Since I've started this blog, I've had quite a few visitors find me through a search for something like "baby fidgets in sleep" or "baby fidgets in bed" or simply "baby fidgets." This leads me to believe that there are others out there with fidgety babies who drive them crazy enough to search on the internet for some information about fidgeting babies. So I thought I'd do a whole post to discuss the fidgety nature of my child and how I deal with it.
Do you want to know when my child first started fidgeting? IN UTERO!! I'm not kidding. When I was pregnant, this baby moved a lot. She was very often kicking and pushing and hiccuping. OMG, the hiccups! I thought they would drive me nuts. Every. Single. Day. For. Months. Straight. Often more than once a day. I am not exaggerating--you can ask Londo or the many people I worked with, all of whom had to hear about it. I just thought it was part of being pregnant, and it probably is, but I've also realized that it is just my child's nature.
I may have mentioned before that the Pumpkin is a fussy baby, and she always has been. I think that part of her fussiness is her need for constant motion and activity. As a newborn, she needed to be held and walked/rocked/bounced constantly. When we weren't moving her, she was moving herself. She constantly kicked her feet and flailed her arms. Since she was a few weeks old, I have joked that she has restless legs syndrome, except it's her whole body. Restless Body Syndrome. I suspect she is not the only baby with this disorder.
How did we deal with this and get any sleep at all? Two things: the Miracle Blanket and the swing. Swaddling the baby worked amazingly well for us. Even when she was awake, a lot of times it would just calm her down. She would start calming down when we started the swaddling process. And we used the swing at night (all night long) from week 3 to 2 months. I would have kept using it, but she was getting heavy and it was starting to creak a bit. hehe.
We kept swaddling her at night when we moved her to the co-sleeper next to the bed, even though she started to kick her feet out. Then she started wiggling her arms out. Darn that fidgeting! She would wake herself up because she'd come almost completely out of the once mummy-tight swaddle. So we tried to not swaddle her, and it was a mess. We went back to swaddling.
Since she was such an active child, she started rolling over early. She started crawling early, she started standing, and cruising, and even walking early. The great thing about the early development of gross motor skills was that she was able to be active and fidgety on her own, without us having to constantly move her. But the huge issue with this early development is that she started rolling over in her sleep at 3.5 months. While swaddled. With her arms pinned to her sides.
So I freaked out, and we stopped swaddling her. This was right at the 4-month sleep regression time period. And there went our sleep. For months and months. Was it the figeting that kept waking her up? The teething? Gas? The sleep regression/developmental spurt? I don't know what it was, but to this day, I miss the swaddle.
Around 6 months, we moved her into her nursery. We figured if she was not sleeping in our bedroom, she might as well not sleep in her nursery so we wouldn't have to tip-toe around our room anymore. But I'd go in and cosleep with her in there for the morning hours. And she'd fidget.
I have before refered to "The Fidget Hour" which is the hour (or more) it would take the Pumpkin to settle down. I would bring her into the twin bed with me, nurse her lying down, and we'd start drifting off to sleep. Often, it would be beautiful and easy. But there were many many times that were not so easy. Especially when she was super fidgety. She would grab my shirt, grab my hands, twirl her hair in her fingers, and on and on. She would kick me, push her feet into me, and constantly move her legs. All while her eyes are closed and looking like she should be asleep.
On the worst mornings, she'd stop nursing and keep fidgeting, sometimes waking herself up or keeping herself awake. I learned to let her roll over onto her stomach and cuddle around her to keep her arms and legs from moving. Sometimes this would work, other times it would just piss her off.
Finally, she seems to be learning to stay asleep or put herself back to sleep through the fidgeting. I imagine it's just one of those things. She still fidgets, not only in her sleep but also while nursing or in her highchair or in her carseat--Who am I kidding? She fidgets EVERYWHERE. But so does her daddy, so at least she comes by it honestly.
To all those out there struggling with fidgety babies, good luck. I have no good answers for how to help others, only things that we tried that worked sometimes.
I hope it gets easier for us all as they get older.
72 comments:
we used the miracle blanket briefly but by the time we tried it boog was already too long for it so we ended up just wrapping his arms in it. We ditched the swaddle all together shortly after that at 4.5 months. It was painful.
I was thinking about the swaddle the other day and thinking if we have another child I almost hope they don't need it. It was great but eventually it was one more crutch we had to break.
We had a fisher price swing but we had the papsan version. I loved it because you could put them in it while swaddled, many a colicky night was spent swaddled in that swing.
Swaddling and the swing saved my life when my son was little. We used to swaddle him so tightly and then joke about whether we should duct tape it when we were finished (we didn't)
Thanks for stopping by my blog - I'm really enjoying yours!
My Pumpkin was a hiccuper, too. We have some really funny video of her hiccuping as a newborn. She totally fidgets in her high chair, too. I guess that's another bad habit she gets from me....
Monkey was a hiccup king! Everyday in the third trimester.
He also fidgets quite a bit while feeding (not just breast feeding either, while in the high chair, too!). I just didn't realize I should be calling it fidgeting. The number one thing he does is pull my hair, then the grabbing of the nose, mouth, etc. All of which I thought was cute at first and somewhat encouraged but now, he's little rough about it!
So far it hasn't been in the way of feeding very much so other than losing a few strands of hair, I'm not too worried about it yet. However, it's good to know he's in good company!
