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 Ask Dr. Jana
Sleeping Arrangement for a Newborn | | | QUESTION | | | Dear Dr. Jana,
We just brought our baby (Carlee) home from the hospital. She is so sweet and loving, but our first night home she only slept in the crib for about four hours total. The rest of the time my wife or myself was holding and/or feeding her (of course I was not feeding her). Is this normal? Do we need to let her cry and see if she will eventually fall asleep in the crib? That will be very hard for us to do.— Paul F. | | | ANSWER |
March 22, 2001 | | | Dear Paul,
Congratulations on the new addition to your family! Your question is fairly easy to answer because I can assure you that it is perfectly normal for a newborn to cry and eat during the night.
By your question, I assume you have already heard of the great debate over where and how to get an infant to sleep through the night. I know of no pediatricians (or other health professionals) who would ever recommend letting a newborn cry it out. At this stage in your daughter's life, you can rest assured that it is perfectly normal for her to want to eat 8-12 times or more in every 24-hour period.
As for wanting to be held, keep in mind that your daughter has just spent over nine months in a warm cozy environment with the soothing sound of her mother's heart beat to lull her to sleep. While the goal of putting your daughter down to sleep in her own crib and teaching her fall asleep on her own is a reasonable one, I would not worry about letting your newborn sleep in your arms at this early age.
Lastly, you should not worry about holding and cuddling your daughter too much - spoiling is not an issue at this age, so enjoy your new role as a father.— by Laura Jana, M.D., F.A.A.P. |
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