuff (this started long before I was even pregnant, she is very high needs). How do other mothers do it because I feel I am doing everything all wrong, this is very very hard.

[MPsSweetie]

We are having a rough time too.  Abbott was 6 weeks yesterday and wow, I guess this growth spurt is taking a toll on him.  and me!  He also has a hard time napping unless I am completely still and its quiet.  Ummm, I have an 8y/o and a 4y/o AND we homeschool, thats not happening.  He has also started not sleeping at night, yikes.  I am SO tired.

We need to start a janurary 2011 babies thread in here.

[Parker'smommy]

Sounds like baby is waking upon being put down, not neccessarily that she is not sleeping at all during the day. I had the same problem, and the swing is what saved me...seriously. Yah...not very, "ap" but whatever, it worked...lol. I would set babe in their very carefully after nursing to sleep and then turn it on. Even if she woke up from me putting her down in it, she would go right back to sleep. Now, I can put her into it awake, and she goes right to sleep. I also play a white noise cd for her while she naps so that her older siblings don't bother her. You could also try swaddling....that has also helped!

[lillymonster]

Originally Posted by Parker'smommy 

Sounds like baby is waking upon being put down, not neccessarily that she is not sleeping at all during the day. I had the same problem, and the swing is what saved me...seriously. Yah...not very, "ap" but whatever, it worked...lol. I would set babe in their very carefully after nursing to sleep and then turn it on. Even if she woke up from me putting her down in it, she would go right back to sleep. Now, I can put her into it awake, and she goes right to sleep. I also play a white noise cd for her while she naps so that her older siblings don't bother her. You could also try swaddling....that has also helped!

I am going to try the swing all day tomorrow. I am using it now, yup, she woke up after being put in it and she is still awake.  Swaddling doesn't work, it actually upsets her - she grunts and kicks until she works her hands up. I even tried the Miracle blanket and it didn't make a difference.  What is weird is she sleeps great at night. Go figure - she sleeps a 6 hour block of time at night.

[the janet]

My 2 month old is the same way. Hardly naps during the day, wakes easily if I try to put him down.

But in my case, I think the culprit is a low milk supply. Until we started supplementing with formula, there was a period of weeks where I was nursing him nonstop during the day. Because he's not getting a full meal every time, he doesn't fall into a milk coma except in the middle of the night. If he does end up falling asleep while sucking, he will wake up instantly if I try to move him off me. I assume by the time he actually starts to sleep in 2-4 hour spurts late at night, he's just exhausted from not napping during the day.

[the janet]

Originally Posted by lillymonster 

she sleeps a 6 hour block of time at night.

Do you just wait until she wakes up to nurse or do you pump halfway through? I thought that waiting more than 4 hours to nurse/pump affects your milk supply.

[Disco Infiltrator]

hmmmm...I can't remember but is there some sort of developmental growth spurt at six weeks? I have no advice but empathy. We have a six month old DD and a demanding, really lovely, almost 4 y/o DS who is not in preschool. Some days are really hard to get through and DD will usually only nap 20-30 minutes. We're also family bedders so sleep is challenging in the least.

[lillymonster]

Originally Posted by the janet 

Do you just wait until she wakes up to nurse or do you pump halfway through? I thought that waiting more than 4 hours to nurse/pump affects your milk supply.

I have always had oversupply issues - so I can go longer actually. she usually does 4 hours, but has gone 6 hours a few times.  With my first, it took over 4-5 months for my supply to even out and the LC even told me never to pump, because I was just making way too much milk and my daughter was having foremilk issues.

I am not worried about my supply being an issue though, she has gained about 4 pounds in a month and a half
 

[Parker'smommy]

Originally Posted by the janet 

Do you just wait until she wakes up to nurse or do you pump halfway through? I thought that waiting more than 4 hours to nurse/pump affects your milk supply.