I never called it fidgeting I called it flailing! My son FLAILS during sleep. His arm moves repetitively up down up down like he is conducting. He kickes,or my favorite is when he tries to 'mountain climb' me all night long. He also does this while nursing and sometimes keeps himself awake. Some times I try laying my legs over his legs so I can still either hold his hand or put my hand on his head (this seems to really help calm him down). But sometimes he gets mad because now he is trapped! lol he keeps himself up with the flailing but hates to feel trapped! Crazy kids... but I was feeling like the only person who's kid moves SO much in his sleep :)
I have a 3-1/2mo old daughter and she too flails . . .actually she thrashes her arms violently while she sleeps; this started about 1-1/2mo ago. We too have swaddled her to calm her, but now she works hard to get out of the swaddle. I have read your comments but I'm not sure if your infant's "fidgets" are as severe as ours. It is as if our child is shadow boxing, she also rubs her nose and eyes vigorously as if they itched, kicks her legs up, moves her head from side to side as if she were saying NO, pulls at her ear. We have had to put mittens on her so that she doesn't scratch her face. She sleeps in a bassinet/playard next to our bed, but it's gotten to the point where I have to bring her in bed with us so that we can restrain her and keep her from hurting herself. Initially she would be ok w/us holding her down but has more recently become upset when we hold her arms down. We are so concerned and desprate for answers!! Has anyone found any medical condition related to this behavior?
Anonymous - I did a post in reply to your comment, which you can find here. I hope that it helps, but the gist is that my doctor said there was no real medical condition or treatment. It will just take time for the baby's system to develop, and some people (babies include) just fidget more. Good luck. I really understand how frustrating it is and how desperate for answers you are! I really truly have been there! I'm sorry that their is likely no better answer that "it's just a phase, and it will eventually get better."
I have a 7 week old son who also thrashes his arms and kicks his legs violently during his night sleeps. It has become an every night occurence during the last few weeks! we call it Kung foo time! He too rubs his eyes and bags his dummy out as he does, with his eyes closed as if hes asleep!! I'm not sure if he gets any sleep or not as last few days he's been very sleepy and overtired. I'm trying to keep to hos routine but finding it difficult as he's overtired now and oversleeps during nap time.I thought perhaps it was due to wind but am not so sure now. I have slpoken to the Doc and Midwives and they have never heard of this before!!! I too hope to find some remedy soon.
CLR
*oh dear* My 18-mo old daughter is STILL doing this. Her doc has never heard of such a thing so out of desperation I googled and just so relieved to find this discussion. At least she's not the only one! So many comments ring true for me: girly was VERY kicky and active all through pregnancy; took well to swaddling in the first couple months until she got strong enough to work out of the bundle; picking her up and rocking her almost instantly calms her down and she MAY rest for another hour or so in her crib; I've tried holding her still during the 'espisodes' but she resists and kicks/wrestles harder all quietly with her eyes closed like she's still asleep; if left completely untouched the flailing WILL eventually totally wake her up -- compeletly pissed off and standing up in her crib screaming uncontrollably. Then I have to pick her up, cuddle with her in bed, she quickly falls asleep again and the gyrations continue for 2+ hours or so. We've even resorted to putting a daybed in her room because I spend so many nights helping her through the fidgety period, trying to both get some sleep.
During these MANY months I have noticed pattern -- girly slumbers deeply and almost motionless for the first 4-5 hours at night; then 2+hrs of cage fighting; then back to deep sleep for the final hours. I wonder if it has something to do with coming in and out of the REM sleep cycles?? Truly, I have never had luck letting her work through the episodes herself(cry-it-out, pat-pat-pat, or any hands-off sleep method). Without intervention the figdeting WILL wake her up and she cannot settle back down on her own enough to fall back to sleep (I've watched her really try, but no go). Curiously, this only occurs at night. Girly's mid-day nap is usually short 1-1/2 to 2 hours, but restful with no figeting.
Oh how I wish there was a solution!!
A question to Anonyomous - Our 3mo daughter has exactly the same symptoms (arms, legs, ears, head - everything) since she was 1 month old... did you notice any change or improvement in time? We are also co-sleeping in order to make sure that she gets any sleep (by restraining her arms). Or found any responses. Please contact me on laurapetra@gmail.com if you have any answers (or just for reassurance that we are not alone:).
You have all described my son perfectly. He was always active while I was pregnant, and the hiccups were non-stop. He has fidgeted since birth, and it's only progressed since then. I have never in my life seen such a fidgety baby. He rolls around all night and we co-sleep. I would think he was trying out for every sport in the Olympics because of all the moving. And trying to put him to sleep is a challenge every day. PS - he is 5 months old. He flails his arms and legs all the time and won't keep still, not during feedings, not during napping, never...
I guess it's just something about a spirited child. I always called him a twitchy sleeper - like his startle reflex was set to high. And it still is. We swaddled and used a running hairdryer for white noise. Nothing else was loud enough for him. And still he is the most tossy-turny, fidgety, twitchy sleeper. Those little jumps people do when they are falling asleep? He does them all the time. He's two and it takes him an hour to unwind and finally fall asleep at night - doesn't matter what time bed time starts. I really thought something was wrong with him for the longest time but I've never found anything other than other blogging parents who describe the same behaviors. My RL friends and family just think I'm nuts when I try and describe it.
My son is now 6 1/2 months old and his kicking and flailing seem to be getting worse! The last few nights we have had to stand by his cot and hold his arms and legs down - not good for my back! I am hoping its gotten worse due to overtiredness - his naps are pathetic! 20 mins 3 or 4 times a day if we are lucky and the last two days he has only had two 20 min ones - which is possibly why his nights have been more disturbed - heres hoping! I am very glad that there are others though - I was googling in a panic thinking there was something wrong with him! I feel much better now. If anyone does find out a miracle cure - please let us know!
It is rather interesting for me to read the blog. Thank you for it. I like such topics and anything connected to them. I definitely want to read a bit more soon.
