“Second night syndrome” is a perfectly normal response to being born, and most babies experience a bit of fussiness on their second night of life. It doesn't mean that anything is wrong or that your baby is starving. It can feel overwhelming, but there ARE some things you can do to help survive the second night!
Just knowing that Second Night Syndrome is common may help you relax a bit. Almost every baby experiences this, but it will last only a night or two.
“But babies on night two wake up a lot more—they're more alert and are ready to feed. The second night is when the exhaustion really hits [for parents].” Night two can bring a lot of crying. Baby is hungry and it can be difficult for some to figure out how to feed.
Night two can bring way more crying that the first 24 hours. The theory is that during the second to third day postpartum, your newborn is discovering they are no longer in the comforts of your womb. They are experiencing many new firsts – the feeling of hunger, cold air across their skin, lights and stimulation etc…
Often the biggest reason your little one is waking and demanding so often is she's trying to increase your milk supply. This isn't because you aren't making enough milk. It's simply because your baby is designed to teach your body to produce what she needs, by suckling.
What happens when a newborn's hunger cries are ignored? Bottle feeding babies do not have 'second night syndrome' because we can see how much milk they are eating and they have access to the volume they need.
Now researchers say they have found that leaving infants to cry has no impact on their behavioural development or their attachment to their mother, but may help them develop self-control.
On Day 2, your baby wakes up to the world and roots more frequently. On this day, you might feel she's on your breast non-stop, but that's normal. As long as you're not in pain, keep up with these frequent feedings, because they give your baby much-needed colostrum and help speed your transition into mature milk.
Most people find the first six to eight weeks to be the hardest with a new baby, and whilst people may not openly discuss many of the challenges in these early weeks of parenthood (if at all), there are a number of common hurdles you may face at this time.
But many first-time parents find that after the first month of parenthood, it can actually get more difficult. This surprising truth is one reason many experts refer to a baby's first three months of life as the “fourth trimester.” If months two, three, and beyond are tougher than you expected, you're not alone.
And more importantly, your newborn constantly feeding is normal and common. Known as newborn cluster feeding, frequent feeding is her way of getting your body to produce enough milk, especially during a growth spurt. Think of it as nature's way of increasing your breast milk supply.
But cluster feeding is perfectly normal, says Attie Sandink, a lactation consultant in Burlington, Ont. “Babies instinctively know how much milk they need. If they're not getting enough, they just want to feed and feed,” she says. This doesn't mean your milk supply is tanking or you need to supplement with formula.
Your newborn's moro (or “startle”) reflex is making it impossible to fall asleep. You've probably observed this in your newborn before: your baby starts to fall asleep and then suddenly “startles” herself awake. Frustrating, especially if you've worked to get your baby drowsy enough to fall asleep in the first place!
“Assuming there are no medical issues, there is no harm in a baby's excessive crying,” he says. “They may get a hoarse voice, but they will eventually get tired and stop crying. Your baby may also get a little gassy from swallowing air while crying, but that's OK.
Crying it out
It's OK to let your baby cry if the baby doesn't seem sick and you've tried everything to soothe your baby. You can try to leave your baby alone in a safe place, such as a crib, for about 10 to 15 minutes. Many babies need to cry before they can fall asleep.
Allowing the baby to cry for 5-10 minutes alone in their bed is not going to cause any lasting harm.
Babies who are breastfed or are fed expressed breastmilk are at lower risk for SIDS compared with babies who were never fed breastmilk. According to research, the longer you exclusively breastfeed your baby (meaning not supplementing with formula or solid food), the lower his or her risk of SIDS.
Most babies up to 3 months can stay awake no more than ~1.5 hours before it becomes harder to get them to fall asleep and then stay asleep. So your baby wants to eat and sleep - competing needs this time of day. She may be staying up longer than the 1.5 hours to eat and now she's tired, which means fussy.
It absolutely will not last forever. Usually, cluster feeding resolves within 2-3 days after starting. Also, a few helpful things to remember when cluster feeding is feeling endless: Cluster feeding occurs around developmental milestones — your baby's body is doing important things!
The witching hour is a time when an otherwise content baby is extremely fussy. It typically occurs daily between 5:00 pm and 11:00 pm. It can last a few minutes to a couple of hours. For most babies, the witching hour starts to occur around 2-3 weeks and peaks at 6 weeks.