Common Newborn Questions Parents Ask
By Kimberley Fernandez - CLD, Baby-Led Sleep & Wellness Specialist
Kimberley has been working with pregnant and new families in their birth and postpartum journey since 2006 and currently supports families in the early days of life with their newborn and sleep support up to age four. You can find out more on the website. Sleep Support or Postpartum Support
As a newborn and sleep specialist, I'm always on the look out for questions that are top of mind for new parents. And there are common newborn questions that parents ask. Newborns can be a complete mystery for many and often times, asking the internet or social media can just cause more questions or leave you confused with the variety of conflicting answers you get. So let's dispell some of the confusion and get you some answers based on science and 20 years of experience.
Is It Normal For My Newborn To Wake Every 1-2 Hours?
This is a question that many parents of newborns have. And the short answer is yes. But it's a little more involved than just yes. There is a major reason for it. And that is food. When babies are born, their main focus is survival. And one of the factors of survival is going to be food. Which basically means, their sleep will depend on how long it takes to feed, digest and become hungry again. And if feeding isn't going well, then sleep will take a hit. This is another reason why we don't want to focus on wake windows in the first 3-4 months, because feeding will play a huge part in sleep and your baby may have shorter or longer wake windows then another baby of the same age. You may also find that formula fed babies may sleep longer as it takes longer for baby's belly to digest formula, but even then, that doesn't always happen and your sleep will be disrupted by the prep and clean up of bottles.
As baby grows and feeding gets easier, and their belly gets bigger and they will sleep longer. Then at around 3-4 months old you can start monitoring and logging baby's wake windows.
Should I Wake My Baby To Feed?
My usual answer to this question is, in the first 1-2 weeks while breastfeeding is being established, I do recommend you wake baby every 2-3 hours to feed. This will be especially important in the first few days while there maybe concerns about baby's weight and jaundice. But once breastfeeding is established and baby's weight is no longer a concern, you can let baby sleep and see if they will wake on their own. Normal newborn behaviour is for a baby to wake every 2-3 hours to feed. For the first couple of months, however, I wouldn't recommend baby going longer than 4-5 hours as we don't want to see a decline in baby's weight or in your supply.
Why Does My Baby Only Sleep When Held?
This is a very common question, usually phrased, "How can I put my baby down?" Again, newborns need to feel safe and secure to sleep. That is part of survival. And where they feel safest is on you. Close to your heart and hearing your heartbeat, in the warmth of your arms, and close to their food source. Being next to your heart will also help to regulate baby's nervous system. Being out in the world can be overwhelming to a newborn with all the new sounds, temperatures, visual intensity of the world and in order for them to calm themselves, they need you. Taking your calm regulated body and regulating themselves. Known as co-regulation.
I have actually created another article on How To Get My Newborn To Sleep In Their Bassinet. This can help you find the ways to put baby down for a bit so you can eat, sleep, and focus on your recovery.
I hope the answers to these common questions was helpful. If you have a question about your newborn, feel free to shoot me an email at Sleep@TorontoDoulaGroup.com
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