Maybe Sleeping Too Well?

If it will make you feel better, you can ask your pediatrician, but he'll probably say that as long as he doesn't have a fever and you are getting at least 6 wet diapers a day, everything's fine.

My son started sleeping 10-12 hours a night at 8 weeks old - I know, how lucky, right!? - and has continued to sleep that way except for the occassional 3 a.m. wake up for a quick feeding and changing. He's now 14 weeks old and he'll usually sleep from around 9 p.m. to 7 a.m., wake up to eat and get changed, then he plays while I pump and will usually go back to bed from 8 a.m. until around 10 or 11 a.m. Througout the day he'll nap here and there - some days it's 20-30 minute naps, other days he'll do 2-3 hour naps. Just depends.

When I mentioned my son's sleeping habits to his pediatrician, he just said, "Wow... you're very lucky. Don't mention that to other moms because they'll hate you!"

Hi J.,

Congrats on your little guy!

Is he dehydrated? Getting enough wet diapers?

Take his temperature and see if he has a fever. When my 5 day old son was acting like yours (short feeding followed by 4-hour nap I had to wake him from to nurse, followed by very little nursing when he should have been ravenous, then falling asleep again) I thought something was wrong. He did have a fever; also his breathing was odd.

He was diagnosed with fever of unknown origin. Spent 3 days in hospital with IV antibiotics and fluids. They eventually gave him my breastmilk in a tube and then let me nurse him. This was not fun. (he’s fine, a big 14 year old now)

I’d call your doc tomorrow if not sooner. Is there a doc on call (if you are reading this at night)? You may be able to phone and describe the symptoms. Things can progress awfully fast in little ones.

Good luck!

K. Z.

As long as he is having the normal amount of wet/poopy diapers every day, then he is getting enough to eat. If he was only a couple weeks old, then I would say that he is sleeping too much. Newborns need to eat every 2-3 hours because their metabolisms haven't fully matured so their brains only get fed when they eat. BUT ... he's past that stage now. So, I would say growth spurt or just a really good sleeper!

As long as his wet/poopy diapers indicate he is getting enough to eat during the day... you're all good.

All kids are different. My oldest slept 7-9 hour stretches at night and 2-3 hour naps 2-3 times a day from day 1. I ignored lots of advice about waking him up to eat and how he shouldn't be doing that. He was a 9lb baby and stayed at the 98 percentile for height/weight until he was 3 or 4 years old when he averaged out some. Goign 7-9 hours without nursing at night never affected my milk supply - we had zero problems or issues with nursing for 15 months.

As long as he is getting enough to eat (you can tell by the number of wet/dirty diapers) and staying on his growth curve I would count your blessings and let him sleep.

Our 3rd child wouldn't sleep more than 2 hours in a row until a few months old... so it's mostly the kid's personality and sleep needs and not so much what the parents do (we did almost everything the same for all our kids).

If the only symptom is sleeping 10 hours, then I wouldn't be too worried. I would keep an eye on it, obviously, because as a mother your instinct guides you more than a doctor can, in my opinion.

Babies each have their own cycle of sleeping, growth and needs. These change intermittantly throughout life. Sometimes baby may sleep throughout the night and need a couple naps during the day. Then baby will go through another phase of not wanting that many naps during the day and waking up once or twice during the night. Then baby will go back to sleeping through the night and taking one nap a day.

I have two boys and they come and go. They are 4 and 5 years old now. They both sleep really well through the night, wake up some, but pretty much fall right back to sleep (after occassionally crawling in bed with me...lol). I think around 1 year old they stopped taking two naps during the day and would wake up every once in a while during the night. I tried to give them heavier meals at night with more protein and veggies to tide them over. They used to take two naps during the day, about an hour long, until about age 3. Then they only took one long nap during the day, of about 2 hours, until they were 4-ish. My 5 year old doesn't usually take a long nap, but he doesn't lay his head down and maybe fall out for about 30-45min late morning or early afternoon.

I think each child's sleep patterns are different. So, I wouldn't let a friend or relative convince you there is a problem if you feel okay about everything. My one child is a night owl like me, and the other one likes to go to bed early and get up early.

Below are some links that might help. Please know that these are generalities, and every child doesn't necessarily sleep as much as they say.

** SLEEP: AN IMPORTANT PART OF HEALTHY DEVELOPMENT
http://www.childcareaware.org/en/subscriptions/dailyparen...

** UNDERSTANDING CHILDREN'S SLEEP HABITS
http://www.sleepforkids.org/html/habits.html

** CHANGING YOUR BABY'S SLEEP PATTERN
http://raisingchildren.net.au/articles/changing_your_baby...

That is great! My kids are very good sleepers too! My 5.5 month old was sleeping 8-10 hours at 8 weeks, then soon after 12-13 hours. If you're nursing, you may have to pump before you go to bed & first thing in the morning, to keep your milk up, but you may do fine. They eat when they are hungry & as long as he's not losing weight, congratulations!

