Feed, Play, Sleep – No!
Expectations regarding baby’s sleep can be the source of great anxiety for parents if they believe their baby is not sleeping ’well’ or ‘enough’. Understanding how variable baby’s sleep patterns are from baby to baby, and from week to week according to individual feeding, growth and developmental stages can relieve parents’ concerns, and free them to ‘go with the flow’ of their baby’s individual needs.
A commonly recommended pattern of caring for baby is “Feed, play, sleep”. This may become appropriate for babies over 3 months of age who are beginning to develop their own circadian rhythm, but is an unreasonable expectation of younger babies. I advise adapting it to “Feed, play, comfort, sleep” because young babies’ neurological and digestive systems are immature. They often need to feed (again) before being ready to settle and sleep.
Disregarding the firmly entrenched advice to put baby to bed while still awake may raise the eyebrows of the sleep consultants, however Dr Pam Douglas author of “The Discontented Little Baby” agrees – “feed-play-sleep cycles mess with your baby’s sleep biology”. Many health professionals now recognise there are potential hazards for baby’s physical and mental development associated with rigid feeding routines and sleep training. Cue-based responsive parenting enhances baby’s wellbeing and parents’ confidence in caring for and understanding their baby’s changing needs.
So what are parents to do if “feed-play-sleep” is thrown out the window? I emphasise the importance of responding to baby’s early feeding cues for best results. If baby does not settle when you expect him to, it is likely he actually needs to be fed some more. Don’t ignore feeding cues when your plan is to settle baby to sleep. The need to feed will over-rule your best efforts to settle him. If in doubt, offer another feed. This will save you time and energy in the long run, and will not “spoil” or over feed baby. Young babies under 3 months old usually need feeds in multiple instalments. They often need “topping up” after a bowel movement and clean up to feel full again and ready to sleep. Sometimes even a minute or two of extra suckling, ideally at the breast, is all baby needs to drift off to sleep. Follow baby’s cues and the bliss of dreamland will soon be yours. (Adapted from “New Baby 101 – A Midwife’s Guide for New Parents” by Lois Wattis. Available from www.newbaby101.com.au)
Baby Sleep, breastfeeding, new parents, newbaby category, Uncategorized