i've got a 2 week old at home, cute as a button but cries loads.
my wife jumps at any whimper. i know babies take over ur life but whats happening with us is riddiculous.
every single time we sit down to eat she starts, doesnt matter what time of the day. today after she had a long feed she was put down in her cot and went mental. screamed till her whole body turned red. i told my wife to leave her but she's too soft. so i took the bub and as soon as i picked her up she was fine and fell asleep on my chest. when she was in a deep sleep i put her in her bed and she was fine for 2 hours, till the next feed.
my question is, is it wrong to leave a newborn to cry when there is nothing she needs but just wants to permanently be held?
Babies need to be held and loved a LOT!! At 2 weeks, she is not being maniulative - she does needs some warmth and a heartbeat to listen to.... There are times when it is unnecessary to pick them up all the time, and it is really hard to know when those times are....
thats what my wife says, but i just dont want it to get to that point where she cries just to get attention. and sometimes she'll wake p at nite and not feed but just kinda play with the nipple and then fall asleep while feeding.
Squeaky, your plight sounds so familiar... she is only 2 weeks old; not so long since she was in that warm, safe, secure environment in the womb, and she probably misses it. Give her the cuddles when you can. She'll thrive on it.
I can understand your frustration - I had twins, and they drove me mental.... If she cries and then falls asleep at the breast then maybe there is another reason she woke up?? Maybe she has wind, or is just uncomfortable...
I honestly beleive she is too young to develop that horrible habit of wanting to be in your arms all the time, but if you put her in her bed, and pat her back gently, that might suffice, and she might just go to sleep without being in your arms. I really hope it gets better for you and your wife, it is really difficult. Try having twins with colic - that's something that can really drive you up the wall!!
this being our first, we didnt quite know what to do. my wife didnt burp her after feeding, coz she very often would fall asleep after a feed and wifie didnt want to wake her up. 3 horrible nights with wind later we learnt our lesson.
Squeaky do yourself a favour and get hold of GIna Ford's contented Little Baby Book. The routines may seem a bit harsh but use what you are comfortable with. We found it very useful as suddenly we were in control again and both our children did well more or less following her advice. Enjoy your baby!
thanx for the advice, will look into the book
If she is waking up wanting to suck but not feed, have you considered a dummy for her? I know this is controversial, but that's what I found with my baby as well and it was very frustrating. But once she had a dummy, she was much better. Especially if you're finding that her fingers and thumbs are making their way to her mouth.
Rather get her an orthodontic dummy which is similar in shape to the nipple when sucked, so should not interfere with breastfeeding.
we've got a few of those dummies, she hates them! just pushes them out. but she loves my pinkie, dont worry, i wash it before i let her suck on it. i've tried to get her usd to the dummy but she doesnt want it. and i dont wnt to have to put my finger inher mouth every time she needs comforting.