When Does A Newborn Become More Predictable?

[Anonymous]

I have a newborn son and he is all over the place. Everyday is different because he isn’t on any predictable pattern, and when we do, it usually only last for a day or two before it changes again. Some days he will take long naps and eat every 3 hours, and other days, he will gets into the habit of taking 1-2 ounces at a time and then takes short naps because he eats every two hours. Some days he eats every hour. I’m amazing that sometimes he will sleep almost all day, eating every 3 hours, and then eats a huge amount every hour until bedtime. Nights are the same with him sometimes waking every two hours and other nights waking every 3-4 hours. I feel like I’m on constantly on my toes because I can’t predict what will come next. I know this is normal for a newborn but when does it become more predictable?

[Anonymous]

I wish I knew because we are 8 weeks and it’s still like this. Many told me he would be on a more predictable routine by now but it hasn’t happened yet. I’m hoping in the next 1-2 months. I may end up sleep training at 4 months and will be putting him on a schedule if things don’t get more predictable by then.

[Anonymous]

Still waiting for my 12 year old…jk.

But really I think the answer is not past a year. There may be a couple of weeks that start to fall into a pattern but then the baby learns to roll or starts to teethe and things get all mixed up again.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Still waiting for my 12 year old…jk.

But really I think the answer is not past a year. There may be a couple of weeks that start to fall into a pattern but then the baby learns to roll or starts to teethe and things get all mixed up again.

Honestly, after they finish college.

[Anonymous]

It can be such a hard time. Mom of two here and I would say it starts getting a slight rhythm between 8-12 weeks depending on the baby, then it will keep kind of going from there, we sleep trained at 6 months for first and four months for second (babies still fed at night, just did some modified cry it out to help them learn to initiate sleep because both my babies liked to be bounced to sleep until then and it stopped working as well), so it starts getting more predicable then, but really 6 months is a key switch. I know that feel so far away, but it will keep getting a little more predictable (but then yes will change again) and then at 6-7 months when they get on two solid naps you finally can predict that you will put them in their crib at 8:30 and then will nap, put them down around 12:30-1 or whatever. It is glorious.

So yeah I wish I had better news. It does take awhile but though it will be up and down, it will overall get better over the next few months. The newborn period always really rocks me. I find motherhood soo much more enjoyable at 6 months plus. Hang in there.

[Anonymous]

Every baby and family is different. My experience was definitely far sooner than one year. At about 9 weeks, baby started sleeping longer and longer stretches and by 12 weeks was sleeping at least 10 hrs straight at night. Naps took a little longer but I found when I followed ‘wake windows’ I was able to predict and support his naps with the proper routine.

I highly recommend a fb group ‘Respectful Sleep Training/Learning - even if you never plan to sleep train, the group has extensive files on all things routine and sleep and I learned SO much from it. My babe has slept through the night quite consistently (with a regression here or there) and napped consistently since about 4 months.

[Anonymous]

I agree, 8-12 weeks. Somewhere in there bedtime stabilized, cluster/witching hour was mostly over and we had a pretty regular 4 naps a day.

[Anonymous]

Around 10-12 weeks but then the baby will go through a growth spurt or start teething or get sick or whatever and things will change.

[Anonymous]

Its up to you to put him on a schedule

[Anonymous]

Any day now!

-mom to a 6 year old

[Anonymous]

18?
Honestly, there’s always a new phase.

[Anonymous]

I get the frustration. I am on my third newborn. I think you just have to learn to deal with unpredictability for a long time. What specifically are you hoping to do once baby becomes “more predictable”?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It can be such a hard time. Mom of two here and I would say it starts getting a slight rhythm between 8-12 weeks depending on the baby, then it will keep kind of going from there, we sleep trained at 6 months for first and four months for second (babies still fed at night, just did some modified cry it out to help them learn to initiate sleep because both my babies liked to be bounced to sleep until then and it stopped working as well), so it starts getting more predicable then, but really 6 months is a key switch. I know that feel so far away, but it will keep getting a little more predictable (but then yes will change again) and then at 6-7 months when they get on two solid naps you finally can predict that you will put them in their crib at 8:30 and then will nap, put them down around 12:30-1 or whatever. It is glorious.

So yeah I wish I had better news. It does take awhile but though it will be up and down, it will overall get better over the next few months. The newborn period always really rocks me. I find motherhood soo much more enjoyable at 6 months plus. Hang in there.

Agree with this. More rhythm around 3 months for us but definitely much more predictable days around 6 months when we dropped to 2 solid naps. Most babies drop to 2 naps around 6-8 months. And we started solids at 6 months and feel like we were also feeding more on a schedule and less on demand by about 7-8 months. With both sleep and feeding predictable around then, life just felt so much easier.

[Anonymous]

I clicked on this just to read the inevitable posts from Boomers who live on this forum. Wasn’t disappointed.

To answer your question, after 12 weeks generally.

And if you’re not or haven’t been “expecting” in yearS, get a different forum. And a life.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I clicked on this just to read the inevitable posts from Boomers who live on this forum. Wasn’t disappointed.

To answer your question, after 12 weeks generally.

And if you’re not or haven’t been “expecting” in yearS, get a different forum. And a life.

I commented above, and I am not a boomer.

Honestly, there is some truth to it.

Like PP said, it’s always something. That advice helped me a LOT. People are always scrambling looking for reasons: a “leap”? Teeth? Growth spurt? While forgetting that babies are people are sometimes they just have a bad day.