To Wake or Not Wake the Baby - That Is the Question

I've always looked at advice books as just that, advice. You don't have to follow all of it exactly. Try it out and adjust it to what works for your family.

You are right that good day sleep = good night sleep. Let a sleeping baby sleep. If he is sleeping let him sleep, it means that he needs the sleep! Those books are best used if you take what you need for your child and leave the rest. Every child is different and he is only one month old, my pedi says that they should not be pushed into a schedule until after 2 months old, and even then it should be more of a routine than a schedule.

as a mom of 4, I live by the rule "don't wake the baby!!!!" If a baby is sleeping at night, and in the day, don't mess with it. It is proven that there is a chemical in the body that keeps you awake when you are awake more, so it would make it harder to get the child to sleep, and also to stay asleep. Don't mess with a good thing. Also having 4 children, I can say some babies/children need more sleep and some need less naturally. I let mine find their own schedule till they were 1yr. then I started an absoulte bed time. This worked well for me, and i LOVE being able to say prayers, tuck them in, and being able to walk out and have quiet mommy time! Good luck with whatever you decide.

All 3 of my kids slept thru the night from birth... I always let them sleep as much as they wanted at night... But during the day I would wake them to feed them every 2 or so hours... If they fell back to sleep I would just let them be...

Your guy is one month old... He needs the sleep.

Hi A.,

I've never read the book you are talking about. I'm not a mom who does any sort of sleep training with infants. This is just what I found with my daughter... when she didn't have good naps during the day, her night time sleep was horrendous. When she DID nap during day well, then night sleep was much much better.

In my opinion you can't take one of those books and follow it word for word. No matter how many kids an author has, she didn't have YOUR children. EVERY kid is different. Sure, there are basics that are universal like when an infant cries he/she is probably wet, hungry, tired, or wants to be held... but as far as sleep patterns and what not, you have to determine what is best for you and your baby.

Don't do something just because someone else told you to do it. Experiment and find what works for you and your baby. And then once you find something, be ready to find something new because inevitably something will happen and baby's schedule will be thrown off. New emerging skills, growth spurts, teething, you name it... it can screw up baby's schedule and then you have to find something new.

Just relax. Go with your instinct. YOU are mom. You know your baby best.

Hi A.,
I'm with you, I never wake a sleeping baby. As long as he's eating enough I wouldn't worry about it. Until they are about 4 months you can't establish any type of routine so I would let him sleep as much as he wants. Good luck.
Chris

A.; well i had a baby that slept alot too, and i asked a dr he said, its a good idea to wake them up and feed them, cause it takes energy to wake up and without food no energy and they can stay sleeping , and eventually not wake up , if they were too weak im sure your baby is growing is why they also take longer naps, but there is something said for keeping them up during day and let them sleep at night, first of all you have a one month old, they sleep alot, but if they sleep too long without food, i woudl wake them and feed them if they are still tired they will go back to sleep, most feedings are breastfed and bottle anyway, they will go back to sleep when sleepy it wont hurt to wake, and play and change them, for a bit, my oldest slept, woke and fed every two hours, i was nursing all the time, but its ok , wake em up , especially if youare breastfeeding it can lead to engorged breasts, and this can lead to other issues, wake and feed, its ok, D. s

Congrats on your baby!

Our golden rules were never wake a sleeping baby and the highest of all rules in our house was "you wake her, you take her"! we lived by these golden rules! but that was us.

That was just what we felt, we never had sleep issued with our daughter, she was and is still a great sleeper.

Hi A.,

I personally agree with waking the baby during the day. Waking a baby and establishing a flexible routine helps them to differentiate between day and night as well as to get enough calories. I have a 7 week old (my third baby) and the way we do it is to feed him, have some wake time(which might mean waking him after the feeding if he's drowsy), and then put him down for a nap when he shows signs of tiredness. Many times, especially in the early days, we've had to wake him in order to feed him, but then in the evening after I feed him around 10p, I let him sleep until he naturally wakes up. For feedings that happen during the night, he gets put right back to bed, no wake time. The last two nights he's gone from 10p until 5:30a so we're excited about that! It seems to be working for us! Congrats on you new baby!

My answer is a little biased - I had preemie twins who came home from 3 months in NICU "on a schedule", which I found was very easy to follow. I did wake babies when it was time to feed; only because it took almost half hour to feed one; and they had to be fed every two to three hours, depending on how much they'd eat at a time, and how much reflux we were having. Had that not have been our situation, I still think I would have waken one or both up to be sure they were eating and sleeping on the same routine.

By 18 months old, we were done with daytime naps all together, and they'd sleep from 7:00 pm until 9:00 am, uninterrupted.

Although we had a very scarey NICU stay (and I don't mean to make light of the experience as we faired very well for 26 weekers!), I still think they were the best daycare and training center insurance could buy! I was well rested when they came home from the hospital, and siince they were on a schedule, it seemed almost easy.

I am no expert, however, I have had 2 babies that have slept though the night since birth. They are healthy babies, by some advise I was given I was waking my first one like I was told, every 2-3 hours. My friend said & I quote "WHAT ARE YOU CRAZY, YOU ARE GIVING UP GOOD SLEEP." That being said, I would let them sleep as long as I felt comfortable. I would do about 6 hour streches. Mommy feeling good makes for a better mommy. Do what is best for you and what you feel is best for your family.
Good luck. Get some sleep. LOL

I personally wouldn't mess with good sleep that is working for you now. If you think something needs to change, then read up on advice and go with what you think is best. I always had a really hard time waking a sleeping baby (there was always so much I could get done while they were sleeping, and I never knew if they were going to wake up happy or grumpy when they were older).

I agree that good daytime sleep equals better nighttime sleep. Babies and young children are notoriously difficult to read when tired. The signals they give off are the opposite of what you'd think when they're sleepy: hyper and excitable most notably! And I've found that with my now 12-month old, if we woke her from a nap we thought was "too long", it took longer for her to relax and fall asleep at night and she even woke up earlier than usual.

I'd say follow your gut on this one. I highly recommend the book "The No Cry Sleep Solution" by Elizabeth Pantley. We have the toddler version and it's full of very useful and interesting information on sleep. Good luck!

My daughter (now 11 months) slept for hours at a time since she was born. In the hospital they told me to wake the baby every few hours for feedings but that seems silly to me. She has been sleeping through the night since she was born, as well.

As long as he's gaining weight like normal, I would let him sleep until he wakes up.

Here is some excellent advice my mom and grandmother gave me: "NEVER WAKE THE BABY!" lol

Believe me, the baby will wake up if he is hungry. :)

We always used the method; wake for feedings during the day, do not wake for feedings at night.

Worked magic for us!

My son was on a 4 hour feeding schedule almost right from the start. Yes I would wake him up to feed him but only during the day. This helps him develop a schedule and to seperate day time from night time. Day time is for eating and night is for sleeping. It is possible to have a baby on a shedule way before 4 months of age. Babies need a routine to help them feel secure. They are happy when they no what is coming, they are not happy when they get surprised. I would definitely follow the book.

My daughter also came home from the NICU on a 3-hour schedule. The nurses just told me when to be back to feed her from the beginning. I always woke up both of my kids to feed them on that schedule and it was wonderful. It did not take long for the babies to wake up and be ready to eat on that schedule. I don't really agree that a baby can't establish a routine until 4 months.

My son is 15 months old and I never woke him. He is a wonderful sleeper. He sleeps through the night and takes wonderful naps. I did not try and make a routine. Eventually we wound up with a routine any way.

As others have said "Never wake a sleeping baby"

In the end do what feels right for you and your baby.