Nursing cycle - help!

[Anonymous]

I have a five week old. She’s a great eater (I’m EBF). She was over 9 lbs at birth and has no trouble gaining weight. But she needs to be nursed to sleep. If I try to put her down drowsy she cries. She will not let me rock her to sleep (I’ve tried and tried and tried). Nursing puts her right to sleep but then 30 -40 minutes later she’s crying with gas pains. I’ll pick her up and she will burp or fart (and I always burp her and hold her upright for a bit after nursing before putting her down). So then an hour later or less she’s exhausted again and there I am nursing her yet again to go to sleep. I feel like I’m in this never ending cycle I can’t get out of. I wanted to do the EASY method of eating when waking but that’s out the window and I just feel like I’ve failed already.

[Anonymous]

Hang in there. Might be time to try a pacifier.

[Anonymous]

Give her time. There are no bad habits formed at five weeks! You can’t do EASY when the A is about three minutes long anyway.

Just bf and then hold upright for a good ten to fifteen minutes while patting. If she needs to suckle to get back to sleep just let her - on you or a pacifier.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Give her time. There are no bad habits formed at five weeks! You can’t do EASY when the A is about three minutes long anyway.

Just bf and then hold upright for a good ten to fifteen minutes while patting. If she needs to suckle to get back to sleep just let her - on you or a pacifier.

+1. But I’d extend the upright patting for longer. Our ped told us 20 to 30 minutes with my baby gasbag. I’d just let her sleep on me.

Do whatever works for the first three months, OP.

[Anonymous]

Oh op I totally feel you! Please take the pressure off yourself to do EASY, man can it really make us all feel like failures. I felt the same way. But so much of this is the baby you get - I tried so hard to do drowsy but awake with my first it about killed me and my child was just not going to do that. My mom said I would never have done that in a million years, but my younger sister she would just place down and she would go to sleep. Sometimes it’s just the kid not the parent. My second seems to be the same as his brother and has no interest in falling asleep without help. The only way he’ll go down besides the boob is bouncing on the exercise ball (also will never from rocking) so just throwing that out in case your baby likes it.

But please be kind to yourself. Sometimes I hate those sleep folks. It really makes you feel like a failure when you can follow it. It gets better, I promise. But this time can be so so hard

[Anonymous]

Cant*

[Anonymous]

OP here. Thanks everyone. She will take a pacifier but alas won’t go to sleep with it. As far as nursing before sleep, she is actively drinking as well, not just comfort nursing. I make a ton of milk so my let down is frequent. I also worry that she just wants to comfort nurse and she isn’t hungry and then the milk comes and that leads to increased gas and discomfort.

[Anonymous]

5 weeks to about 10 weeks is brutal. They are waking up and everything is new and exciting and they cant get themselves to sleep. Mine slept in my arms (or dhs). Get through it. Try ti put down drowsy for her best sleep of the day. But dont stress.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thanks everyone. She will take a pacifier but alas won’t go to sleep with it. As far as nursing before sleep, she is actively drinking as well, not just comfort nursing. I make a ton of milk so my let down is frequent. I also worry that she just wants to comfort nurse and she isn’t hungry and then the milk comes and that leads to increased gas and discomfort.

Hang in there, OP. You’re in the hardest slog right now. Weeks 4-6 were brutal. The sleep deprivation is kicking in. Everyone is still on a learning curve. Just focus on doing whatever you need to do to get her to sleep. There are no bad habits you are forming. What got me through was something a neighbor said:
“Everyday is a new day with a newborn.” You feel like you’re stuck in this bad cycle, but just wait a minute and it will work itself out.

[Anonymous]

Do you have a rocker/glider that reclines? I put my baby on my chest for the 20 minutes post nursing and she burped in her sleep— then I put her down.

You aren’t forming bad habits this early, cut yourself some slack and do whatever works at this stage.

[Anonymous]

Unfortunately this is some of the hardest times. It's going to get better.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thanks everyone. She will take a pacifier but alas won’t go to sleep with it. As far as nursing before sleep, she is actively drinking as well, not just comfort nursing. I make a ton of milk so my let down is frequent. I also worry that she just wants to comfort nurse and she isn’t hungry and then the milk comes and that leads to increased gas and discomfort.

Your baby just might need to eat every 90 minutes. My big babies did. It will get easier soon, I promise. To me, it doesn’t sound like you are doing anything wrong.

[Anonymous]

Have you tried gas drops?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Have you tried gas drops?

These don’t actually work right?

[Anonymous]

OP here. Thank you or everyone for your kindness. My husband is gone for the week so I’ve been solo and it’s all just wearing me down. Really appreciate the support.