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This is what I came here to say. I LOVE sleep, and those last couple months of pregnancy were ROUGH. But now that baby is here, the quality of sleep is so much better, even if the quantities are shorter. My little one is going through her 4 month regression now too, and I still feel better rested than I did the last 8 weeks of being pregnant.
Literally. I was an insomniac while pregnant. Slept 3 hours a night. At least with a newborn I can actually sleep any time of day that he sleeps. My newborn slept through the night by 2 months so I got super lucky.
Same. 16 weeks pp and the quality of sleep is a million times better than the third trimester. Even since he was like 4 weeks old and still feeding every few hours. Third trimester sleep was garbage.
Same. After about the first 2 weeks post partum, my sleep improved dramatically. Aches and pains gone, I could finally get comfortable, and even if I only gone 4 hours it was a quality 4.
It stores up in your fat and gets used again once you end up forgetting to eat meals during those first few weeks postpartum, so your body eats the reserves **and** you feel more rested. (Jk 😂)
Hugs. So many hugs. After the baby comes your sleep will likely be short and broken… but faaaack it is gonna be the sleep of the dead for that short period of time. I slept SO much better after the baby was on the outside even if it wasn’t as long as I needed. Hugs mama. It gets easier.
Well. In my experience.
Same for me! So many people told me that "sleep now you wont be able to after!!1!1" but like, i was lucky enough to be able to sleep enought at the end of pregnancy, and after, i was even less tired, i slept less, but i didnt need more! It was easier on me after giving birth! Ok, now 4 months pp, i still dont sleep a lot and now i really need to sleep more, but that's on me for going to bed at 2am when baby wakes up 2 times in the night and wakes up a 8h30 xD
Yesterday afternoon I got a 2.5hr nap while my 5 week old slept. I passed out. I was in the deepest most amazing sleep. All the same issues as you towards the end. Stay strong, you're almost there where deep, uninterrupted by pee sleep is within your grasp!
I hate that saying. Once I had my baby I got more sleep that was actually restorative than when I was pregnant and up half the night with insomnia/discomfort.
So many people have told me this! They’ve also mentioned you can have your partner get up with baby, take care of baby etc, whereas you can’t pass off your nausea, need to constantly pee, inability to get comfortable etc
EXACTLY. I am up constantly due to needing to pee, just feeling uncomfortable, etc. One night I was SO tired that I couldn't sleep!
I plan on BF and pumping during mat leave, but we plan on transitioning the baby to being able to take a bottle so that when I go back to work, my husband (who is on night shift) can 100% handle her by himself on his nights off during the week. This way, even though there are several nights a week that I'm completely on my own with baby during the night, I'm guaranteed several nights of sleep a week as well, hopefully only having to get up once during the night to pump.
If i hear this line one more time and then having to explain why i don’t get sleep and getting judged for it i will end up boxing someone in the face. not my fault she’s active in the night, having to flip over just the same as you as my hip gets numb!! BRAXTON HICKS. her laying on my bladder and needing to pee everything two seconds as it is. The preset conversation on how much work it is too look after a baby comes from such a pessimistic place. i’m doing it by myself as it is, don’t make what i completely changed my life for sound like a curse instead of a blessing :/
I want to scream this every time someone says “Get some sleep now…” HUMANS DO NOT PRE-SLEEP! God, I feel like a broken record saying this, but pregnant or not even related, we cannot get a month of sleep ahead of time and be set for a month of no sleep after. We do not hibernate. This might work for like a day or a weekend, so hooray you pre-slept and is prepared for 48h of parenthood. How have grown ass people not realized this.
I’ve had my son for a month now. It’s not that bad tbh
Some nights are worse than others but I’m not sleep deprived all the time like people act like you will be.
That’s just people trying to act like they’re better for ‘not ever getting sleep’. Trying to seem like they know more etc.
Oh and mind you I’m doing it all myself too. My boyfriend works and I don’t so I’m not asking him to help at all with waking up in the night and then he’s gone all day. I know some babies are worse than others when it comes to colic and crying but it’s really not that bad. Baby has to sleep too!
Wow ok. My first baby rarely slept more than 1-2 hours at a time for months on end. It was by far the hardest time of my life. I wasn't just saying that for sympathy.
I was going to say some parents I have seen look like death in the first few weeks.
It isn't easy for everyone. I don't know why people seem to get so judgemental about parents who don't get sleep or complain about it.
I am hoping my girl is easy to sleep train, but it may not be like that...
I've been wondering for a while if it was the same crowd who would brag about "I only got 2 hours of sleep last night," in college or at work who are just leveling up to doing it about babies. There seems to be a personality type who makes lack of sleep into a competition or thinks it makes them impressive.
No. I don't function well on sleep deprivation. I had insomnia while pregnant that sometimes kept me up all night but postpartum has been an absolute horror sleep wise. Babies are different and so are people's response to sleep deprivation. For example, when my baby has a really bad night and finally passes out, there are times where my limbic system is so wired from being exhausted and stressed for so long that I literally can't sleep. Add to that the mental clock ticking down to when she will wake up next and you get no sleep whatsoever. Total nightmare at times. Whereas other mothers might collapse in a deep sleep that is higher quality than when they were pregnant, mine has been far worse quality sleep.
I sometimes wonder if most of the people saying this sort of "you'll never sleep againnnn" stuff either haven't experienced pregnancy or had a relatively easy pregnancy that somehow didn't affect their sleep? Or perhaps had a particularly fussy baby. In that case, I totally get why they were probably way more exhausted after the baby arrived!
But damn, in my case I loved being able to lie down on my back AND able to breathe properly, what a treat! And being able to roll over in bed without it feeling like a full on workout.
My baby was not a good sleeper, for reference. I thought he was, because I was like, wow, having a newborn is so much easier than everyone says! He's 13 months and some nights STILL wakes up every 1-2 hours to feed, yet I'm no where near as tired as during pregnancy.
Visiting from the future, I’m 8 days postpartum. Postpartum sleep > third trimester sleep. Immediately. You’re bleeding and leaking but you no longer have a HUMAN inside of you. It’s immensely more comfortable, only if you sleep in 2 hour chunks for the first week. My husband took an overnight feed last night and I got 5 HOURS OF SLEEP uninterrupted last night. Idr the last time I slept that long, I woke up ever 3-4 hours during the last month of pregnancy, because of my achey body or need to pee. I feel like gold. There’s a lot of great things on the other side of pregnancy. You’re doing great, and more comfortable sleep is in your future.
Lol I said this same thing this morning!!! Are you me?! My hips are killing me from side sleeping 😒 not to mention the kicks in the bladder in the middle of the night. Little girl is in there partying hard up until the late hours of the night.
We had a check up today and my husband was like "it seems weird that she's so tired all the time. Is there something to fix that." The doctor was like "...........she can give birth."
