Tell me about your night nurse/nanny experiences

[Anonymous]

I am a FTM with a demanding job, expecting baby this fall. I am not sure how I am supposed to go back to work at 12 weeks postpartum and function on such little sleep. I am looking into hiring a night nurse at least 2-3x a week, and would appreciate anyone's experience with this, particularly pricing and if you found it worthwhile. TIA!

[Anonymous]

I had a night nurse 4-5 nights a week for the first six weeks. It was life changing, I cannot recommend enough if you can afford it. Mine worked 10 pm to 7 am. They were professional, trained nannies who asked about diaper change preferences, feeding preferences, and were very diligent about washing their hands. I'm now at week 11 and going back to work soon, baby is sleeping from around 11 pm to 5 am so we don't really need them anymore.

[Anonymous]

You hire a night nurse while on maternity leave to get the baby on a schedule.

[Anonymous]

Hire a night nurse if you can afford it. But you do not need to go back to work FT when your newborn baby is only 12 weeks old.

[Anonymous]

i didn't do a night nurse, but my nanny came at 8AM and I went back to bed.
Baby was ready to start day so it was good hand-off for me. Totally worth the money.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Hire a night nurse if you can afford it. But you do not need to go back to work FT when your newborn baby is only 12 weeks old.

Some people DO need to, in order to pay bills or keep health insurance.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I had a night nurse 4-5 nights a week for the first six weeks. It was life changing, I cannot recommend enough if you can afford it. Mine worked 10 pm to 7 am. They were professional, trained nannies who asked about diaper change preferences, feeding preferences, and were very diligent about washing their hands. I'm now at week 11 and going back to work soon, baby is sleeping from around 11 pm to 5 am so we don't really need them anymore.

Please do not use the word “nurse” for someone who has not *earned* that title/license. (“Trained nannies”, as you mentioned, do not have the same education and qualifications as an actual nurse.) Using the term “night nurse” is completely inappropriate unless the person is actually a RN, LPN or LVN (or an advanced practice nurse, obviously) who happens to work overnight. Thanks!

Signed, A Registered Nurse

[Anonymous]

My sister’s night nurse was very good about making sure that before she left in the morning, my sister had eaten breakfast, had a shower, and had a quiet cup of coffee. It was such a kind, empathetic gesture for a new mother whose days were consumed caring for someone else. If my baby hadn’t been a COVID baby I would have hired her as well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I had a night nurse 4-5 nights a week for the first six weeks. It was life changing, I cannot recommend enough if you can afford it. Mine worked 10 pm to 7 am. They were professional, trained nannies who asked about diaper change preferences, feeding preferences, and were very diligent about washing their hands. I'm now at week 11 and going back to work soon, baby is sleeping from around 11 pm to 5 am so we don't really need them anymore.

Please do not use the word “nurse” for someone who has not *earned* that title/license. (“Trained nannies”, as you mentioned, do not have the same education and qualifications as an actual nurse.) Using the term “night nurse” is completely inappropriate unless the person is actually a RN, LPN or LVN (or an advanced practice nurse, obviously) who happens to work overnight. Thanks!

Signed, A Registered Nurse

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I had a night nurse 4-5 nights a week for the first six weeks. It was life changing, I cannot recommend enough if you can afford it. Mine worked 10 pm to 7 am. They were professional, trained nannies who asked about diaper change preferences, feeding preferences, and were very diligent about washing their hands. I'm now at week 11 and going back to work soon, baby is sleeping from around 11 pm to 5 am so we don't really need them anymore.

Please do not use the word “nurse” for someone who has not *earned* that title/license. (“Trained nannies”, as you mentioned, do not have the same education and qualifications as an actual nurse.) Using the term “night nurse” is completely inappropriate unless the person is actually a RN, LPN or LVN (or an advanced practice nurse, obviously) who happens to work overnight. Thanks!

Signed, A Registered Nurse

+1

Lol. You kind of people are SO annoying, do you get irritated with people who call themselves teachers too? If you’re a “RN, LPN, or LVN” then you’d be smart enough to know something this menial is not worth the blood pressure spike it’s clearly giving you.

[Anonymous]

The best money you’ll spend. We had an overnight postpartum doula 3 nights/week for both of our kids. Her hours were 10 pm-6 am. I was nursing with my second, so I pumped right before bed and once in the night. Pumping for 15 min is still much faster than changing diaper, feeding, and soothing. My advice is BE READY TO GO TO SLEEP when she arrives. Like pajamas on, teeth brushed, so you can maximize your sleep!

FWIW - I found 3 nights/week to be a good amount. It made the other nights more manageable since I knew I’d have a full night sleep the next day.

[Anonymous]

Forgot to mention, found our doula through Hush Hush Little Baby. Price was around $40/hour I think? Justified it like we just started paying for childcare/nanny on day 1.

[Anonymous]

Hi there! I'm not a night nurse, but I am a postpartum Doula and work nights. I am going to put my site here:

www.doulabyjulia.com

I would love to meet you and share a little bit more about myself and what I do. I'm a mom of three and public school teacher transitioning out of the classroom to pursue my dream of supporting families as a Doula. I am passionate about helping families navigate the days and weeks after their baby is born with confidence and a wealth of resources. There's a Contact Me page on my site that you can complete and I'll be in touch, or you can email me at [e-mail].

I am background checked, CPR/First Aid certified, and can provide references from other clients. Take care!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I had a night nurse 4-5 nights a week for the first six weeks. It was life changing, I cannot recommend enough if you can afford it. Mine worked 10 pm to 7 am. They were professional, trained nannies who asked about diaper change preferences, feeding preferences, and were very diligent about washing their hands. I'm now at week 11 and going back to work soon, baby is sleeping from around 11 pm to 5 am so we don't really need them anymore.

Please do not use the word “nurse” for someone who has not *earned* that title/license. (“Trained nannies”, as you mentioned, do not have the same education and qualifications as an actual nurse.) Using the term “night nurse” is completely inappropriate unless the person is actually a RN, LPN or LVN (or an advanced practice nurse, obviously) who happens to work overnight. Thanks!

Signed, A Registered Nurse

+1

Lol. You kind of people are SO annoying, do you get irritated with people who call themselves teachers too? If you’re a “RN, LPN, or LVN” then you’d be smart enough to know something this menial is not worth the blood pressure spike it’s clearly giving you.

This. “Baby Nurse” has been used as the term for someone who cares for an infant for 100+ years in English. You can see it in original Emily Post if you’re curious. It was never solely reserved for medical nurses.

[Anonymous]

Best money I've ever spent in my life. We had a night nanny 4x per week from weeks 2-13 (when he was sleeping through the night) for my third child. The difference between that experience and the experience with my second (I've never been so tired in my life) was night and day. Huge.

I would definitely say start earlier - yes, you might be fine before you have to work. When it's your first child, you can just sleep when the baby sleeps. But you'll want to get adjusted and comfortable with the night nanny, and catch up a bit on sleep, before you start back. Maybe at week 8?

I found it really helpful to get everything all figured out before the baby came so it was one less thing to deal with with a newborn. We used Let Mommy Sleep and were happy with them.