I have 3 month old twins, boy and girl. I thought the baby B (girl) was always moving in utero but she is super calm baby, in the other hand OMG my son baby A (the boy) is constantly fidgeting. I don't know what to do? He is constantly fidgeting with arms and legs, oh and his head, I call it bubble head.
I am becoming more concern and my pediatrician says that it could be the reflux (he has really bad reflux problems). I dont believe this is due to reflux. FEEDING- I stopped breastfedding :( and now he drinks 6 ounces and once he is done with 4 he starts the fidgeting process. Anyone go throught this? so he fidgets constantly all day and when he eats. To sleep at night we don't know what to do anymore, he kicks out of the swaddle wich was the only way he would sleep before, but now we have to hold him most of the night because he startles constantly and wakes himself up. I am going to put a video in youtube so that you can see what I am talking about. HELP, there's got to be answers, more research needs to be done. Are these babies going to suffer from hyperactivity disorders? hope not.
I have a 3 month old son that has been a very figety sleeper since 1month old. He'll flail his arms and legs all about, sometimes grunt, and sometimes also shake his head back and forth. He does this usually upon waking, maybe up to an hour before. And he does this rhythmically, so like for example, he'll flail about for a few seconds, then stop and seem peacefully asleep, then flail for a few seconds, etc. I've always attributed this to him being in a state between sleep and wakefulness. It bothers me only in that, because we cosleep, i can't sleep when he's doing it.
When he starts doing this i do one of 2 things. First i'll pat him on the back or bum, but in a way that kind of moves his whole body. I'll do that everytime he starts flailing for maybe about 3-4 flails. If he doesn't settle down into a deeper sleep, i pick him up and hold him the way he likes best, (ie. upright), and then walk while bouncing quite a bit. This always gets him to stop flailing. I do this for like at least 10mins because i want him to stay sleeping, and then i attempt to lie him back down in the bed. Rarely do we have to do a second round of this, (only when, after we've attempted to lie him down, we've woken him up slightly).
Hope this helps someone!
Hi all,
My 4 month year old has been doing this since about 3 weeks. Initially from around 4 to 6 am she would flail about until she woke up crying (like the anonymous poster says), now she does it for about 1/2 the night (the other half she sleeps on my husbands chest). I cosleep with her.
I was concerned she had Sandifer's syndrome as she has been diagnosed with silent reflux and is on Prevacid . THis seemed to help her sleep initially then stopped working but she is now crying less.
In the womb she hiccuped often (now does up to 5 times a day, although sometimes none)
She was always moving doing the day and is otherwise meeting her developmental milestones (very good hand eye coordination), but we are losing major sleep over this, but it is reassuring that others have babies like this.
She only cat naps during the day (generally 1/2 hour)and generally on us (in a carrier) or on our my chest/arms after nursing.
So if anyone has any diagnosis or insights, like they outgrow this? please e-mail beckycclifton@gmail.com
Hope everyones little ones are doing well.
Your blog keeps getting better and better! Your older articles are not as good as newer ones you have a lot more creativity and originality now. Keep it up!
And according to this article, I totally agree with your opinion, but only this time! :)
My son too fidgets. His dad does too, and so do a lot of relatives. He has from the day he was born. He has gas, has to poop/doesn't want to, gets bored, I don't know. at 2.5, hasn't stopped fidgeting. We swaddled until 10 months (gasp). I play NPR as he goes to sleep (we do Super Nanny method) for white noise. It is just how he is. He is super smart, rambunctious, refuses to nap at daycare, and just has a hard time settling himself. As soon as he is settled, he's fine. We've learned different methods and it has gotten better with time, but yes those early months were HARD.
I'm looking forward to getting more information about this topic, don't worry about negative opinions.
I would be very curious to see what percent our fidgety babies grow up to have ADD or ADHD. I would bet it is very high.
I can't see why being fidgety has anything to do with ADD or ADHD!!! Nervous system I guess! Some babies are more energetic or nervous than others.......
My son is 3.5 months old and fidgets with his hands and pulls his knees up. When he was only a few weeks old he had a lot of wind due to a receding jaw which prevented him from latching on to teats (mine or bottles). He would constantly suck in air when trying to eat. I always thought the knee pulling thing was due to his wind, but that issue resolved itself 1.5 months ago and he still pulls his knees up and fidgets with his hands. He will pull his dummy (pacifier) out, but then get cranky 'cause he doesn't have it. He can go to sleep without it (when swaddled), but if I try unswaddled he brings his hands up to his mouth and fidgets around his mouth. He also still has a little bit of the startle relfex happening so anytime the fidgeting does die down, he startles himself awake and it starts all over again. I'm concerned about when he goes into daycare at 10 months ....how will they get him to nap?
My son is 10 months old and has also always wanted to be in constant motion, even during nursing, and cannot settle down or stay asleep. There have been days where if I am holding him he literally tries to jump from my arms to move around, cannot stop waving his arms, kicking, banging, pulling his and my hair and screeching for no reason. He is developmentally normal and a very healthy baby, so these behaviors didn't make much sense. He now walks with my help and would scream non-stop if I stopped walking him and put him to play on the floor or tried to hold him. The sleep was the worst- there would be times it would take him over an hour to settle down at night. He would be tired and close his eyes, but jerk himself awake (we are still swaddling). He would wake sometimes every hour, screaming and kicking, or act as if he is ready to be up for the day during the night (didn't matter if it was 12, 3, 5) when he woke. When he was younger we found out he was allergic to cow's milk, so I cut that out of my diet as I am nursing. There were days where he had a lot of energy, but also some days where it seemed like he was in overdrive. I was desperate for some answers besides that I was a bad mother for giving him too much attention and I spoiled him, that I should let him cry it out ALL night every night, and this is just who he is (this is what my husband, mother, mother-in-law,and pediatrician said). After a lot of research, I found something. I came across research showing that articifial dye can cause an adverse reaction in children and make them "hyper" and unable to settle down and cause other allergy like symptoms. I found out that these dyes pass through breastmilk and I had been consuming a lot of them- in my cereal, salad dressing, Gatorade, candy, medicine, etc. I originally dismissed this as faulty science, but I found there are respectable scientific journals that found this link between food dye and behavior/sleep.