If you have supply issues, yes, going over 4 hours can hurt your supply. BUT...if your baby routinely sleeps 6 hours, your body will adjust to the routine and you should be fine. My dd went 5-8 hours a night in the beginning. Did I wake her up? Heck no. Did I pump? Nope. Not waking my butt up to pump. Were my breasts FULL when she did wake up? Yep! But we managed and everything was fine. She doesn't sleep this long now at almost 6 months so I wake up multiple times at night and have plenty of milk. 

And YES! there is a growth spurt at 6 weeks. If you continue to nurse on demand, your supply should go up to compensate. Sometimes this takes a few days of nonstop nursing. 

[Pearldickens]

My daughter is three months old now, and we had the same struggles with her. She also wasn't a fan of being wrapped. We found the only way to get her to sleep was if she was on her belly. My daughter always had enough head control to turn her head so I didn't worry about suffocation. I also wanted her to sleep in the room with me, but at about the same time she decided she wanted to sleep in her room in her crib. I say she decided because anytime I would put her in the bassinet she would scream ,and then when placed in her crib she was happy and actually slept the entire night.

[macandcheese]

Is it normal? Yes and no ... I think it's normal that babies that age resist napping, but I don't think it's normal for a baby to not nap, kwim? I don't know. My mother claims that I never took a single nap in my life ... maybe, but I sure would like one now!

Jude was a wreck around 6-7 weeks because he would. not. sleep. After reading around on these boards and elsewhere, I realized that I needed to start helping him nap (previously, his newborn sleepiness would cause him to pass out anywhere, any time). We found a few strategies that work with varying success—walking around with him in the Moby, bouncing on a yoga ball while he snacks, sticking him in the swing—and were able to get a couple of good naps on most days. We are still refining, but it's definitely not as bad as it was just a few weeks ago. 

I think that around six weeks is also when they are starting to see better and becoming more aware of and interested in their surroundings. Jude, at least, seemed pretty intent on looking at stuff rather than sleeping so it also helps to limit outside stimuli when he is getting sleepy. That could mean laying a blanket over his head while he's nursing, tucking him well inside the Moby, or darkening the room that his swing is in. If I'm holding him when he falls asleep I also make sure to hang on to him for an extra 5-10 minutes just to make sure he's in a good, deep sleep before I set him down.

[DaisyMae08]

My guy is six weeks old and after being awake for about 1.5 - 2 hrs gets VERY cranky and needs a nap even though he sometimes resists it.  What works for me is to nurse him and bounce him.  That usually does the trick and I can put him down without his eyes popping right back open.  When it doesn't, I put him in the Bjorn and walk/bounce around the house until he passes out in that.  Then I'm sometimes able to transfer him out of the Bjorn to put him down and other times I'm not and I end up just wearing him for his nap. 

[lillymonster]

Originally Posted by macandcheese 

I think that around six weeks is also when they are starting to see better and becoming more aware of and interested in their surroundings. Jude, at least, seemed pretty intent on looking at stuff rather than sleeping so it also helps to limit outside stimuli when he is getting sleepy. That could mean laying a blanket over his head while he's nursing, tucking him well inside the Moby, or darkening the room that his swing is in. If I'm holding him when he falls asleep I also make sure to hang on to him for an extra 5-10 minutes just to make sure he's in a good, deep sleep before I set him down.

I think this is what is happening. Unfortunately, all I can do is the swing. I can't walk with her in a carrier or bounce because I am still having pain from the c-section - on going issues with an infected incision that is still active - so the swing it is. It has had some success. Now if I could just get the grandparents to understand that once she is in the swing, if they want to "just look at her" they can not talk or interact with her. I have help with my 3 year old during the day, and dang if the grandparents don't wake her up every time I put her down and then tell me they have never seen a baby yawn so much! But at least the swing is working somewhat to getting her to nap at least once a day.

If she was cranky, I would be pushing the naps even more, but she is pretty content during the day, she is smiling a lot. I just want the rest!