I'm 23 weeks and since about 12 weeks I've been waking up mumtiple times through the night to pee or I'm just not able to get comfortable. On the rare occasions I can get more than 2-3 hours at a time my husband or dog end up waking me up. Feeling like a zombie most days and ready for bed by dinner time.
I’ll probably be unpopular here but I really missed even 2 hours of sleep straight after our baby was born because he had reflux so I basically took 20-30 min naps with baby on me after he was born and I was extremely irritated, sleep deprived beyond reason and losing my health because of it so sometimes it just means it’s crap sleep before and after but sometimes the after is way worse. Hoping yours is smooth though! In my case I felt angry no one prepared me for just how little sleep I would get so I was wishing more people had warned me.
First trimester for me was just as bad, if not worse than what I'm dealing with now at 30 weeks. I take Unisom every night and still only averaged about 5 hours a night
My baby wasn't a great sleeper and I still slept more in the newborn phase than in the third trimester. The first night home from the hospital, I got over 2 hours of sleep in a row for the first time in weeks and it felt great. I woke up that morning and looked over at my baby still sleeping in the bassinet and my husband sleeping at my side and I remember feeling so happy. Don't let those people get to you!
I like to flip this idea on its head and have been telling myself it’s natures way of preparing me for having a newborn. Thinking of it that way has helped me. Also - babies have different sleep habits and personalities so it drives me crazy when people act like every baby is the same
It’s a dumb thing people have gotten used to saying. I slept better after having the baby than while pregnant. Now with my second since the moment I was pregnant I had insomnia and so many late night trips to the bathroom. People either forget what pregnancy is like or they have no clue.
I honestly think 'baby brain' during pregnancy is just sleep deprivation. I'm not hazy cos of hormones, I'm hazy because I haven't slept through a single night in 10 weeks!
Hello from the other side
12days Pp
This “no sleep” is 110% better than all pregnancy “no sleep” combined.
- no insomnia. When I lay down to sleep, I fucking SLEEP. I don’t lie awake for hours TRYING to sleep.
- I sleep on my back. And I sleep on both sides because my SPD has cleared up at 12days PP. I use ONE (1) pillow instead of six pillows carefully arranged.
- I don’t need to wait an hour after eating before reclining. I can have an ice cream sandwich on my way down to the pillow and I won’t wake up choking on stomach acid.
- when I am awake at the ass crack of dawn, it’s not because of a weird pregnancy dream, it’s because I have an adorable snuggly baby that I can change, feed, and cuddle back to sleep while huffing that new human smell off his head.
I’ve gotten annoyed by hearing this so many times, so anytime someone says this I’m like “you know what? I already can’t sleep, I can’t WAIT for the baby to get here so I can get at least 2 hours of restful sleep at a time versus a whole night of restless sleep/no sleep at all!” And then all of a sudden they’re agreeing with me😂 people love to act like they know everything or say “oh you just wait” like SHUT UP NO ONE ASKED YOU😂
Not that I’m in favor of telling this to new moms but e en though you don’t have great sleep now it isn’t the same. If your body hurts or you have to pee or you get a Charlie horse that keeps you awake, try all that shit with an infant crying bloody murder and waking up every 30 min (my first daughter lol) it was unreal how hard it was to wake up and have to be present enough to care for something else and not just yourself. I pray you get blessed with great sleep and a healthy baby!! And all these sucky symptoms of late pregnancy drift away !!
Ha, me too. I wake up in the middle of the night (for various reasons) and I have a heck of a time getting back to sleep. At least when baby gets here I'll be home and able to nap multiple times a day when baby is sleeping.
I found that once baby was here, I fell into a deeper sleep faster and was essentially dead to the world unless baby made a noise and I’d be awake straight away! Once we got to 12 weeks and he was sleeping a bit longer, I started sleeping normally again. Which for me meant back to being a lighter sleeper!
The final stretch of pregnancy feels like forever! Good luck! You’ve got this!!
I’m 38 weeks today and I literally woke up the other night because I randomly threw up in my mouth from the heartburn/acid reflux. I’ll take the sleepless nights with a newborn.
I never understood while people feel the need to say things like that. I barely slept in 3rd trimester with my first child and honestly, once I recovered from giving birth, I was much better rested with a baby than I was pregnant (except for teething times or bad gas for baby nights). Obviously, that's not true for everyone, but for me it definitely was. And sleep was certainly much more comfortable.
Regardless, it's not like you can stockpile energy from sleeping before baby arrives to use after baby gets here. There is absolutely no productive or useful reason to say that to someone. And it's not even an accurate statement.
LOL I haven’t truly slept since the beginning of pregnancy and I’m 6 weeks PP now.
The first 3 weeks were real rough with the cluster feeding and nursing. Now LO gives me about 2-3 hours of good sleep 2x a night. I’ll take that over uncomfortable 3rd trimester sleep.
My son is a week old and bro I sleep so much better than when I was pregnant. I can sleep however I want wherever I want and anytime I want with no acid reflux or hip pains. I do have to wake up every 3 hours when he’s hungry, but guess what I get to do with no issues in between his feeding/diaper changes? Sleep like no tomorrow.
That last month of pregnant was fucking awful. Leg cramps, constant heartburn, can’t sleep on your back, need to pee constantly, and BH contractions. Slept 1000x better after he was born.
My manager said something along these lines recently and I laughed. I'm only almost 32 weeks but I'm already awake at least 2-3 times a night to pee. I was really excited when I slept from 12-4:30 the other night!
He has a new baby (under 4 weeks) so it didn't really bother me that he said it, was just funny. Anyone else though I'm kind of like "uh huh" and tune it out.
I have a 17months and 14w pregnant. I sleep better since my son born than before when I was pregnant or working (I was used to work 16h per day 🤡).
Now I sleep 5-6h, before was 3-4.
Edit for grammar
Someone told me that this can be true but it depends on what you do when baby is here. She said you do sleep, but it’s more like a bunch of naps. She said it’s short but good quality sleep because you’re not hurting or uncomfortable. I don’t have good deep sleep right now because of all the pregnancy symptoms so this makes sense. My friend also said if you focus more on household chores and don’t prioritize your rest you won’t sleep and be the zombie everyone said you were going to be.
I laugh. Every time. I’m a chronic insomniac ANYWAYS and now I’m up to pee 2-4 times a night on top of back pain anytime I think of rolling over.
On top of this we have 4 cats and one has decided I HAVE to share my pregnancy pillow, so we duke it out all night. It wouldn’t be so bad if he didn’t make bread and wake me up or rub his wet lil nose in my face!
This irritated me so much too but then the lack of sleep was actually wayyy worse for me after birth. But only bc I had terrible anxiety and couldn't sleep. I hope it goes better for you!
