Forcing a baby to stay awake

[Frynd1]

My sister has been forcing her 6 week old baby to stay awake until midnight every night. When her baby tries to sleep in the evening, she purposely wakes her up again and again. Then, when I am baby-sitting, my niece is extremely fussy and cranky. When I let her sleep, my sister yells at me saying how 'now she'll be up all night.' She even yells at our mother, throwing hissy fits when we let her daughter sleep. My son is due in May and I am wondering if this is okay?

[BabyLuv]

Originally Posted by LynnDewald1

My sister has been forcing her 6 week old baby to stay awake until midnight every night. When her baby tries to sleep in the evening, she purposely wakes her up again and again. Then, when I am baby-sitting, my niece is extremely fussy and cranky. When I let her sleep, my sister yells at me saying how 'now she'll be up all night.' She even yells at our mother, throwing hissy fits when we let her daughter sleep. My son is due in May and I am wondering if this is okay?

Your sister appears to be cranky and sleep deprived. Anyone with a baby can identify with that. I disagree with "forcing" a 6 week old baby to stay awake during the day. The baby should also definately be put to bed before midnight. It would be best to get a sleep and nap schedule set up. Babies need regular sleep in order to grow and be healthy. The baby should get at least 1 to 3 short cat naps during the day or one long nap. She is lucky to have a sister as patient as you. Good luck.

[siren1024]

I do sympathize with your sister.... it's hard being sleep deprived. However, an over tired newborn is much much more difficult than one who just has her days and nights mixed up.

She really shouldn't expect her to sleep more that 4 hours at a time at night (some babies sleep up to 6 by 6 weeks, but not many!) as her tummy will wake her up b/c she just can't hold much food.

Allowing her to sleep during the day will help her set her own internal clock. Newborns can need up to 14 hours of sleep a day or more. I put my son to bed around 10:00 at that age. Then he woke up at 2 for a feeding, again at 6, and at 8 or 9 and stay awake for a while. But he'd go right back to sleep every time he woke up. And he'd still take 3 or 4 1-2 hour naps a day.

I have to wonder if her baby is overtired and even more difficult to get to sleep because of that. I do know it makes them SOOO cranky.

Good luck with your sister! These are difficult days.

[andilyn]

From my experience, when they are that young, forcing them to stay awake can actually make their sleeping habits worse than if they are allowed to sleep when they need it. As someone already said, newborns need a lot of sleep, and should be allowed to sleep when they need to. That's the way babies develop a routine. I know it worked for us. My daughter is a year and a half old now, and we let her sleep when she needed it when she was a newborn, and since then she has developed a good napping and sleeping routine. And I'm due in July with our second and I know we plan on doing the same thing. But sometimes having a newborn is a lot tougher than you expect, and if your sister thinks it's a good idea, then maybe just suggest to her that she ask the pediatrician what would be best. Maybe they can suggest a better routine for her and the baby. Good luck!

[BioAdoptMom3]

I have never believed in keeping a sleepy baby awake. Most six week olds actually sleep most of the time (up to 20 hours per day can be normal). Keeping a baby awake can result in overstimulation which will make the wakeful problem even worse.

If she wants the baby to sleep more and the baby is flat on her back in the crib she could try one of the following:

Let the baby sleep in the swing.
Let the baby sleep in the carseat (right in the crib is fine).
Prop her on her side.
Let her sleep on her tummy.
Sleep with her.

Nancy