Why won’t my 7 wk old sleep?? Help!

Question

I am going crazy trying to get my 7wk old to sleep at night. Falling asleep is never a problem but he gets up every 1-2 hours gets a bottle and then back to sleep. I have tried so many “tips” and every night it’s like a cruel joke that there’s no improvement in his sleeping. The most he will sleep is maybe 3hrs and that usually if I’m holding him in our big recliner. 
Swaddling doesn’t work because he doesn’t like his hands confined. 
I have an air purifier by his crib for white noise
I made sure he doesn’t nap more than 2hrs (at a time) between 7-7
I increase his bottles from 2-3oz to 4oz at night while giving him an extra bottle while he sleeps to keep him full longer. (He actually woke up an hour later and drank 2 more oz)
I make sure the room isn’t too hot or cold
I try to nurse him at night because that worked best with my first but this one still isn’t great at it. Will nurse for only a min or two or refuse all together. 
I even tried giving him formula at night to keep him full with no improvement. 
I really am at a loss. He’s great during the day but at night it just doesn’t make sense how frequent he gets up.
Edit: sorry I didn’t mean he only naps 2hrs for whole day. I meant I don’t let any of his naps last more than 2hrs

Answer

Honestly this sounds pretty normal for a 7 week old. I know it sucks 😔

Answer

He only naps 2 hours during the day? That’s not enough sleep for a baby his age. He is probably exhausted and being overtired actually makes it harder for babies to sleep. It could be a million different reasons why he is waking up like that. 
It could also be simply because he is only
7 weeks old and it’s completely normal for babies to wake up like that. 
I’m not trying to be mean but I find it interesting how many people are so surprised that’s their babies wake up several times throughout the night. That’s just what babies do. People get so proud and like to go on about how their tiny little babies sleep all night. Great for them but I guarantee you that is the minority of babies and it’s going to constantly change because they change. They get sick, they have had, they have growth spurts, they teethe, the simply want to cuddle, they need a new diaper, etc. Even if a baby is a perfect sleeper, something is going to happen or change at some point and that’s what happens when you have a baby. 
I am not saying this to discourage you but to let you know it happens. With my first I was getting so frustrated because everyone was like “oh is he sleeping through the night yet?” “Oh you should try this and that” and my little one did not sleep through the night until 17 months old and I was literally at the hospital having my second. Come to find that it’s actually normal. I honestly thought it was my fault and I was doing something wrong.

Answer

Look up taking cara babies. She is on instagram, has a blog, and classes you can purchase. I found her when my son was 4 months old and used her methods (just from insta & blog) to get him sleeping though the night. Purchased her class for baby #2 & she’s now 5 weeks old and is sleeping amazing so far!

Answer

That's completely normal. Little babies brains are designed to wake often. This is a good thing. #1 little babies need to be fed every couple of hours even during the night. #2 a little baby does not understand a sleep schedule and won't for quite some time. #3 little babies who fall into too deep of sleep not waking up often are at greater risk for SIDS.
Don't try to change this yet. This will be normal for quite a while.

Answer

This sounds pretty normal at 7wks. Babies don’t usually sleep longer stretches until 4months minimum. My youngest (12mths) still BF and still wakes up two times a night 2am and 5:30am for feeds.

Answer

I feel like 7 weeks is early to be manipulating their sleep during the day. This sounds normal.

Answer

You may be making him overtired by only allowing him to nap 2 hours during the day. Babies that young should be still sleeping a majority of the day. 
When babies become overtired, their bodies weirdly make a hormone that makes it more difficult for them to sleep! We had issues with our daughter being overtired around 5 weeks. 
We use a sleepsack, white noise, and let her have a feed right before bed. She sleeps through until 630 or so, wakes for a feed, and then goes back to sleep until 9!

Answer

Could he be waking from discomfort rather than hunger? Or just need to be resettled? I know how hard that is during the night though when milk will often settled them quickly. I don’t think it’s normal to be every 1-2 hours especially with increased milk. Try not to give so much at night or he’ll reduce how much he needs during the day. That was the best way for me to increase night sleep - more milk into her during the day!

Answer

Wow, you are doing everything right! We have the same issue with our 10wk old (doing all the same) and I’m dreading going back to work so tired. I’d say it’s normal, especially for breastfed babies. This is our first but I keep hearing how fast time flies in the first year so hoping we all graduate to the next sleep stage quickly - keep up the excellent work!!

Answer

I agree with one of the comments on here that said to try to feed the baby as much as possible during the day. Im by no means implying u are not giving him enough or anything like that! I simply mean offering more feeds closer together if possible. It sounds like he may be reverse cycling and getting most of his calories at night. I'd try to see if picking him up or offering a pacifier instead of a feeding can help him fall back asleep and push back his next feed. Pushing back his feed will then help him eat more during the day. I've been doing this with my daughter and it's helped encourage to eat more during the day and less at night, thus decreasing night wake ups. Goodluck!  The early weeks are so hard.

Why won’t my 7 wk old sleep?? Help!

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