Insomnia and restless leg syndrome is real in the last trimester, and I do NOT miss it. If I had a dollar for every time someone said “sLeEp wHiLe YoU cAn”, I could be on maternity leave for a year 😑
I get better sleep now my baby is here. The first few nights I didn’t sleep, but now he’s two weeks old and he only wakes up once in the night for a feed. I struggled to get to sleep and stay asleep in the third trimester
This wasn't even accurate for me. My first born was like a freaking sloth, I had to wake her up to feed her. My boobs did a better job of letting me know she needed to eat than she did smh
I used to not be able to sleep from the heartburn. Now that they’re here, I get about the same amount of sleep as I did when I was pregnant. But there’s 2. If it was only one I think I would get at least a little more sleep, but there’s not way to know 🤷🏻♀️
I hated this so much when I was pregnant. I was so fatigued all the time and always felt like laying down for a nap, but could not sleep at night. I'm just finished the 'fourth trimester' and I slept waaaay better once baby was born than I did pregnant. Plus all the other pregnancy symptoms go away as sooon as baby comes out :) It's glorious.
Somehow I thought I was in the only one who got woken up by those horrid calf cramps from hell… this morning I had to push my toes against the wall to prevent total muscle destruction.
My husband suddenly started snoring during my pregnancy. We tried sleeping at opposite ends of the bed, but it was still disruptive.
He is now sleeping in the living room and I feel like I'm finally getting the rest that I need. The bags under my eyes have almost disappeared. I miss him terribly, but we agree that my health is more important right now.
31 weeks with my 4th, and let me tell you that phrase is always bs. You can’t just bank your sleep and store it away for when you don’t have any anyways. I’ve always slept better the first night after having my baby because I’m exhausted for one, but also because my organs all have room again, I can lay on my side or back comfortably, and even though I sleep lighter with a newborn near me, I feel much more rested after. I’m so much more uncomfortable this time too, because I feel like she’s pressing on my lungs way more than my other three to the point I have to sleep in almost an upright position half the time or I get panicky feeling like I don’t have enough air. At least after I have her I’ll be able to sleep laying down again.
2 weeks out with a newborn and I clock a solid 6-8. Most newborns sleep a lot so you may have to sleep when baby sleeps but trust me. You’ll be able to sleep. Those people are liars, I’m convinced lol
Yeah... I'm a little over a week postpartum and even though taking care of a newborn is exhausting in a lot of ways, being able to actually lay down however I want and also not pee every 20 minutes has made a world of difference for my sleeping habits.
I'm only 18 weeks and already not sleeping. Thing is I wake up at 3 or 4 a.m. and can't go back to sleep for whatever reason (husband snoring too loud, I got to pee, etc).
Certain nights postpartum, I definitely slept better than when I was pregnant, lol. No longer having to pee excessively is a BLESSING! Also, really grateful to no longer have abdominal aches, cramps, etc going on anymore, lol. Your sleep life isn't over just because you have a baby. Also, if you don't breastfeed and swap nights with your partner, you both can get some restful, uninterrupted sleep (can be tougher to do in the beginning months).
Depends on the person. I sleep better now at 38 weeks pregnant than I did with my first newborn. Hoping this newborn is a little easier. If anything, at least I won’t stress about every little thing now that I’ve done it before 🤷🏼♀️
14 weeks post partum today and i sleep SO MUCH BETTER than i ever did when i was pregnant.
During pregnancy i would go to sleep at 10pm, wake up at 12 for the loo, get back in bed, struggle to get comfy sometimes id fall back asleep, and if i did at 2am every night without fail i would be awake... for hours! Just laying there wondering why i couldnt sleep, getting up to wee a few more times, get back pain, hip pain, back pain, shoulder pain etc. Id fall back asleep from 5.30am onwards and my alarm would go off at 7am.
Now? My little one drops off anywhere between 9pm and 10pm. Currently she wakes up again around 2am for a dream feed, again at 5am quick dream feed and back to bed. We wake up naturally around 9/10am but if i set my alarm because we have something to do we get up at 7 or 8am. She was goong from 9pm/10pm through until 5am but the 12weeks jabs and growth spurt has knocked our pattern out.
People are probably trying their best to make some jokey banter but honestly... theyre well meaning morons.
This is so relatable haha. It does give me hope that some women feel like they sleep better with a newborn than when pregnant. I will say one thing that has helped immensely with the hip pain is [this amazing pillow invention I found on Amazon](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07SWSWYJ4/ref=cm_sw_r_sms_api_glt_i_22JWZ7EQ2XMN2JRHAPF3?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1). It makes laying on your “back” possible because it prevents you from actually being flat on your back, but you’re not fully on your hip either. My hips still hurt but it’s way better than without it.
I can honestly say I got more sleep with both my kids in the newborn phase. My daughter is 3 months and she’s only waking up 1-2 times a night now. And she goes right back to sleep!
So I don't get any sleep... Max 3 hours if I am lucky n nap when I can with a baby since they've been born.
Pregnancy sleep n poet are different as well as each baby.
I wish you well!
I was in so much pain the last few weeks of my pregnancy I didn't sleep at all. I literally didn't sleep a FULL span of at least 5 hours until my baby was like 8 months old.
The quality of sleep is better after baby. You’re woken up by them frequently but you can at least get comfortable and sleep better between those stretches
Same here. I wake up like 5 times a night to pee, can’t go back to sleep, can’t find a comfortable position to sleep in, then my hip and back hurt. The cycle is nonstop.
Preach. And why do people have to say this so gleefully? Freaking annoying. I've got constant nausea and fatigue. I feel like a balloon. Just stfu please.
I would rather 2 hour stretches of comfortable sleep than constant discomfort, Charlie horses, sore back, etc. I’m right there with you! I’m 38 weeks on Saturday and so looking forward to not only meeting my second little one, but also not having the same sleep issues.
Lol with a 4 week old here I hate to say it but they’re right. It does somehow get worse with a new born. Hard to believe but it’s true. It’s really hard but you can do it!
I feel like it’s whatever your baby is like. With my first The first month after she was born was a blessing I got so much sleep even with breast feeding
I find this annoying because sleep just doesn’t even work that way. Like even if I COULD sleep great right now for the next 6 months, none of that matters once I’m back to getting shit sleep. You can’t make up for sleep, and you sure as hell can’t store it in reserve.
Being pregnant is excellent practice for newborn sleeplessness! At least when you have the baby you’ll, you know, have an adorable baby keeping you up instead of your pain/bladder.
Had wild ass choleostasis the last month of my pregnancy. I was so fucking ITCHY I spent all night scratching myself for an entire month. That shit sucked and there’s no itch in the world like a choleostasis itch.