Some links:
Search on pubmed for artificial dye and hyperactivity
http://www.breastfeeding.asn.au/bfinfo/restless.html
This has just recently helped me tremendously, I hope you all can find some answers (and sleep!)too.
My son is 10 months old and I have had similar issues. He could not stop moving, kicking, waving his arms around and would wake up sometimes every hour and be unable to go back to sleep. I was desperate for more than a few hours of sleep and something to stop the accusations that I was a "bad mother." I found a link between articifial dye in the food I was eating and how it passes though the breastmilk and causes hyperactivity symptoms and sleep disturbances.
See http://www.breastfeeding.asn.au/bfinfo/restless.html
There are respected scientific journals showing the link between artificial dye and hyperactivity symptoms on pubmed as well.
If anyone is going through something similar, feel free to email me for support. (kath2740@aol.com)
My 6 month old son is the SAME way!!! It is a struggle to get him to sleep EVERY nap and EVERY night. But he is the happiest baby when he is awake ( still constantly moving while awake though). I havnt found a solution to get him to sleep faster yet ( I already rock him up and down and use the hair dryer as white noise) BUT I have found a swaddle that babies can NOT get out of. It's called a WOOMBIE.
The woombie let's babies still moves the arms a little bit but it's almost impossible for them to get out of it.... Which prevents them from scratching/ hitting their faces and waking themselves up. SO the woombie helps my son STAY asleep :)
Hope this helps a bit!! However still havnt found a solution to get him to sleep faster.
Wow. It is discussions like these that remind me how much "the baby makes the parents" instead of just the other way around. We, too, swaddled, and bounced her all night long and for naps in a hammock. We found she only really settled for naps otherwise in our arms or in an ergobaby sling. Still have it and use it a lot.
And now that she is 10 months and still having sleep troubles, I'm co sleeping with her many nights after 2 or 3 am and I laughed out loud at all the descriptions of fidgeting, Kung Fu baby, Olympic sports, etc. I just told my husband this morning that she had "the wiggles" again. It's like she's trying to bench press me off the bed she pushes in so tight against me - with her head, or back or legs.
Also way ahead in a lot of developmental milestones because she's been moving since day one.
And holding her down with my legs! Or bending over the crib to keep my head on her chest and hold her to see if it will calm her! You all have made me feel sane again. We do all those things and they also only work half the time. Been reading a book about raising a "spirited child" by kurcinka that really helps with a positive view of such active kids.
Oh, and for the first 6 months, she woke 10-12 times a night. We were a wreck, as was our health and our marriage. Wound up at a hospital program just so I could get some sleepand they could check her for medical issues...no reflux, no allergies, no dyes, no answers, but it got us through when we were at an all time low. Hang in there everyone, get as much help andsleep as you can, be good to yourself. They are wonderful little forces of nature these kids, and probably have the potential to change to world, but this early time is hard.thank you for all the great suggestions.
My lil guy is 8.5 months old and does all the same things - he's our "fidget monster". We stopped swaddling at 3.5 months then started again with the Swaddle Me blanket when we realized it helped him sleep for longer periods. He still wakes up though - usually around 12 and then 2/3 when I finally cosleep. On rare occasions he'll go for 6 hours - woohoo! Trying to find a pattern but still can't pinpoint it. As for naps - after his period of fighting them as much as night time, he finally likes them and actually doesn't fidget as much at all and can sleep 1-2 hours. Getting nervous with him going off to daycare in a few months - if anyone has any solutions - let me know b/c I'm sure his caregiver will NOT be rocking, swaddling him to sleep each day.
My youngest has been doing the same thing for months. she had a brief time of sleeping through the night, but then began doing this flailing thing that has been tormenting us since July. My nephew had been doing this for a couple of years and continues to have problems sleeping. it was recently mentioned that he's doing this due to a,lack of proprioception & his kicking was his way of trying to feel grounded...literally. He has other sensory issues and I'm not saying Any if our kids gabe that problem. However, the suggested remedy for it was,a weighted blanket. My little one isn't ready for blankets yet, but I did make a little packet with rice and a potholder and slipped it into her swaddle. we've had two whole nights of glorious sleeping with only waking to nurse once on both nights. I don't know how our really understand why, but its working! The weight should be between five and Fifteen percent of the baby's weight. So I used two pounds of rice for my sixteen pound daughter. Just thought some of you might be as desperate as I was to find a solution and wanted to share. Here's to hoping for a peaceful third night!
Has anyone come up with any answers? Our daughter is experiencing the same thing. She flails and twitches and even hits herself in the face at night while shaking her head. When she is awake she is fine. Can someone e-mail me if you have any suggestions? Thanks.
Reading this has helped me so much, just to know that there are lots of other babies who are flailers, fidgeters, wackadoodles, esp. while nursing. My 9.5 mo old son kicks me, flails, pokes himself in the eye, grabs his ear, etc. Sometimes I think... hmm breastmilk is very sweet, maybe it's a sugar high? I dunno... it's wacky. I have bruises on my thighs as proof of the night wigglings.
