FF Mums - who does the night shift - you or OH?

[bambino156]

I tend to do the night shifts during the week as OH has to be up early and I would feel mean expecting him to be up at night and then go to work early. If i'm really tired he will offer though. Just last night I was soo tired whilst feeding LO, I couldnt physically hold my arm up to hold the bottle and I kept drifting off for a few seconds. OH saw how tired I was so he went on to do the 4.30am feed! Bliss! x

 

[littleblonde]

This sounds just like Kacey was when she was born. She would only 2 hours between feeds and this was from when she woke up. It took over an hour to settle her day and night. So was only having like you an hour between feeds to try and sleep and often not that long. Me and my OH used to take turns. I would sleep the 1st part of night and he the last part. He worked as well. I would alwasy out her down in her basket so she new that was sleep time. She had reflux and colic as well. So winding was a nightmare. This went on for the 1st 4 weeks. Then i changed her formula to comfort formula and her bottles to dr brown bottles and added dentinox drops. In the space of a week she went form waking every 1-2 hours to waking only once in the night. Then by 6 weeks she slept through for 12 hours. I used to get so annoyed when people said it will get better. But it does.

Anyway back to your question what we used to do was say your husband is home between 7-7. Matt would take over at 7 and let me sleep till12/1 and then he would feed her and put hewr down and i would take over form12/1 till the morning. Then on his days off we would take in turns.

 

[Laucu]

I've done every. single. night feed. and Emms has only just started to sleep through! She will be 7 months next week. I BF for the first 3 months and guess I just got into the habit of getting up! However, OH would get up with Emms and let me have an extra hour in the mornings. It was a good way for him to spend some time with her before he went off to work.

It WILL get easier - hang in there!

 

[welshwarriors]

In the beginning when hubby was off he did lots of nightfeeds and he did most at the weekend....it seemed after 11 months the novelty of our son wore off and I have to drag hubby into LO room to give him a bottle. The consequense now is that LO won't take the bedtime and nighttime bottle from hubby. Ohhhhh the joys of motherhood.

 

[Kte]

I did them / do them. OH works as a HGV driver and leaves for work at 1am so he missed lots of them being at work anyway. Then when it came to his days off he was oblivious to her waking up.

 

[DaisyBee]

I've done 99% of all night feeds. In the early weeks dh would take one on a sat night. But I was pumping for the first 3 weeks so I had to be up anyway. He was back to work after a week - and that first week back he was working 16-20 hr days - it was brutal! And he doesnt have an office job... so he was exhausted after that first week back.

It got easier for us once Megan hit 6 weeks. We started a bedtime routine at that time - she started sleeping a 3-4 hr stretch at night vs. needing to be fed every 2 hrs - yes every 2.... so by the time I was done feeding her, she got settled, pumped, cleaning pumping equipment - I had sometimes 20-30 min before she was ready to be fed again. She was born at 37 weeks & had a tiny stomach! By 9weeks she was finally on 3-4oz every 3-4hrs... not just one 3-4 hr stretch at night. By 10 weeks she was having a 6 hr stretch at night.

That first 6 weeks I barely slept - a few hours in the evening when dh was home from work. It was brutal - but we got through it. It will get easier!

 

[WW1]

It depends where / when OH is working. His job takes him all over the country so he sometimes works away (making it obvious who does the nightshift!), other times if OH is doing lots of driving then I do all the night shifts.

When he is working from home / isn't working the next day then we share the role - one of us does up to 4am (so the other can go to bed early if they want to) and the other does after 4am (so the other can get a lie in).

It works really well for us.

 

[clara123]

I asked my husband to do a night feed once and regretted it the next day!! He was rubbish and stressy as he hadn't had enough sleep. He wound me up for he whole day, I wanted to punch his face in. So now I do them all, it's easier as he doesn't seem to function unless he's had a good night sleep x

 

[Melody74]

Thanks for all the input - good to hear I'm not alone and it doesn't last forever! xxx

 

[chele]

I do them all now, except weekend when DH will do any feed "after 5am". Cheers!

This morning Max wanted feeding at 7am. I was totally pooped and asked DH to do it. "I've got to go to work" was the answer. I was so cheesed off

It's early days hun and I used to just shout at everyone who said it would get easier. but it really does. There will come a point when you realise it's got easier, plus your body will find a way of adapting

Now if I do get a good nights sleep I feel worse than I did when I was up all hours!

 

[marie-louise]

Those first few weeks were hell! I have done every single night feed apart from one night When he was 1 week old when I was in hospital! It's my own fault as I am a bit of a control freak and my hubby is a very heavy sleeper and I am a light one and will wake anyway! is there anyone who could pop around and give you a few hours during the day?? It will get better hun, I swear!

 

[Duffy]

My oh has done the night shifts since the day she came home and he works lucky for him she a good night sleeper even when she was a newborn. I take care of her during the day so I get a break in the mornings before he goes to work and when he gets off and his days off.

 

[kermie219]

For him to feed the baby in the night would mean him actually hearing her cry lol it must be mommy's instinct because I ALWAYS hear her but he wouldn't wake up if she was screaming in his ears! lol besides he still has to go to work everyday so I don't mind

 

[Melody74]

Yes - same problem here actually. I am a light sleeper (terrible sleeper) and always hear her before OH does. He sleeps soundly and can fall to sleep in minutes - I can take hours!
Marie-Louise - we don't have any family close by and most of our friends don't have kids yet, so its hard to ask them to help out. I just keep holding on until Saturdays when OH will do the night shift. Going to wear ear plugs this time too! xx

 

[mum2b2009]

me,me and me i know it is hard

 

[Samemka]

Generally with Emma if she was waking once or twice a night I'd do them, but if she woke a third time OH would. xxxx

 

[LorettaClaire]

i do the night shift because i am on mat leave and OH works from the minute he wakes up (between 6 and 7) to the minute he goes to bed (between 9 and 11). He works from home though as he's self employed so he does the morning feed so i can stay in bed for a few hours. Which is absolutely bliss! I'm blessed to have a hubby that works from home as he helps with the sterilizing, washing up, clothes washing etc. He knows just how hard it can be to do it all on your own.

I am a very lucky girl x x

 

[Jellyt]

For him to feed the baby in the night would mean him actually hearing her cry lol it must be mommy's instinct because I ALWAYS hear her but he wouldn't wake up if she was screaming in his ears! lol besides he still has to go to work everyday so I don't mind

Same here! OH will not wake up no matter how loud she's crying unless I wake him so I have to wake up anyway and then I can't relax until she's back down so although letting him do a night feed gives me a bit of time to relax, I never actually sleep through it. I do the night feeds in the week and he helps out at the weekend though he did do one in the week last week because he wanted to which was nice. He didn't do any in the first few weeks though because I was BF and then he'd gotten used to not waking up so I had to pretty much force him...he's getting there now!

 

[tinkerz23]

It will get better so hang in there! I also do all the night feeds, but I BF for the first 3 months. Now she is FF and I still do them. OH works offshore overseas and is gone a month at a time. The month he is off, he has work to do around here to catch up on what needed to be done while he was gone. We have livestock and he cuts hay during the summer months. Thank goodness that she wakes no more than once at night now!

 

[Windmills]

i did every night feed but was lucky lo only woke once a night and slept through fron 5 weeks x

Yes, exactly this! Daisy has only woken once in the night since she was about a week old, and she's started going 10-6 now (touch wood!).