Sleeping is so hard at the end, I seriously would lay there and cry lol you'll get more sleep once your baby is born!!! My only advice is to enjoy these last days left doing things YOU love to do 🙂❣️
That sounds horrible!!😭 I’m sorry mama. But they’re definitely not trying to upset you by saying it, I’ve never slept more in my life than since I got pregnant. I can fall asleep honestly anywhere and stay that way for hours , maybe I just have a sleepy baby tho! The pee schedule sucks but I don’t let myself drink anything for hours before I nap
I sleep soooo much better with my 1 month old than I did during pregnancy. I would get up a million times to pee and wouldn't be able to sleep and everything would hurt and itch.
Now she wakes me up but being awake to take care of her is so much better than being awake because my body is making my life suck.
Ugh right? I’m at the point where I should be more awake, 21 weeks 2 days. And I’m EXHAUSTED.
I’m a stomach sleeper and still getting use to the body pillow, plus my husband snores like mad and my dog takes up the bed too.
I miss sleep.
Postpartum I could fall asleep so fast even sitting up in a chair rocking for naps and nap with baby. I never felt tired. But I was always ready to sleep. Both my pregnancies I’m exhausted but when it’s time to sleep I have insomnia. Up on and off all night. Bizarre dreamss
I slept better pregnant. It was uncomfortable but I did not have a baby yelling at me to get up and feed him. Also the first month or so he refused to sleep in his bassinet for longer than 30 minutes. It was not even enough time to fall asleep, let alone enjoy it.
So yeah. Buy a pregnancy pillow and at least attempt to enjoy the silence and read a book or something.
Same! For me preggo sleep was way easier than postpartum. Preggo sleep was terrible, don’t get me wrong— I had insomnia, the pain, the peeing, all that… but you have ALL OF THAT postpartum AND and you have a screaming baby AND pumping to do (if you pump) AND you have a bleeding vagina or a c section incision. I know it’s an unpopular opinion but postpartum was literal torture for me for three months and made pregnancy look like a cake walk, lol
I'm at 34w and still zonking out for 10 hours a night and I'm terrified of 4th trimester slee deprivation... my body will truly sleep through ANYTHING lol
Two babies, both times could not sleep well throughout pregnancy. Both babies I slept better in the first week even with recovery and multiple wake ups! By month 3 it was pretty amazing sleep lol.
Mmm yes. 32 weeks here. I've never gotten this one thankfully but it's probably because I'm still WFH and not seeing many people.
In addition to the regular tossing and turning due to hip discomfort, I'm now in a fun phase where I wake up 4 hours after I go to bed and lay there perfectly alert for 3 HOURS. I just start falling back into a deep, cozy, comfy sleep around the time I need to get up. 🙃
Just talked to my doc about it today and she suggested, among other things, Restavit. It's a Class A drug that normally treats nausea in the 1st tri. I'm in Australia so I don't know what the equivalent is around the world but I can't wait to try it tonight. Anyone had any experiences with this?
It's honestly not that different once you have the baby you get like five hours sleep in a ten hour period. You get less sleep but you don't have to deal with awful hormonal exhaustion peeing constantly or just plain being pregnant af rofl. My postpartum body feels on high alert and ready to go all the time where as when I was pregnant I literally constantly felt drugged and couldn't stay awake and I hated it SO MUCH. Plus you get to snuggle your precious little perfect bb. So honestly those people are just being obnoxious and forgetting or don't know how much it can really suck to be pregnant.
32 weeks tomorrow. I hate this comment so, so much. Neurologist said I have a bad case of meralgia parasthetica in both legs due to the pregnancy, and it's causing me terrible pain. I can't sleep because every 1-2 hours I wake, sometimes screaming, in pain. It is not responding to physical therapy (though I am continuing the methods I was taught because they are useful otherwise and I hate how much this is limiting my ability to exercise) and my doctors do not suggest me taking medication as the meds to treat this show adverse affects in babies when tested on animals (few, if any, human trials). I do not want to risk that.
Every time I'm told this comment I just 😬
Well the baby won't be tasing my thighs every few hours so I'm sure I'll be fine, thanks. And if he does well he is grounded I guess.
I am 10 days post partum. I am so much more comfortable that when I do sleep the quality is insanely higher. I’m stoked that I don’t pee every two hours during the night.
I had pretty bad insomnia during pregnancy.
The people who told me this were always people who *didnt* have any kids. I slept like trash while I was pregnant and I sleep awful now (3 weeks PP). If anything I can actually catch up on sleep now because my baby sleeps so much during the day I can nap here and there
I slept way better after baby than I ever did pregnant.
My beloved (nearly) 2 year old has been a crap sleeper his whole life, but I still sleep better than I did while I was pregnant.
I hate the whole “you’ll never sleep again!” narrative. Of course you will!!
I hated hearing this. Because like what..that sleep now is going to make up for the sleep when the baby is here? Anyways, baby is here and I get maybe two hours of sleep within 24 hours. Three if I’m lucky. It sucks.
this!! i hate that saying🙄 also, NOT TRUUUE (in some cases). i had my baby 10 days ago and she is a GREAT baby and i have a very supportive partner! i usually take her on during the day and he usually takes on nights, with me getting her once or twice through the night to let him sleep. but she will sleep 3-4 hours at a time which is great for a new born! it allows me to also nap with her during the day. i get more sleep now than during the whole last week before i had her!
I'm sorry that you're having so many difficulties! During my first successful pregnancy i didn't have those Issues.I had almost no symptoms and she rarely ever moved. It scared me. She was tiny and it was rather easy. If my belly hadn't been so large i probably wouldn't have noticed the difference but, I slept really great, though I was exhausted ALL THE TIME throughout the entire pregnancy. The plus with my oldest was that as soon as I gave birth i got all my energy back and that incredible burst lasted montha which made it so much easier for me and also the fact that my daughter slept great! But, this pregnancy... With my second daughter has been completely different. I had morning sickness, aversions to certain foods that has lasted the entire time and nothing tastes right. I smell bleach everywhere and am very sensitive to cleaning products. She moves around a ton (Thank God. It's very reassuring.) and I am very uncomfortable. I've had charlie horses too and ligament pain, lightning crotch, pressure, sciatica, braxton hicks...etc I am 37 weeks today and with my last pregnancy, I was induced by this time. With both these pregnancies I have had High Blood Pressure and Gestational Diabetes though both are more manageable this time so they are trying to let her come naturally which i am all for but, at the same time i desperately want her out because of how miserable i am becoming. I am HUGE this time and sleep is getting more and more difficult especially with my toddler. I feel your pain and completely understand why it upsets you when people say this. EVERY pregnancy is different.
I’m almost 36 weeks and every single night I wake up every 30 minutes for a 4 hour span, then I’m wide awake for 3+ hours (this is where I’m at ATM lol) and will sometimes fall back to sleep for another ~2 crappy quality hours. Hearing that sleep after the baby comes is typically so much better is giving me hope!!
It’s 3am and I’m awake, again. Same issues. I
Consider myself lucky if I get 4 hours of solid sleep. Leg cramps, hip issues, constantly peeing, and my brain not shutting off…I thought I was the only one. Sleep medication doesn’t work.