I'm sure there are a lot of mothers out there wishing their babies would even sleep just a few hours :)
My kids didn't sleep that long when they were little but they can sure sleep that long now!!
I'd just watch him and he continues to do it tonight and tomorrow, I would call the doctor and ask the question of him/her. You didn't mention if he was on any kind of meds or over the counter stuff as that can have an effect on them. To me it seems like he is drugged. Are you breast feeding and if so are you taking any kind of meds that would affect him?
I look forward to hearing the results.
Take care and god bless. Oh! Congratulations on the new baby!!

Some kids just sleep better than others. I'd say that as long as you are getting in enough feedings and he's growing, peeing, and pooping you have nothing to worry about. Just say a little prayer of thanks and hope that the next one isn't the polar opposite ;)

It sounds like a growth spurt to me and I would enjoy it while you can. My son did that to me when he was 3 weeks old. It scared me half to death since he didn't wake during the night. Everything was fine and that was the beginning of him sleeping through the night. On the other hand, my daughter did not sleep more than 4 hours at a time until she was 1 years old. I didn't think I was going to make it through her first year. :)

Hi J.,

I have a 2 month old and the same thing happened with her at that age, and now (at 10 wks) she is sleeping through the night and I mean 8:30-9:00 pm to 6:00 am eats then naps until 9:00 am! Our pedi saw nothing wrong with her behavior as long as she was gaining weight, I would not venture to say that it is normal or that you don't need your own doctor's opinion but only that I understand that it makes you nervous, I was too. At first, when she got really sleepy, she would get restless around feeding times but when I would get her out of bed for a feeding and get settled she wouldn't even open her eyes! Feeds, burps, diaper changes and in one case a late night bath (because of spit-up) all with her eyes closed! I took several days for me to get adjusted and get some sleep because I felt like I had to watch her like a hawk. Now I just enjoy it while I can, but I did talk to the pedi just in case. (Good luck,sister!)

Awwww.....new mom! Hooray for you!!! What an exciting time!

Like the other moms said, IF ALL ELSE IS NORMAL, it's probably a growth spurt. If you notice anything else that is unusual, give your ped a call. It's what she/he is there for.

And don't ever worry about being a paranoid first time mom. Or paranoid second time mom! No one knows your son better than you do, and you should always trust your instincts. Don't worry about what other people think, and if your pediatrician's office ever gives you that "Oh, she's a new mom...." feeling, find another doctor! There are plenty of them out there who will listen to your concerns respectfully.

Blessings, and enjoy your little one!
J.

I have a 22 yr old and a 9 yr old. There are times that it seems that they will or would never wake up. I would even check to see if they were still breathing. A lot of people have told me that it's like they are growing and they need the extra sleep to help their bodies. I wouldn't worry about it. You are looking at the right spot to get advice. Good Luck

If it helps, I was sleeping from 10 pm-6 am within three weeks of coming home, and 10 pm -10 am at three months when I was an infant. I also noticed with my own children that their sleeping and eating were thrown off when they were getting ready for a growth spurt or were fighting off a cold. If everything else seems ok, I'd just enjoy the chance to get extra sleep!

When my daughter was born she slept 6 hours at night since the night we brought her home and did up until she was 3 months she started waking once for feeding for a short time. I assumed at the time that she was having a growth spurt then needing more food energy to grow. We were very lucky to have such a good sleeper for being first time parents. At her first doctor check up he asked about her sleeping behavior and when we told him, he acted concerned until it was obvious she was thriving, alert, having enough diapers, and right on track if not a little ahead of her age. So as you will hear often during this first year...all babies develop at different rates. However, you are your best resource. If you do not feel it is right or that something more is going on, get him to the doctor. If nothing else is going on and you think he is fine he probably is but considering he is still very young and it is entering flu season and you yourself have a cold then keep a close watch for any other symptoms. My daughter is now 7 and super smart, I didnt deprive her of anything that might keep her brain from developing properly. You do what your heart feels is right for that little guy.

Yea, take a nap, catch up on laundry. Enjoy!!!

My little guy slept 12 hours per night starting at 6 weeks (just some comparison).

As long as everything else is normal, then I'd strike it up to a growth spurt. I know my oldest would sleep like a log during her growth spurts. I know kids reach a growth spurt at about 6-8 weeks.

BUT just be sure to keep an eye on him anyway.