I knew I wasn't alone! my little nugget was a good sleeper until the great breastmilk drought...i have my supply back and give bottles of formula before bed to avoid yet another diaper change, but she seems to be getting worse! at 5.5mos she will fall asleep in my arms, sometimes drift off in her crib abfter being calmed and sleep 2hr naps, sometimes it takes 2.5 hrs for a 40 min nap while she does leg raises. We have swaddled always due to head/eye gouging which I am told is a sign of overtiredness....duh, she never sleeps!
She does leg raises at night and twists her head like she is the exorcist. We have tried rice blanket weights like some, half laying on her in the crib and mostly this makes her mad or is not enough like being in my arms. I cannot hold her all night or cosleep as this doesn't help. And some nights we are up 17times, sometimes twice. SAhe also makes sleep noises in the first hour or 2. We have seen her scream with her eyes closed and heart racing. Nothing seems to help. So the answer is, live like this for the next year!!?
Thank you for this thread. I found this thread trying to find out what all the climbing means. My little cricket climbs with his arms and legs when being fed and also snuggled after feeding, and thumps his head against me even when full, then does the leg raises in his crib and twists his head around and shouts in his sleep. If I swaddle in the miracle blanket and then play white noise by his head, he stays asleep while he does these things. The Miracle Blanket is the only thing that keeps him from clawing his own face and waking himself up with the "conductor" gestures. I appreciated the comment above that mentioned the Woombie. I am going to try that when he outgrows his Miracle Blanket.
Great thread. A lot of this sounds all-too familiar - especially the repetitive hitting, scratching and kneading of my chest and shirt and pulling on my hair while nursing and the incessant leg-lifts in bed. I call my son baby toll-booth.
I'm curious... a couple of you mentioned that dads were also fidgeters. I'm a fidgety mom. I've always bitten my nails, twirled my hair, chewed my lip, etc. Do all of you see fidgeting in one parent or the other?
I take the generic form of Zoloft for post partum depression (it has helped a lot!) and wonder if there might be a connection here?
I'm an elementary school teacher and am familiar with those kids who are just squirrelly by nature. Most often they're boys. I use of strategies for helping my 4th and 5th grade kids to settle (yoga balls or textured bouncy seats to sit on, weighted "snakes" to drape around their shoulders, a piece of velvet wrapped around a ruler and hammered to the bottom of the desk to keep those fingers busy, etc...) but I haven't thought about modifying those strategies for my little guy. I'm going to try the rice packet!
The two activities I’ve found that calm his body are when he is out in nature and when he is in warm water. I live in Oregon, where even in the city the trees grow tall, l and I’m lucky enough have two forested parks within walking distance of my house. I’m convinced that it’s the trees that make the difference, not just being outside. I don’t know if it is the visual interest of looking up into the branches or the negative ions, or what, but the trees do the trick. We’ve gotten into the bathtub to “co-bathe” with our little guy since the early days – not so much to get clean as to relax. Recently I’ve found a 100-degree outdoor soaking pool that allows babies. We’ve been going 3-4 times a week and spending half an hour or so soaking. It is bliss.
At 5 and a half months, we are still swaddling him to fall asleep and then trying to gingerly remove the swaddle once he is out since he can roll over now. It has really scared me the couple of times I’ve found him lying face-down with his arms pinned to his side. I’m considering getting a Woombie and then trying to free his arms from the side snaps once he is asleep.
@ Anonymous (most recent)- crap! I just saw your post, I'm hoping you'll see this even though it's like 3 months later. I too am on sertraline (generic of zoloft) and have been since my son was born! Could there be a connection? My hubbie is kind of a fidgeter but I'm not.
Reading all of this bought tears to my eyes, to know that there are other people going through the same thing and not just me. My son is two months old and he's been fidgeting for a month now, it keeps us both up all hours of the night and only sometimes does swaddling or rocking him works. I walk around the house with him I bounce I rock I cradle and sometimes I even sleep sitting up, so throughout the day my back hurts. A few nights I've gotten in the bath with him in Johnson Johnson bedtime wash, play with him for awhile then lotion him from head to toe, less than a half of teaspoon of childrens medicine and a warm bottle.. that works sometimes and other timed I am cradling him all night, he even goes from person to person everyone dancing singing clapping and anything else that'll calm him down. Its so serioud my family has nicknamed him "ANGRY MAN". Also I noticed that a lot of us breast feed so maybe this syndrome has to do with breast fed infants?!
My 3-week old baby girl does this, too. She flails her arms & fidgets and needs a lot of rocking, holding & calming. I've had three other children & she is extremely alert for her age & has her eyes wide open a lot of the time and has since day one. I think these babies are simply extra sensory. They'll probably be highly in tune with great senses.
With my baby girl, I also suspect some colic...as others have mentioned, lots of hiccups & some spit up, maybe some reflux. I've wondered about sleep apnea...can babies get that??
In any case, whatever it is, it's my belief that her highly in-tuned sensory system causes my little drama queen to experience every little thing much more magnified than the average baby. I think this quality can & will serve her well in life, annoying as it may be at the moment.
Yes, did anyone notice a change when you quit breastfeeding? My son is crazy active too.
Im so pleased to know im not the only one going through this. My son is 8 months old and has been doing this for about 4 months. He sleeps for the 1st hour hes in bed but then the fun begins! I use a swaddle blanket but hes learned how to get out of it. He kicks and punches and shakes his head all nite, all with his eyes shut. I try to hold him down to restrain him but he just gets angry. Hes always been a strong and active baby from birth n started crawlin and rolling and standing early, but this just wears u down!!!
Ok so I'm up at 5 am reading blogs about Bubbie fidgeting ALL NIGHT LONG! He constantly move from one end of the bed all the way back up to me. Rubbing and pinching my skin in the night hours. Goooosh! It's kind of nerve recking at first I thought his little body couldn't rest properly so I wanted to call The nurse.