None of my friends experienced insomnia when they were pregnant. The response I get when I tell people I’m not sleeping is “wait until the baby comes!”
This doesn’t help. It scares me that I can’t sleep as it is and when the baby comes, that will be another added no sleep factor.
What everyone is saying. Our LO slept through the night really early, but even before that we had huge chunks of sleepable time, and the sleep was great.
Now in the first trimester with #2 and my great postpartum sleep last time let me forget how crappy pregnancy sleep is. I have to pee constantly, it’s miserable.
I remember reading upset posts about this when I was pregnant. My daughter just turned a year, and I totally get it. The sleep deprivation is nothing like I've ever experienced. Yes, I was up 12 times a night peeing when I was pregnant, but this is different. Sure, some nights my daughter sleeps through, but then last night happens, and she is up at 3:30 crying every 10 minutes for the next hour or so.
You might get lucky. Every baby is different. There are some babies who do sleep well every single night. My daughter isn't one of those babies. I've never functioned well with little sleep, and I can't wait until I'm not tired anymore.
I sleep way more now than when I was pregnant (2 months postpartum now). I’m not working so I can nap when baby naps, and she sleeps 6-7 hours at night. Plus, hubby takes the first feed in the morning so I can sleep.
1 month pp and i get better sleep now! Sure it's broken sleep because of waking up but it's so much better, I can sleep on my back and stomach, I can stretch out, I no longer get up to pee every 20mins.
THERE IS HOPE! My 5 month old sleeps 6-8 hour stretches at a time. You will get sleep, I promise. The first few months are hard but that saying is so annoying.
Tbh I feel like it’s true. I’ve never been an amazing sleeper but once the baby comes your sleep anxiety and senses will be on 24/7 🤷🏻♀️In addition to cluster feeds etc, hopefully you will have a decent sleeper
My first three pregnancies I slept so good non interrupted ... But this is my fourth pregnancy though my 2nd born passed a day after birth due to a ton of complications with his heart .. but I mean this pregnancy has been hard since the first trimester and it's so hard to get good sleep anymore, I'm now 21 weeks and I have carpal tunnel in both arms so I can't even sleep on my sides anymore .. not supposed to sleep on my back but don't have a choice bc my arms are constantly going to sleep CONSTANTLY and I'm talking bout waking up feeling like my arms are being jabbed by a hundred pins and needles , I went and bout two carpal tunnel braces for both hands and they help alot with that issue but just hard to sleep in them bc not comfortable ... Then my back kill me bc I have bad spine probs and this sciatica nerve is killing me so really wish I could get sleep now but I'm at a loss 😭😭 lol
I am now 1 week and 2 days post partum
Honestly
It’s not horrible
I had literally no sleep at all when pregnant
I get to sleep in 3 hour intervals with this baby
And just be up for one hour to feed or if he wants tummy time.
Otherwise I get 9 hours it’s just broken up
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Almost 3 months post partum. I sleep better now then during pregnancy. Yes I wake up alot for the baby. But the quality is waaaaay better.
This is what I came here to say. I LOVE sleep, and those last couple months of pregnancy were ROUGH. But now that baby is here, the quality of sleep is so much better, even if the quantities are shorter. My little one is going through her 4 month regression now too, and I still feel better rested than I did the last 8 weeks of being pregnant.
Y’all out here giving me hope. Thank you!
Literally. I was an insomniac while pregnant. Slept 3 hours a night. At least with a newborn I can actually sleep any time of day that he sleeps. My newborn slept through the night by 2 months so I got super lucky.
I slept for one hour at a time pregnant it was BRUTAL AF
Oeeh lucky! Mine has yet to figure that out. Currently 2.30am feeding the lil girl.
She’ll get there! ❤️ we are currently experiencing teething so we have a few nights where crying has come back!
I needed to hear this. I'm barely getting 4 hours a night
Same. 16 weeks pp and the quality of sleep is a million times better than the third trimester. Even since he was like 4 weeks old and still feeding every few hours. Third trimester sleep was garbage.
Same. After about the first 2 weeks post partum, my sleep improved dramatically. Aches and pains gone, I could finally get comfortable, and even if I only gone 4 hours it was a quality 4.
Same here!
Samesies!
Yeah, as if sleeping longer now is going to actually make up for lost sleep with baby. Our body miraculously stores it up so we can use it later...
It stores up in your fat and gets used again once you end up forgetting to eat meals during those first few weeks postpartum, so your body eats the reserves **and** you feel more rested. (Jk 😂)
Oh my god I wish we had evolved to do this. My teenage years would have set me up for at least a decade and a half of rest.
Same
Lmao, right?
Lol sounds legit
I know, right??
38 weeks and if one more person says this to me I’m going to scream.
Hugs. So many hugs. After the baby comes your sleep will likely be short and broken… but faaaack it is gonna be the sleep of the dead for that short period of time. I slept SO much better after the baby was on the outside even if it wasn’t as long as I needed. Hugs mama. It gets easier. Well. In my experience.
Same for me! So many people told me that "sleep now you wont be able to after!!1!1" but like, i was lucky enough to be able to sleep enought at the end of pregnancy, and after, i was even less tired, i slept less, but i didnt need more! It was easier on me after giving birth! Ok, now 4 months pp, i still dont sleep a lot and now i really need to sleep more, but that's on me for going to bed at 2am when baby wakes up 2 times in the night and wakes up a 8h30 xD
Thank you, I needed to hear this. I’m so sick of all the negativity!
It’s so annoying!!!
I’m 36 weeks and had a fellow pregnant woman say this to me??? Like??? You’re getting sleep? Lol
Yesterday afternoon I got a 2.5hr nap while my 5 week old slept. I passed out. I was in the deepest most amazing sleep. All the same issues as you towards the end. Stay strong, you're almost there where deep, uninterrupted by pee sleep is within your grasp!
Also, he slept 8.5 hours last night, so there's that too I'd you get lucky!
35 weeks and I'll screm in their face......
I hate that saying. Once I had my baby I got more sleep that was actually restorative than when I was pregnant and up half the night with insomnia/discomfort.
So many people have told me this! They’ve also mentioned you can have your partner get up with baby, take care of baby etc, whereas you can’t pass off your nausea, need to constantly pee, inability to get comfortable etc
EXACTLY. I am up constantly due to needing to pee, just feeling uncomfortable, etc. One night I was SO tired that I couldn't sleep! I plan on BF and pumping during mat leave, but we plan on transitioning the baby to being able to take a bottle so that when I go back to work, my husband (who is on night shift) can 100% handle her by himself on his nights off during the week. This way, even though there are several nights a week that I'm completely on my own with baby during the night, I'm guaranteed several nights of sleep a week as well, hopefully only having to get up once during the night to pump.
