I think I am going to die of sleep deprivation...what can I do????

Question

I feel like a terrible mom!!! Baby is only 5 days old hubby is at work and I haven't slept oh god I don't know!!! My house i boiling hot and i have the fan on I cant do anything baby fed for an hour then another hour like 20 minutes later my nerves are shot I am crying I am starting to get paranoid I am not kidding what can I do??? He wont go back to sleep and I slept for an hour a few hours ago first time in like 2 days minus little 20 minute sleeps please how do people do this I need to do this i need to sleep

Answer 1

Put the baby in a bassinet right beside your bed, set your alarm for two hours, and go to sleep. You will have to learn to sleep even with the baby being awake.

You can also call agencies that help new mothers, like Healthy Babies Healthy Children, who have nurses that do home visits. There are non-profit organizations that sometimes have parent relief volunteers.

I don't know where you live, but I've added a few links to give you an idea of what I'm talking about. Google "Post-Partum Support" and you should find more.

Remember, you are okay. The first few weeks are VERY difficult. Mom's get almost no time to 'sleep off' the exhaustion of labour - the parenting starts immediately. It's well understood that a new mom will be exhausted, hormonal, depressed, sleep deprived and pretty dang crazy for a good number of months. You DO learn to cope.

Call your friends, or your husbands friends, if you have nobody at all, then you'll have to set the alarm and put the baby somewhere safe and just sleep.

PS- I'm a single mom so I did it all without even the Hope of a husband 'coming home'..trying to get that car seat installed in a taxi, with a newborn, lactating, and fresh stitches when it was time to leave the hospital was quite the nightmare..

Answer 2

Welcome to motherhood. The first weeks at home with a newborn are trying and you will get little to no sleep. If the baby is awake but content put him in his crib next to you and you go to sleep. Get a few snoozes. Even if the baby is awake he is fine to lay in his crib for a little bit while you catch a few minutes. My second daughter had colic and I didn't sleep but for an hour or two her whole first month of life. You get over it. This is a new experience for you and yes you are tired and yes you will probably be very tired till that child grows up and moves out. My mother jokes and says she didn't get any sleep until I was 18. My daughters are 2, 5, and I'm pregnant again so sleep is a friend I once knew. My two year old does her paces at night and my husband works the graveyard shift so I am up and down all night with my hips hurting from the pregnancy and from not having my husband to sleep next to. It's a thing that comes with being a mom. Mom's don't sleep. Just remember sleep when the baby sleeps. If the baby sleeps for 20 minutes you sleep for 20 minutes. As soon as that baby is asleep you be curled up in your bed snoozing. Don't worry my dear it gets easier and then when you look back on it you think ah, heck that wasn't so bad let's have another baby. God bless and Congrats on the new baby!

Answer 3

I know how you feel.. My husband wasnt around when I had my first son. Your just going to have to power nap when the baby does and deal with it day to day.. understand that its not the babys fault and its just part of it.. it will get better, I promise. Im 31 wks pregnant now with our 3rd and my husband goes back to iraq a couple of weeks after the baby is born and I will be right back in your shoes again.. THE JOYS OF MOTHERHOOD lol.. your baby is worth it, and the first part is the hardest especially when you have to do it mostly alone. All you can do is smile and look forward to when things are more normal which will be soon!!

Answer 4

definitely sleep when your son's sleeping. try to invite a friend over that could possible watch the baby for maybe an hour while you take a short nap. or help you out around the house or something like that. but definitely try to ask your husband to help  

Answer 5

I have a son on 30 minute day feeds and 45 minute night feeds.

I haven't slept more than 2 hours in 3 years, you will not die from it. You body will adjust.

If you ring the hospital where you had him, they can send a out-patient nurse out to help you adjust.

Answer 6

rap your baby up real tight in a blanket like a barrito. he should go to sleep then because if he is rapped up he feels like he is still in the mothers tummy. hope this helps

Answer 7

you really should call in somebody to help you out, maybe a family member, or if you have a really close friend (preferably female), they could lend a hand. You need to sleep to be able to take care of your child (congrats, btw)

good luck :)

Answer 8

This is normal.  You will feel better tomorrow, or in a week - the first 2 weeks are the worst.  And you won't die - people can live for 2 months with no sleep before they go into a coma - your brain won't work right, but you won't die.

Call someone if you can to have them let you take a nap.  You will get through it and in a month you will forget all about this week - don't feel like a terrible mom - everyone feels this way at first.  By the end of this month he'll be sleeping 4 hours at a time and you'll be fine.  Plus, it's your hormones dumping, so take a deep breath and try to remain calm.

Answer 9

You need to tell your husband that you need a break! He needs to take care of your baby while you take a rest. If he can't do it; get another family member. Poor thing, you sound exhausted! Please call some family and have someone come help you. I hope this helps... & congradulations on being a new mom!

Answer 10

Get your man to have a day off and sleep or get a family member or friend to look after the baby so you can get some rest cuz if you don't you will probably get depressed and do something you might regret, you need to find some one around you to take care of the baby or go to the hospital and tell them the situation and they should take the baby of you for a few hours so you can get some sleep!

Answer 11

Family.. Friends.. any one willing to watch the baby that you trust for a few hours while you get some sleep.

You need a bit of you time or you could develop post partum depression.