I too am expierencing this with my almost 11 month old son. I only breastfed for the first month. My son cried constantly for the first 4 months or so. He was diagnosed with refux and a milk allergy. He was very active in the womb, even at the very end of my pregnancy. My husband and I are desperate for answers. He has always been a restless sleeper. It sometimes takes us an hour to get him to sleep. He will sleep for a few hours and
Then wake up screaming. He will not ho back to sleep on his own. We will bring him into our bed and then he will fuss, move side to side, flail his arms, kick, pull my hair, ears, lips, pinch etc. It's like he can't get comfortable. His eyes are always clised while he has this restless behavior. He is a healthy almost 1 year old other wise. Any suggestions please email me at Kerry9680@yahoo.com.
akes usually takes us 30 mins to an hour to get him to
"Are these babies going to suffer from hyperactivity disorders? hope not."
I wonder about this also with my 5 1/2 month old son. He was sleeping well until about a week ago. He started waking about every hour to every 2 hours...and it is getting worse. He is like a lot of all the sweet babies. He moved a lot during the pregnancy, and he kicks a lot now. I will ask his doc about the silent reflex because I do think he has that problem.
I can also add that I have a 13 yr old son. He didn't act like this, but did have a problem sleeping and still does. He liked vibrating in the bouncey seat...that save me a lot for night time sleeping. He was diagnosed at 3 1/2 yrs old to be ADHD. He has been a handful all of his life. I am concern that my little one will be the same, but time will only tell. I am so hoping he does not have ADHD!!!
Thanks for having this topic started. I will continue to follow and see how everything works out.
"Are these babies going to suffer from hyperactivity disorders? hope not."
I wonder about this also with my 5 1/2 month old son. He was sleeping well until about a week ago. He started waking about every hour to every 2 hours...and it is getting worse. He is like a lot of all the sweet babies. He moved a lot during the pregnancy, and he kicks a lot now. I will ask his doc about the silent reflex because I do think he has that problem.
I can also add that I have a 13 yr old son. He didn't act like this, but did have a problem sleeping and still does. He liked vibrating in the bouncey seat...that save me a lot for night time sleeping. He was diagnosed at 3 1/2 yrs old to be ADHD. He has been a handful all of his life. I am concern that my little one will be the same, but time will only tell. I am so hoping he does not have ADHD!!!
Thanks for having this topic started. I will continue to follow and see how everything works out.
This is my 4th child and none of the others did this! He is four months old and flails all night, keeping me up, and then I have to go to work feeling like a zombie. I am thinking about moving him out of my room and just letting him work it out on his own, but I have the feeling he would be up all night anyway. I am so tired!
I have just discovered this blog, and sooo happy that I am not alone.My baby drives me insane sometimes.He is 10 weeks old.We believe he has Sandifers Syndrome, he was diagnosed with silent reflux and now on Alimentum and prevacid doing much better and less crying but i still cant sleep at night, he keeps making a lot of noise, gets out of swaddling and than starts to scratch his cheeks, rub his eyes and nose, and does it till i pull him out of his rocker and than he starts stretching and wakes himself up and than starts crying. I had to go back to work and now i feel so tired all the time cause i cant sleep when he does that, i have no idea what to do anymore......
Wow! As I sit here in my grandson's room, I realize that all of you including myself need to be in prayer about this. I have always wondered what causes this baby to cry out at night between the hours of 1am and 2am. We originally thought it was the milk he was drinking, so we changed it and the waking up got better, he only wakes up 1 time now. Then we thought it was nightmares. Then growing pains. Now we think it may be a disorder. My grandchild is almost 3 years old and he still wakes up 1time at night but his feet still move like a cat massaging carpet. He has to move them back and forth to get to sleep. He moves constantly after the hours of 2am. He usually sleeps well between 8pm-1am. We have to comfort him to get him back to sleep, which take seconds, but we are usually up the rest of the night fighting the cat paws. I guess the next step is to seek professional help at a sleep disorder clinic? I'm not sure what is going on, but it sure messes up the sleep of the parents and grandparents. Just know I will be praying over each one of these posts for the child and parents, as well as my grandchild.
Love this blog.. Miss 7 weeks NEVER sits still, kicks and hits and throws her head around. Has never stayed swaddled will wake up screaming to get her arms out and will fight her way free. She only cat naps for 1/2 hour at a time in day and will sleep from 830 till 1130 fine at night, feeds then sleeps till about 2 when she goes crazy and i have to sleep with her on my chest. Never stopped moving inside belly constantly kicked and moved. Not gaining weight well because I guess from lack of sleep and constant movement. HELP
OMG! Thank you all so much. My daughter has and is struggling with this issue and to know that she isn't alone is comforting. From one mother to another...THANKS FOR SHARING!
my daughter (3 mo. old) gets hyper/fidgetty sometimes also. I put something on for her to listen to that is soothing. Being a muslim, I have her listen to a recitation of the Quran and she quiets down. It doesn't work all the time, but most of the time it is helpful. You all are welcome to try it also. One of my favorite websites to listen to the quran is www.quranexplorer.com. Hopefully our kids will grow up and channel their energy to do great things :)
Good to know we aren't alone! In the last while our 17 wk old daughter has also become fidgety mc fidgets.
Is put her back in her own cot and let her fidget herself to sleep. Then go and put her blankets back on. I put her in a sleep sack/ go go bag so at least I know she is warm.
Wow! There are more babies out there that fidgets!! Not just mine :))
Great blog!