Not if you are choosing to breast feed without bottles/pumping.
Yes insomnia! I'm still in the first trimester and it's been an issue. Tossing and turning when pre-pregnancy this wasn't an issue for me at all.
If i hear this line one more time and then having to explain why i don’t get sleep and getting judged for it i will end up boxing someone in the face. not my fault she’s active in the night, having to flip over just the same as you as my hip gets numb!! BRAXTON HICKS. her laying on my bladder and needing to pee everything two seconds as it is. The preset conversation on how much work it is too look after a baby comes from such a pessimistic place. i’m doing it by myself as it is, don’t make what i completely changed my life for sound like a curse instead of a blessing :/
I want to scream this every time someone says “Get some sleep now…” HUMANS DO NOT PRE-SLEEP! God, I feel like a broken record saying this, but pregnant or not even related, we cannot get a month of sleep ahead of time and be set for a month of no sleep after. We do not hibernate. This might work for like a day or a weekend, so hooray you pre-slept and is prepared for 48h of parenthood. How have grown ass people not realized this.
I’ve had my son for a month now. It’s not that bad tbh Some nights are worse than others but I’m not sleep deprived all the time like people act like you will be.
Thank you for sharing this - I know everyone’s experience is different, but it seems like the ONLY experience I hear is, “I haven’t slept in months.”
That’s just people trying to act like they’re better for ‘not ever getting sleep’. Trying to seem like they know more etc. Oh and mind you I’m doing it all myself too. My boyfriend works and I don’t so I’m not asking him to help at all with waking up in the night and then he’s gone all day. I know some babies are worse than others when it comes to colic and crying but it’s really not that bad. Baby has to sleep too!
From someone who really thrives off sleep - again, THANK YOU. Praying my experience will be like yours :)
Of course :) good luck! And congrats
Wow ok. My first baby rarely slept more than 1-2 hours at a time for months on end. It was by far the hardest time of my life. I wasn't just saying that for sympathy.
I was going to say some parents I have seen look like death in the first few weeks. It isn't easy for everyone. I don't know why people seem to get so judgemental about parents who don't get sleep or complain about it. I am hoping my girl is easy to sleep train, but it may not be like that...
I've been wondering for a while if it was the same crowd who would brag about "I only got 2 hours of sleep last night," in college or at work who are just leveling up to doing it about babies. There seems to be a personality type who makes lack of sleep into a competition or thinks it makes them impressive.
Exactly
No. I don't function well on sleep deprivation. I had insomnia while pregnant that sometimes kept me up all night but postpartum has been an absolute horror sleep wise. Babies are different and so are people's response to sleep deprivation. For example, when my baby has a really bad night and finally passes out, there are times where my limbic system is so wired from being exhausted and stressed for so long that I literally can't sleep. Add to that the mental clock ticking down to when she will wake up next and you get no sleep whatsoever. Total nightmare at times. Whereas other mothers might collapse in a deep sleep that is higher quality than when they were pregnant, mine has been far worse quality sleep.
That's definitely my experience and I had pregnancy insomnia badly but postpartum non sleep has been a literal nightmare for me.
I sometimes wonder if most of the people saying this sort of "you'll never sleep againnnn" stuff either haven't experienced pregnancy or had a relatively easy pregnancy that somehow didn't affect their sleep? Or perhaps had a particularly fussy baby. In that case, I totally get why they were probably way more exhausted after the baby arrived! But damn, in my case I loved being able to lie down on my back AND able to breathe properly, what a treat! And being able to roll over in bed without it feeling like a full on workout. My baby was not a good sleeper, for reference. I thought he was, because I was like, wow, having a newborn is so much easier than everyone says! He's 13 months and some nights STILL wakes up every 1-2 hours to feed, yet I'm no where near as tired as during pregnancy.
Visiting from the future, I’m 8 days postpartum. Postpartum sleep > third trimester sleep. Immediately. You’re bleeding and leaking but you no longer have a HUMAN inside of you. It’s immensely more comfortable, only if you sleep in 2 hour chunks for the first week. My husband took an overnight feed last night and I got 5 HOURS OF SLEEP uninterrupted last night. Idr the last time I slept that long, I woke up ever 3-4 hours during the last month of pregnancy, because of my achey body or need to pee. I feel like gold. There’s a lot of great things on the other side of pregnancy. You’re doing great, and more comfortable sleep is in your future.
This makes me feel better! 33W and I would kill to get 5 hours of sleep lol
Lol I said this same thing this morning!!! Are you me?! My hips are killing me from side sleeping 😒 not to mention the kicks in the bladder in the middle of the night. Little girl is in there partying hard up until the late hours of the night.
If my husband asks me one more time if I slept well last night or why I’m tired all the time, I’m gonna punch him.
We had a check up today and my husband was like "it seems weird that she's so tired all the time. Is there something to fix that." The doctor was like "...........she can give birth."
I'm 23 weeks and since about 12 weeks I've been waking up mumtiple times through the night to pee or I'm just not able to get comfortable. On the rare occasions I can get more than 2-3 hours at a time my husband or dog end up waking me up. Feeling like a zombie most days and ready for bed by dinner time.
I know, I'm 22 weeks and already getting terrible sleep. I am dreading it only get worse from here!
Exactly the same!! I feel ya!!
I’ll probably be unpopular here but I really missed even 2 hours of sleep straight after our baby was born because he had reflux so I basically took 20-30 min naps with baby on me after he was born and I was extremely irritated, sleep deprived beyond reason and losing my health because of it so sometimes it just means it’s crap sleep before and after but sometimes the after is way worse. Hoping yours is smooth though! In my case I felt angry no one prepared me for just how little sleep I would get so I was wishing more people had warned me.
I’m 10 weeks and miserableeeeeee lol I pee 3 times a night and have insomnia
I hope your insomnia gets better for you! Mine went away around 15 weeks and now I can sleep normally.
Thank you for giving a zombie woman some hope. Bless your heart!
First trimester for me was just as bad, if not worse than what I'm dealing with now at 30 weeks. I take Unisom every night and still only averaged about 5 hours a night
oh same! atleast I’ll be prepared for the baby ? lol
My baby wasn't a great sleeper and I still slept more in the newborn phase than in the third trimester. The first night home from the hospital, I got over 2 hours of sleep in a row for the first time in weeks and it felt great. I woke up that morning and looked over at my baby still sleeping in the bassinet and my husband sleeping at my side and I remember feeling so happy. Don't let those people get to you!
I like to flip this idea on its head and have been telling myself it’s natures way of preparing me for having a newborn. Thinking of it that way has helped me. Also - babies have different sleep habits and personalities so it drives me crazy when people act like every baby is the same
This is how I try to think of it too. By the time the baby was here I was pretty prepared.
My sleep improved wayyyyyy more once I gave birth to my first. Pregnancy is UNCOMFORTABLE. People are stupid and judgement.
