A newborn baby sleep diary

Newborn babies don’t come with instruction manuals, despite what all of the parenting books will tell you. Yes, they do tend to follow the same patterns as many other babies, and there are ways that you can predict certain behaviours, but ultimately nobody knows your baby the way you do. Before I work with any family I need to speak to them first, to find out about their child’s habits and personality so that I can tailor my advice accordingly.

When it comes to kids there is definitely no ‘one size fits all’ solution to any problem! With this in mind, it’s often helpful to write a sleep diary and this is exactly what we’re bringing you today- a newborn baby sleep diary.

Day One

Baby E was born at 11.22 am via planned c-section and emerged into the world screaming like a kitten. By the time we got to recovery, all was peaceful and baby was sleeping.

1pm

Despite efforts to wake Baby E for a breastfeed, she much preferred to sleep! We figured this was pretty normal, since she was born by c-section so would still have some of the anaesthetic medicine in her system making her sleepy.

3pm

Baby E woke briefly for a short feed, but still isn’t showing much interest in eating or being awake!

7pm

Visiting time has been and gone and Baby E has slept through it all! I would be thinking I could get used to this if I wasn’t so concerned about her having a feed! She has latched on a couple of times for around 20-30 seconds each time but mostly she just wants to sleep. I think I’ll join her!

11pm 

Baby E has a feed through a syringe while she sleeps.

3am

Baby E wakes brielfy for a moment or two, but within 30 seconds of latching on for a feed is fast asleep again!

8am

Baby E is woken for a feed, despite her protestations at being too tired!

4pm 

We are discharged from the hospital and ready to go home! Baby E is still sleeping soundly and I am looking forward to my own bed at last!

11pm

Baby E has spent all evening at home downstairs, sleeping soundly in her crib. Upstairs we have a bedside sleeper cot for her to sleep in, which we hope she will spend most of the night snoozing in…

11.30pm

Baby E and I are downstairs on the sofa, having a cuddle. She is still not that keen on feeding much but doens’t seem to want to be on her own in her own bed any more. We spend the rest of the night sitting together- I get to watch her sleep and she gets to settle in at home on her own terms.

Day 2

Baby E sleeps all day, waking only when we lift her from her crib to be fed or changed. She also sleeps all night, waking only when she is forced. She still does not feed much, which is being monitored.

Day 3

Baby E is still very sleepy, day and night. She does not wake for feeds and there is no real difference between day and night.

Day 4

Baby E is weighed and a plan is put into place to wake her more frequently for feeds, both from the breast and through a syringe. Most of day 4 is spent sleeping again, and this continues into the night.

Day 5

Baby E manages to feed a little more and as a result has a few more awake minutes. She even opens her eyes!

Day 6

Baby E again sleeps for most of the day, but tonight she wakes for feeds every two hours. Result! She is weighed again today and is finally re-gaining weight.

Day 7

Baby E wakes around 7am so we decide to get up and start our day. After a feed, she is fast asleep in her crib once more. Throughout the day, and through the night, she wakes every two hours on the dot for a feed.

Day 8

Baby E is still waking every 2 hours for a feed, and I am starting to feel exhausted! I am trying to sleep when she sleeps during the day but it isn’t always easy when the other children are around. Mostly she likes to  sleep in my arms and always falls asleep mid feed. I try to wake her but rarely manage it!

Day 9-11

Baby E is still falling asleep mid feed, but sometimes I am able to wake her after a few minutes to encourage her to finish her feed. If I can’t wake her I put her down in her crib and she sleeps well until her next feed. Baby E is weighed today and has almost re-gained her birth weight!

Day 12-14

Baby E is still waking every 2 hours for a feed, and taking a little more at each feed too. She still falls asleep either during or after a feed but is having more awake time each day. She is still a sleepy little thing but definitely prefers to sleep during the day than the night, and tends to opt for my arms over her bedside sleeper crib most nights!

How do these first two weeks compare to your experiences?