A friend passed me this website and I'm so glad she did! My little girl turned 3 months a week ago, and a couple days later started this violent flailing through the night thing. She's always been a fidgeter--very active in the womb, and doesn't stop moving during the day--but this flailing ALL through the night is recent. She used to fidget and flail in the evenings when she was tired, and in the mornings when she was still asleep. Now it seems it's all through the night. It's so nice to hear from other moms who have the same experiences. I sleep with her, and am now getting punched and kicked quite hard all night long. I always did get some amount of movement, but usually it was if she lost her pacifier or needed to nurse, or got too hot. Now--no rhyme or reason, she just flails.
Someone mentioned flailing vs fidgeting. I usually refer to her movement as flailing, but with this lately I've been calling it thrashing. Very jerky, sudden, forceful movements.
I'm appreciative for the suggestion of the Woombie up there--I just ordered a couple, so we'll see how that goes.
Another suggestion for anyone else visiting this page--homeopathy is a great resource that might work for you. I do know that my LO responds to Chamomilla--it's in all childhood homeopathic blends, and the symptoms Chamomilla covers are quite like what she deals with. I can't remark as to a full Chamomilla remedy because as yet I have only done the blends which are in low potency. As far as specific products which have worked-- Hylands colic tabs (these literally work in about 2-3 seconds, though they last for about 10-15 minutes; if repeated, they can achieve a lasting effect), Washington Homeopathic teething pellets (again, these work in seconds), and Colic Calm, which is a homeopathic gripe water (coliccalm.com). Since almost everyone commenting is looking for answers, and presumably all forget to stop back when/if they find something that works, I wanted to offer what I had already found. Currently, the Colic Calm is working the best. I'm going to be purchasing a higher potency of Chamomilla as well though and trying that. Oh, also, I have had the recommendation of liquid calcium for all teething and growing pains. I will be pursuing that as well.
Oh! There have been questions about parents, etc. Yes, her dad is the active one (whom she takes after a LOT), and I am also breastfeeding.
Good luck everyone!
You wrote about my son! It's us exactly. So glad we're not alone, but I wish there was an answer for it. He, too, hiccuped in utero and kept me up while pregnant. Thanks for writing!
oh my this sounds so much like my grandson who's 4 months, every inch, he keeps his mother up day and night and was just as active when she was pregnant. He tends to enjoy rocking back and forth at the moment and laughs and giggles frequently. I suppose the only possitive is that he is a happy baby, but my daughter is the grouch at the moment.
AFter yet another sleepless night, and after the doctor couldn't find ear infection and not seeing teeth moving near surface as of yet, I started google and google, it seems only this blog has anything to do about fidgety sleepers. My 3 months old girl was able to sleep 6-8hours when she was 6 weeks old, then from 8 weeks onwards, she started to wake up more frequently in the night, now over the past 2-3 weeks it actually gotten a lot worse, because within 5 minutes in her own cot after lengthy rocking and cuddle, she would start flailing her arms, poking her eyes, rubbing nose, chewing fingers,pulling ears and hair, to the point she wakes herself up from all this activity. only when extremely exhausted, she'd sleep for 4 hours without too much flailing, usually 7-11pm, then from there onwards, no moments of still, only a few seconds of piece in between each episodes of flailing, i moved her from her cot to my bed so i can hold down her hands from scratching her face, but her flailing is so forceful although eyes shut, then she wakes up eventually in about 1.5 hours screaming unhappy because she actually very much want to stay insleep. it seems the only way to keep her asleep is to rock her in arms, then she feels comfortable enough without feeling whatever monster that drove her crazy mad in her sleep, with the body warmth of the person carrying her and her arms not easy to reach out to her head..
if this is going to last years like Pumpkin and some other comments says, I am not sure if i can still continue my work because i do travel quite a bit, 1 week every month, and i am due to return to office by end of this month, if this doesn't improve, how the hell is my hubby going to deal with such nights on his own for a week?? and how unhappy my child would be not able to sleep?... am so desperately frustrated that there is no medical reason for this. each visit to the doctor, they'd say, she's gaining weight well, there is no issue...and it's not me wanting to spoil her, as you just can't leave a 3 months old to cry the whole night through?? actually cream is the better word when she wakes herself up with nails hurting her inner jaw or ear...
while when she's awake during the day after a nap (in arms), she's so happy, smiling and wooing and aahing for an hour, like an angel, i am going to try to find that book about spirited child, and have to seriously consider about my job..love her to bits though this is not easy indeed.
OMG Im struggling to find solution my 8 month boy is all of mentioned I thought as a new mom its all because I didnt know how to handle him was relieve 2 find out im not the only 1 it takes me smetims up to 2 hrs to get him ti slp tossing turning slapping his arms like his hitting himself falling from left 2 right swaddling doesnt always help for me , after reading all comments im beginning to thing its maybe because of me being so active in my pregnancy from beginning till birth I was running my business till 1 day before I went in for labour an eventually ended up having a operation and my baby was active from the beginning
My grand son is a fidgety baby.And won't sleep for any time longer than two hours at a time.He is 10 weeks old. But if my son or daughter n law put him in bed with them he will sleep 4-6 hours at a time at night.any tips?
Thanks for all the sharing! It is really comforting to know I am not alone attending to a hyperactive baby. My little one was seven weeks old when he started waving and kicking in this sleep at night. We tried swaddling him again (removed the swaddle when he was six weeks old) and really tightly since he was a strong figher, added a blanket and a beansprout pillow on top of him - think all of these did manage to calm him down and he slept for longer period at night until it was time for his next feed. Hope this helps!
