5 month routine

dublinlady

Hi guys,
Finding it incredibly difficult to establish a routine with my 5 month old girl.
She's not sleeping thru - waking anywhere between 3 and 6. I feel it's our own fault for not having her in a routine . We are weaning her at the mo and it's just adding to the confusion cos I don't know what to be giving her when and how in relation to her bottles and naps!!
I hate gina forde and have tried to go more down the lines of the baby whisperer - eat , activity , sleep - but this leads to her havin 4 naps during day a d I don't know how long any should be! Add to our problems she won't sleep during dag unless being held... She has all her naps in her room now in some daylight to try get her used to it ( unless we are out) she falls asleep in arms - I out her down - she wakes and won't settle until in arms again. I've tried putting her down awake but drowsy but she won't sleep and it leads to roaring and over tiredness and gener frustration both sides!! She goes down at night ok around 9.30pm or ten and will sleep in her own bed until about 3 ish when she won't resettle and after an hr or so of trying to out he back down I'm too tired and take her into my bed where sge will only sleep on me so I find it hard to sleep then too.... I feel like ages x brilliant little baby but we are ruining her with not knowing what we're at!! We all do tired and I really had hoped by 5 months she would at least sleep at night.
I know there's so many things to fix here and I don't know how!!
All. Advise really welcome and additional info available if needed!!
And oh yes - she has a soother which she won't go to sleep without but it falls out once asleep and that's ok unless she wakes otherwise.
AND she has now since 2 days ago started rolling onto her belly and can't get back - both during g day and at night. Going to buy a clevamama sleep positioner I think
Also - shed been havin baby rice 50:50 with puréed veg once around 10/11 and then milupa night cereal around 7/8pm. Loves the food.
Since started suds struggling to get more than 3-4 oz into her for 5pm ish feed and 8.30 pm ish feed. She used to take 6-7 oz and occasionally skep til 7-8 then... It's all gone a bit pear shaped..,
I'm worried cos I'm back to work in 6 weeks and want her in a routine! Plus I'm knackered and therefore getting frustrated with her which is unfair on her.... Then I feel guilty.
Which one of you always says.... This too will pass... And that's what I've been clinging onto - but we need some sort of plan!!! Pronto!!!
One last thing - she can't seem to go more than 1&1/2 hrs without nap - not just recently - always!! Fro
20 mins to 2 hrs depending!! Tired baba!!

dublinlady

P.s I love her really and this is a tired rant....!!!!

How Strange

Dublinlady there's huge developmental changes in babies between 4-7 months. I remember it as the worst months of the first year. To be honest everything you described sounds normal enough.

Forget those horrible baby trainer books, they'll just make you feel inadequate and like you're doing everything wrong. Follow your baby, watch her cues and you'll see when she's ready for naps. My son was always great for napping but during those months he sometimes refused to nap or wouldn't settle in his cot. I've no tips on what to do except believe it will pass. From 6 months on we'd leave him a little longer in his cot if he woke around 3am and see if he'd settle back to sleep. Sometimes he did and other times he wanted the boob. We really took it one night at a time. The only constant thing we had was bedtime at 7pm. Other than that it was wait and see.

I went back to work at 7 months and I remember feeling exactly like you beforehand. It does get easier after 7 months and from 8-9 months they start sleeping through the night. They also settle into a nap routine around that time too.

dublinlady

Thankyou - sometimes just feel like I've no idea what I'm doing and a little hopeless - but realistically I know your right and it's just not easy having a baby! Do wish I could get her to sleep without me tho....

On a side just incase any one reads this and thinks if doing similar with sleep positioner - don't - just bought one and going to return it cos says once baby can roll its a hazard..... Boooo!!! But a few hrs sleep is so not worth any risk!!

Mite try givin fruit in the morn with cereal and then rice and veg in pm... May be carbs will help!!!

Really just don't want her to be so dependant on me to sleep as it must be awful not to be able to nod off when ur tired ( I'm an insomniac myself do can relate!!) - I really do t want her to need me to hold her and stroke her face for her sake or mine!

pwurple

Hiya, just wanted to pip in and say that 1.5 hours between naps is perfectly normal for that age. That is exactly the nap schedule my smallie seemed to go for. If it helps, her naps were usually 40 to 45 mins long. She had 3 a day, sometimes 4.

You sound totally exhausted though, and it seems like baby likes to sleep on you all the time. Naps are on top of you, half the night is on top of you. It's lovely and cuddly, but mammies need sleep too.

Is there anywhere else that works for the naps? Bouncy chair, carseat, buggy, sling, anything at all? Is there a comfort blanket or anything else apart from the dummy?

red fraggle

i do know how you feel. e always napped in my arms and only in the last month has E been napping during the day without being in my arms!! which has helped us get into a bit of a routine. someone told me that 2 hours after they wake they might need a nap so thats what i did. 2 hours after she got up i would get her in my arms and rock her to sleep. and do they same 2-3 hours after she woke again. this led to 2 naps a day lasting 20/30mins each. she is still a cat napper!! i started to notice then that she would rub her eyes in or around the 2 hour mark and i would get her napping soon as i saw it. after a few days of this i then put her into the pushchair (the cot was a no no for napping for us!!:rolleyes:) and i would rock her to sleep in this. oh and she has her doodie for naps and a winnie the poo comfort blanket which i put over her eyes. she likes it dark!! now she can take it off/put it over her face if she wants and i take it off when shes asleep. she lieks to cuddle it. only introduced it when trying to get these naps going!!

so e now has 2 naps a day in her pushchair and it doesnt even have to be me that puts her into it!! i cant believe it. now i know that around 11.30 to 12.30 and 3/4pm she will have a nap. i cant believe it!!

as for nighttime, she gets her last feed in the dark room and into cot then with doodie and comfort blanket. sometimes she talks, cries etc but overall shes very good. we too had the waking at 3am and it went on for a good month or so. i thought i was going crazy! up for 2 hours with a screaming baby. the last week has been ok. night wake at 5.30 but can sometimes talk herself to sleep til 7.30! i also realised i cant give fruit at supper time 5pmish. so i give her porridge which seems to help her sleep/doesnt give her the pains fruit did at nighttime.

general routine

7ish boob feed
9ish boob feed
10ish breakfast
12ish small boob feed/ nap
1.30ish dinner
3ish 8oz bottle/ nap
5ish supper
6ish 2 oz bottle
7.30ish boob feed

i know it all seems like feeding but its grand and 2 of those feeds can be cut out but im not cuttin them out yet:rolleyes:

sorry the post is a bit all over the place. i thought if i gave you what works for us that there might be something you can try or take from it. ya never know. goodluck!! ask any questions as ive prob left stuff out.

i think it will pass but it doesnt feel like it!! i also felt guilty getting annoyed with her but we come tru the other side!! shes such a cutie!!

wmpdd3

I read all those book and none of them could explain to me why my babies were not like my brother. My mum brought him home from the hospital at 7 days old, he drank a 5oz bottle every 4 house and played for 1 hour in between and sleep for the other 2 hours!

I just thought all babies ended up like that, they dont!

My little boy (5months) does this:
feed, play for 2 hours, sleep for 1 hour, wake feed, repeat. Sleeps from 9pm to 7am, quick feed back till 9am.

I put him in my bed for naps or in his crib with the mobile, it takes about 3 mins for him to nod off.

He'll sleep in the buggy if I roll it for a few minutes. If its not his nap time, he'll talk a bit more animated and in the end he'll start growling.