Feeling hungry, having a wet or soiled diaper, or being too hot or too cold are all reasons your baby may cry and act a bit fussy at night.
What Causes Babies to Be Fussy At Night? Newborns usually need to “cluster feed” at night time. If Mom is breastfeeding her supply is lower in the early evening and so babies often need to nurse more frequently during this time to stock them up for a longer stretch of sleep.
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.
Your baby may be suffering from a build up of wind and gas from their feeds throughout the day. This is a common cause for the witching hour baby. Babies have an immature digestion so if they take in excess air as they feed (for various reasons) then it sits in the gut, creating an uncomfortable and bloated feeling.
Many young babies have a “fussy period” of a few hours each day, when they especially need lots of calming and soothing. This is most commonly, though not always, in the evening and first part of the night, and tends to build in intensity over the next few weeks. The peak age for crying is around 6-8 weeks.
If your baby is finding it hard to settle back to sleep after a night feed, it may be worth checking your environment when you feed him. Keeping it as dark and quiet as possible, so your baby isn't stimulated into feeling more alert during a feed, may help him to settle quicker.
In short, dealing with nighttime disruptions is simply a part of new parenthood. Most often, temporary things like illness, teething, developmental milestones or changes in routine cause baby sleep issues — so the occasional sleep snafu likely isn't anything to worry about.
If your baby's crying is getting to you, it's fine to put them in a safe place (like their crib) and let them cry for a bit. Take a few minutes to calm down and call a friend, family member, or parenting hotline like the National Parent Helpline at 1-855-427-2736.
Colic can begin in the early weeks and often fades by month 3 or 4. The behavior of a colickly baby is markedly different than that of a baby experiencing normal witching hour. The crying is often more intense and the baby is unable to be soothed.
Yes, formula-fed babies can also experience a witching hour. The witching hour is not specific to breastfed babies and can occur in babies who are formula-fed as well.
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…
After 12 months
From 12 months old, babies tend to sleep better. As they approach their first birthday, babies tend to sleep longer, wake up less often, take a nap once or twice during the day and sleep more at night.
Coping with your baby
Most people find the first six to eight weeks to be the hardest with a new baby. And, although 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.
Sometimes restlessness at night can indicate a problem. If your baby is uncomfortable, for example, too hot, too cold, or itchy from eczema, this may result in disturbed and restless sleep. Some sleep disorders can also cause disrupted sleep.
Babies fight sleep for a variety of reasons the seven most common being separation anxiety, overtiredness, overstimulation, teething, hitting a milestone, traveling and discomfort or illness.
Second Night Syndrome
Generally occurs about 24 hours after birth for almost every baby. Your baby will want to be on the breast constantly but quickly fall asleep. If you put him down, he will probably wake up. If you put him back to breast, he will feed for a short time and fall asleep.
Colicky babies may cry continuously for 2 to 3 hours at a time for no apparent reason. Their crying spells usually happen around the same time every day, often in the evening. The good news is that most babies outgrow this excessive crying by around 3 months of age. It may last a little longer for some infants.
Witching hour usually starts in the late afternoon and lasts into the early evening (5:00 - 11:00pm). It's when your newborn starts to fuss, and then that fuss turns into crying, and that crying turns into screaming.
Feeling hungry, having a wet or soiled diaper, or being too hot or too cold are all reasons your baby may cry and act a bit fussy at night.
If your baby's circadian rhythm puts their natural wake time at 6 a.m., 3 a.m. would be the approximate time that their body stops releasing melatonin and begins to release cortisol. When the release of cortisol corresponds with the end of a sleep cycle, your baby will more than likely wake.