As I lay here reading this I am in tears, smiling, giggling and glad to know that someone else knows how I feel. I know that my 4 month old son will be awake in 2 hours max because my son is a 'fidgeter'. I have not slept more then 2-3 hours at a time since he was born. I love the fact that he is more advanced then some children. Like he was only 1 month old when he started holding his head up in his own. Then at 2 1/2 months old he starts trying to sit up on his own. Now he can move in a walker and sit upright with little assistance.
I'm just relieved to know that I'm not crazy. Someone else feels how I feel. That it's not just my child....
Wow! My babygirl is 6 wks old & started flailing about & making lots of noise last nt & started right up again tonight. So of course I Google it. I think you're onto something with the dye!!! I made a couple beverages with the Chrystal light liquid as I'm getting tired of water. Im definitely not having any tomorrow. I know she's sensitive to what I eat. Chocolate gives her bumps on her face. Thank you!
my figitey baby born in 2009 had reflux, was colicky and would kick so much it wore me out. We thought it was gas, we thought he was hungry...yes he kicked at the sight of his bottle... but that continued at age one and up....he had the apnea..got adenoids and tonisils out...sleeping was still difficult...he overcame severe developmental delays too in the course of 5 years...fast foward to age 5.5 and he is classic adhd.I always knew he was, he could never be still..and he kicks in his sleep at 5.
Interesting. My daughter is 11 weeks. She too is a lil conductor of the night. She had hiccups in utero frequently and still does. She too has to be swaddled. She is breast fed mostly. And he father has ADHD. I just cant figure this out.. she is very alert and seems advanced in motor areas. Just wanted to throw that out there..
This made me smile and I feel a glow of relief. Like many of you I've been trying to decide have I done something wrong or is there something wrong with my baby. she is 11 months, when she gets in the fidget zone she constantly has to be touching me. her favourite is her fingers in my mouth trying her best to get them down my throat, pinching my skin or digging her fist into my windpipe. When I finally get her over it my anxiety levels peak as I wait for her fidget,usually rubbing her eyes and once that happens game over no chance she is going to stay asleep. Adhd or autism were my provisional self diagnosis thank goodness you all seem to think it is not a condition.
I have never heard of this before my new granddaughter came. Omg, I really thought something was seriously wrong with her. She is no different out of the womb than she was in the womb. I am so happy to find this blog. Thank you so much all of you Mothers out there for your comments.She flairs her legs,arms, head. And is very, very loud, with all of her noises. She can be sound asleep and she is still flairing around and yelling whatever noises she can make. She is a little gal, with a loud, loud voice.
Like all the other moms on here, I am so happy to know my child isn't abnormal! My son is almost 6 mo old and the kid looks like he's in a full on fight with a ghost! lol. He also never takes naps. Like other moms have mentioned about their little ones...only cat naps. The child is so tired, I just don't get it. I do drink coffee in the mornings. It's hard to imagine that that would be the reason. I'm honestly thinking my child has ADHD. It's not like it's an uncommon thing! I'm with one of the other moms on here who said she would be curious to know how many of our children actually do get diagnosed with ADHD in the future. Maybe there is some correlation here to early symptoms of this....Just a thought...
7 years later this is great. I think I just needed to know I wasn't alone.
I WAS WONDERING IF THERE IS SOMETHING MEDICALLY WRONG MY BABY NEVER EVER STOPS MOVING FEEDING,SLEEPING, ESPECIALLY AWAKE IT IS SO TRYING.
My son is 4 months old and I have the same problem ! He never sits still. He thrashes his arms and legs I can barely even change his nappy. He throws little tantrums as well if he is very hungry. He throws his little body around and smacks things with his hands and when I hold him on my leg he does this move where it looks like he is riding a horse.
My son has the same issues. Jerking legs then to entire body. This is actually to be taken serious. It is a sign of sleep apnea..can't get enough oxygen so then jolt etc very restless or sezuiurs. If not it is a sleep disorder need treated. We're waiting in a sleep study. Anyone else have this. It's so bad every night...all night and now at 9 months..progressively worse :(, waiting on test
This blog and the comments so many years later is incredible! I have an almost 6 week year old daughter. In utero, from the time I could feel her moving, she never stopped moving and she also hiccupped a lot. She is no different out of the womb. At 6 weeks, although it is not every single night, she spends about 4-5 hours trying to fall and stay asleep. I have timed it, she will fall asleep for 2 minutes then she will jolt awake like she had a bad dream and this goes on for hours a night. I also breastfeed her. It is so frustrating because sometimes I think something is wrong with her and I know that a trip to the doctor will just result in the doc saying shes growing beautifully and theres nothing to worry about. smh.
Even at 6 weeks she is very active, loves to look at and see everything. I have to walk around with her practically all day just singing and talking. She's calm during the day time. The jolting awake thing during naps in the day time never happens. It just seems to happen at night around the same times between 8pm and 4am. It worries me because I think something is wrong but something tells me that maybe its just her system or a growth spurt and itll get better. At least I hope so. I don't think it is anything I'm eatting. I drink only water and ginger ale all the time. My son who is 7 was nothing like this. Sometimes I think it is the occasional mocha frappacinos I had from Starbucks since I never drank any of that with my son and he was fine. I sure am hoping this is a phase and that it will get better as she gets older. And by the way she is holding her head up quite well and is already rolling over. I feel like she will be doing a lot early.
I'd love to know if your daughter continued to be like this growing up? My year old daughter will not sit still!
I noticed my babies restlessness in utero as well, even the doctors would say, as we were hooked up to the baby monitor during labor that he moved a lot. They mistakenly took his movements for contractions. Me as well. I would love to know if your babies continues to have fidgeting as they became older. My son is almost 4 months old and I am so tired... is there an end in sight? I have tried everything possible to help my baby stop being so restless.
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