Helping 14 month old stay asleep at night when newborn comes home?

squashy

Deleted_User wrote: »

Thanks everyone for the advice, its encouraging to know I am not alone.

On the day we were due to be discharged out of hospital when Jack was 2 days old, at the last minute they noticed he was jaundiced and advised me to stay an extra night. Because of this they recommended a top up feed to try to kick the jaundice and then when we came home and he still wasn't feeding well or gaining weight and still jaundiced, we were advised to stick with top ups otherwise he would be admitted. What with me losing all the weight as well, I felt it was the only thing I could do. He was not getting better or gaining weight. By the two weeks my MW said I could continue as we were or give in to full time bottles. By that stage I had no confidence, so exhausted and tearful as DH was going back to work, that we gave bottles. A week later he had gained 13 oz.

Hopefully it will be better this time around. We shall wait and see.

Thank you.

What terrible advice from your midwife. I would have told her to shove it :rotfl:

Jo_R_2

squashy wrote: »

What terrible advice from your midwife. I would have told her to shove it :rotfl:

Gawd I totally agree! Why on earth weren't they sorting out the breastfeeding which is the best thing to get rid of the jaundice??? Recommending a top up feed to 'kick the jaundice' is crazy - breastmilk would have sorted it quickly, it doesn't sound like you got much support to establish breastfeeding :grouphug: Not your fault at all, but it makes me furious when I read stuff like this about mums struggling on and not getting the support they need to bf.

I found that bf is a great tool for sleep lol! And that's for me and baby! Nothing like a nighttime feed to send baby straight back to sleep, half the time I could hardly remember waking up. Feeding between 2am and 4am is essential for building up the milk supply - make a mental note!

I too had PNI with DD1 but escaped it with DD2. It was certainly hard, DD2 was nearly a month late which ate into my maternity leave, then after I went back to work me and their dad split up, but I found the routine I had with DD1 was crucial to my sanity.

DD1 was booked into nursery for when I was at work so whilst I was off on maternity leave, I continued to take her there so I could have some time with DD2. I also used to do their bedtime routine together, bathed them together and put them to bed together. It was just loads easier that way and I knew that after they were both asleep I could make the merry trek downstairs and just lie on the sofa lol...

Ice_2

I used to put a teaspoon of ovaltine in my son's bottle at night so that he would sleep through the night ...it worked...he slept from 8pm - 8am...great...have you thought of taking a kettle up-stairs with you and a jug...just a thought you could put them out of sight during the day for safety reason's and just get them out on a night....:D

aligerdie

I've got a 4 month old now, and there's only 10 months difference between him and his sister (yeah i know! ). I have suffered with PND with all of my children, and the only thing i can say is rest.

I have to admit, i haven't found it as hard as i thought i would. The first 8 weeks were hard, and i was so tired, but the housework and everything else just didn't matter. I learnt to master the ability to feed them both at the same time,which has been pretty interesting!

Have you thought about shutting the door of your 14 month old? we started to do this, but leave a little plug in light on and the baby monitor. That way we could hear, and if she woke up it wasn't pitch black.
I found this worked for us, and now baby is sleeping through, its silence in our house at night!

The main thing i wanted to say was look after yourself, you're the most important person in their lives, and they need you. I worried like hell through a difficult pregnancy, but when it actually happens, its not as bad as you think. You just adapt, but rest is the most important thing to prevent your pnd getting worse.
Talk to your health visitor about your concerns, i know mine did say there was some charity that they could get in touch with that offer a home help for a few weeks free of charge. I forget what its called now, but ask your hv if there's anything like that in your area.

Your feelings towards your son at the moment are normal i think when you have pnd, i know i felt the same, but it does get easier. at least you know you love him and thats all that matters.

take care of yourself, and enjoy your babies. xxxxxx

Ice_2

ok so I had my son 21 year's ago I was and still am a single parent never had no help of anyone did it all myself...but what is PND....

poppyolivia

we took a microwave into the bedroom!

good luck xxx

Rachie_B

Ice wrote: »

I used to put a teaspoon of ovaltine in my son's bottle at night so that he would sleep through the night ...it worked...he slept from 8pm - 8am...great...have you thought of taking a kettle up-stairs with you and a jug...just a thought you could put them out of sight during the day for safety reason's and just get them out on a night....:D

"adult" drinks of this nature are not suitable for a baby / childs digestive system

izoomzoom

Ice wrote: »

ok so I had my son 21 year's ago I was and still am a single parent never had no help of anyone did it all myself...but what is PND....

post natal depression

naughty_10382

izoomzoom wrote: »

Someone else mentioned about 'mother's help'. We were told about this at both our NCT group as well as some paperwork that I got from the MWs - had something to do about volunteers from the university who needed some experience - and it was free. Maybe worthwhile for you ???

I did this when I was at college doing a childcare BTEC. I really enjoyed it, and almost 4.5 years later, I'm still friends with the family - their twin girls are now 5 and it has been a pleasure seeing them grow up. I'd recommend getting a student as long as you feel you'd be up to this... it is an extra pair of hands, but an inexperienced pair!

SeptemberBaby_2

Hi Bailey, I know you are hoping to BF but if you do use bottles, this was fantastic for us:

http://www.mothercare.com/gp/product/B000JFL5LO/sr=1-2/qid=1202770397/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&mcb=core

HTH x