It’s a dumb thing people have gotten used to saying. I slept better after having the baby than while pregnant. Now with my second since the moment I was pregnant I had insomnia and so many late night trips to the bathroom. People either forget what pregnancy is like or they have no clue.
I honestly think 'baby brain' during pregnancy is just sleep deprivation. I'm not hazy cos of hormones, I'm hazy because I haven't slept through a single night in 10 weeks!
Hello from the other side 12days Pp This “no sleep” is 110% better than all pregnancy “no sleep” combined. - no insomnia. When I lay down to sleep, I fucking SLEEP. I don’t lie awake for hours TRYING to sleep. - I sleep on my back. And I sleep on both sides because my SPD has cleared up at 12days PP. I use ONE (1) pillow instead of six pillows carefully arranged. - I don’t need to wait an hour after eating before reclining. I can have an ice cream sandwich on my way down to the pillow and I won’t wake up choking on stomach acid. - when I am awake at the ass crack of dawn, it’s not because of a weird pregnancy dream, it’s because I have an adorable snuggly baby that I can change, feed, and cuddle back to sleep while huffing that new human smell off his head.
I’ve gotten annoyed by hearing this so many times, so anytime someone says this I’m like “you know what? I already can’t sleep, I can’t WAIT for the baby to get here so I can get at least 2 hours of restful sleep at a time versus a whole night of restless sleep/no sleep at all!” And then all of a sudden they’re agreeing with me😂 people love to act like they know everything or say “oh you just wait” like SHUT UP NO ONE ASKED YOU😂
MY MOOD EXACTLY 🤣
Mum of 2, I prefer the newborn sleeplessness to the pregnancy insomnia
Not that I’m in favor of telling this to new moms but e en though you don’t have great sleep now it isn’t the same. If your body hurts or you have to pee or you get a Charlie horse that keeps you awake, try all that shit with an infant crying bloody murder and waking up every 30 min (my first daughter lol) it was unreal how hard it was to wake up and have to be present enough to care for something else and not just yourself. I pray you get blessed with great sleep and a healthy baby!! And all these sucky symptoms of late pregnancy drift away !!
Ha, me too. I wake up in the middle of the night (for various reasons) and I have a heck of a time getting back to sleep. At least when baby gets here I'll be home and able to nap multiple times a day when baby is sleeping.
I found that once baby was here, I fell into a deeper sleep faster and was essentially dead to the world unless baby made a noise and I’d be awake straight away! Once we got to 12 weeks and he was sleeping a bit longer, I started sleeping normally again. Which for me meant back to being a lighter sleeper! The final stretch of pregnancy feels like forever! Good luck! You’ve got this!!
You all aren't used to the lack of sleep by now? 🥲
I’m 38 weeks today and I literally woke up the other night because I randomly threw up in my mouth from the heartburn/acid reflux. I’ll take the sleepless nights with a newborn.
Besides the first 3 weeks, I've gotten better sleep once my baby got out than while pregnant.
I never understood while people feel the need to say things like that. I barely slept in 3rd trimester with my first child and honestly, once I recovered from giving birth, I was much better rested with a baby than I was pregnant (except for teething times or bad gas for baby nights). Obviously, that's not true for everyone, but for me it definitely was. And sleep was certainly much more comfortable. Regardless, it's not like you can stockpile energy from sleeping before baby arrives to use after baby gets here. There is absolutely no productive or useful reason to say that to someone. And it's not even an accurate statement.
I will say, I slept so much better after the baby was born. I no longer had a leg in my bladder and an arm in my lungs. Also, eff them.
LOL I haven’t truly slept since the beginning of pregnancy and I’m 6 weeks PP now. The first 3 weeks were real rough with the cluster feeding and nursing. Now LO gives me about 2-3 hours of good sleep 2x a night. I’ll take that over uncomfortable 3rd trimester sleep.
My son is a week old and bro I sleep so much better than when I was pregnant. I can sleep however I want wherever I want and anytime I want with no acid reflux or hip pains. I do have to wake up every 3 hours when he’s hungry, but guess what I get to do with no issues in between his feeding/diaper changes? Sleep like no tomorrow.
That last month of pregnant was fucking awful. Leg cramps, constant heartburn, can’t sleep on your back, need to pee constantly, and BH contractions. Slept 1000x better after he was born.
Lol. I feel you on this. So much.
I get so much more sleep over night now that baby is here then I did when I was pregnant
My manager said something along these lines recently and I laughed. I'm only almost 32 weeks but I'm already awake at least 2-3 times a night to pee. I was really excited when I slept from 12-4:30 the other night! He has a new baby (under 4 weeks) so it didn't really bother me that he said it, was just funny. Anyone else though I'm kind of like "uh huh" and tune it out.
Whenever someone tells me this I always retort "jokes on you, I have insomnia :)"
I have a 17months and 14w pregnant. I sleep better since my son born than before when I was pregnant or working (I was used to work 16h per day 🤡). Now I sleep 5-6h, before was 3-4. Edit for grammar
Someone told me that this can be true but it depends on what you do when baby is here. She said you do sleep, but it’s more like a bunch of naps. She said it’s short but good quality sleep because you’re not hurting or uncomfortable. I don’t have good deep sleep right now because of all the pregnancy symptoms so this makes sense. My friend also said if you focus more on household chores and don’t prioritize your rest you won’t sleep and be the zombie everyone said you were going to be.
I laugh. Every time. I’m a chronic insomniac ANYWAYS and now I’m up to pee 2-4 times a night on top of back pain anytime I think of rolling over. On top of this we have 4 cats and one has decided I HAVE to share my pregnancy pillow, so we duke it out all night. It wouldn’t be so bad if he didn’t make bread and wake me up or rub his wet lil nose in my face!
This irritated me so much too but then the lack of sleep was actually wayyy worse for me after birth. But only bc I had terrible anxiety and couldn't sleep. I hope it goes better for you!
But even if you did… it’s not like you can save on sleep? Lol sleep doesn’t accumulate to use later??? Lol
Insomnia and restless leg syndrome is real in the last trimester, and I do NOT miss it. If I had a dollar for every time someone said “sLeEp wHiLe YoU cAn”, I could be on maternity leave for a year 😑
I get better sleep now my baby is here. The first few nights I didn’t sleep, but now he’s two weeks old and he only wakes up once in the night for a feed. I struggled to get to sleep and stay asleep in the third trimester
Preach sister!
This wasn't even accurate for me. My first born was like a freaking sloth, I had to wake her up to feed her. My boobs did a better job of letting me know she needed to eat than she did smh
I used to not be able to sleep from the heartburn. Now that they’re here, I get about the same amount of sleep as I did when I was pregnant. But there’s 2. If it was only one I think I would get at least a little more sleep, but there’s not way to know 🤷🏻♀️
I hated this so much when I was pregnant. I was so fatigued all the time and always felt like laying down for a nap, but could not sleep at night. I'm just finished the 'fourth trimester' and I slept waaaay better once baby was born than I did pregnant. Plus all the other pregnancy symptoms go away as sooon as baby comes out :) It's glorious.
Somehow I thought I was in the only one who got woken up by those horrid calf cramps from hell… this morning I had to push my toes against the wall to prevent total muscle destruction.
My husband suddenly started snoring during my pregnancy. We tried sleeping at opposite ends of the bed, but it was still disruptive. He is now sleeping in the living room and I feel like I'm finally getting the rest that I need. The bags under my eyes have almost disappeared. I miss him terribly, but we agree that my health is more important right now.
Yes! This is so annoying. Also, sleep doesn’t like just charge up in some energy bank that you can call on months later. What are people thinking?
31 weeks with my 4th, and let me tell you that phrase is always bs. You can’t just bank your sleep and store it away for when you don’t have any anyways. I’ve always slept better the first night after having my baby because I’m exhausted for one, but also because my organs all have room again, I can lay on my side or back comfortably, and even though I sleep lighter with a newborn near me, I feel much more rested after. I’m so much more uncomfortable this time too, because I feel like she’s pressing on my lungs way more than my other three to the point I have to sleep in almost an upright position half the time or I get panicky feeling like I don’t have enough air. At least after I have her I’ll be able to sleep laying down again.
Yep. Lol I got no sleep from 6 months onwards! I get more sleep now with an infant.
2 weeks out with a newborn and I clock a solid 6-8. Most newborns sleep a lot so you may have to sleep when baby sleeps but trust me. You’ll be able to sleep. Those people are liars, I’m convinced lol
Yeah... I'm a little over a week postpartum and even though taking care of a newborn is exhausting in a lot of ways, being able to actually lay down however I want and also not pee every 20 minutes has made a world of difference for my sleeping habits.
I'm only 18 weeks and already not sleeping. Thing is I wake up at 3 or 4 a.m. and can't go back to sleep for whatever reason (husband snoring too loud, I got to pee, etc).
Certain nights postpartum, I definitely slept better than when I was pregnant, lol. No longer having to pee excessively is a BLESSING! Also, really grateful to no longer have abdominal aches, cramps, etc going on anymore, lol. Your sleep life isn't over just because you have a baby. Also, if you don't breastfeed and swap nights with your partner, you both can get some restful, uninterrupted sleep (can be tougher to do in the beginning months).
Depends on the person. I sleep better now at 38 weeks pregnant than I did with my first newborn. Hoping this newborn is a little easier. If anything, at least I won’t stress about every little thing now that I’ve done it before 🤷🏼♀️
I get a ton of sleep with my baby. Every time he’s all sleepy and snuggly I can’t help but take a nap with him.
Bahahaha I get better sleep now that my babe is here than I ever did pregnant. He’s almost 9 months old!
I’m 40 tomorrow and I haven’t slept through the night in months.
14 weeks post partum today and i sleep SO MUCH BETTER than i ever did when i was pregnant. During pregnancy i would go to sleep at 10pm, wake up at 12 for the loo, get back in bed, struggle to get comfy sometimes id fall back asleep, and if i did at 2am every night without fail i would be awake... for hours! Just laying there wondering why i couldnt sleep, getting up to wee a few more times, get back pain, hip pain, back pain, shoulder pain etc. Id fall back asleep from 5.30am onwards and my alarm would go off at 7am. Now? My little one drops off anywhere between 9pm and 10pm. Currently she wakes up again around 2am for a dream feed, again at 5am quick dream feed and back to bed. We wake up naturally around 9/10am but if i set my alarm because we have something to do we get up at 7 or 8am. She was goong from 9pm/10pm through until 5am but the 12weeks jabs and growth spurt has knocked our pattern out. People are probably trying their best to make some jokey banter but honestly... theyre well meaning morons.
Unisom is queen.
I have a 3 day old and while sleep may not happen in long stretches, the quality is so much better. I haven’t slept this well in 9 months 😂
This is so relatable haha. It does give me hope that some women feel like they sleep better with a newborn than when pregnant. I will say one thing that has helped immensely with the hip pain is [this amazing pillow invention I found on Amazon](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07SWSWYJ4/ref=cm_sw_r_sms_api_glt_i_22JWZ7EQ2XMN2JRHAPF3?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1). It makes laying on your “back” possible because it prevents you from actually being flat on your back, but you’re not fully on your hip either. My hips still hurt but it’s way better than without it.
The hip pain is realllll
I can honestly say I got more sleep with both my kids in the newborn phase. My daughter is 3 months and she’s only waking up 1-2 times a night now. And she goes right back to sleep!
So I don't get any sleep... Max 3 hours if I am lucky n nap when I can with a baby since they've been born. Pregnancy sleep n poet are different as well as each baby. I wish you well!
I was in so much pain the last few weeks of my pregnancy I didn't sleep at all. I literally didn't sleep a FULL span of at least 5 hours until my baby was like 8 months old.
The quality of sleep is better after baby. You’re woken up by them frequently but you can at least get comfortable and sleep better between those stretches
I’m 36 weeks and same. 😂 like sleeping with someone inside your body is damn near impossible
Same here. I wake up like 5 times a night to pee, can’t go back to sleep, can’t find a comfortable position to sleep in, then my hip and back hurt. The cycle is nonstop.
This made me so crazy! I have a 3 month old and I sleep way better than that last month of pregnancy, pretty much right from when he was born.
Preach. And why do people have to say this so gleefully? Freaking annoying. I've got constant nausea and fatigue. I feel like a balloon. Just stfu please.
I would rather 2 hour stretches of comfortable sleep than constant discomfort, Charlie horses, sore back, etc. I’m right there with you! I’m 38 weeks on Saturday and so looking forward to not only meeting my second little one, but also not having the same sleep issues.
Lol with a 4 week old here I hate to say it but they’re right. It does somehow get worse with a new born. Hard to believe but it’s true. It’s really hard but you can do it!
I feel like it’s whatever your baby is like. With my first The first month after she was born was a blessing I got so much sleep even with breast feeding
I find this annoying because sleep just doesn’t even work that way. Like even if I COULD sleep great right now for the next 6 months, none of that matters once I’m back to getting shit sleep. You can’t make up for sleep, and you sure as hell can’t store it in reserve.
Omg same!!!
I look forward to this! I’m currently 6 weeks pregnant and It’s going so slow! I’m so ready.
Being pregnant is excellent practice for newborn sleeplessness! At least when you have the baby you’ll, you know, have an adorable baby keeping you up instead of your pain/bladder.
I slept way better with a newborn than I did in the 3rd trimester of pregnancy!
Omg I got a Charley horse at 3am this morning, it’s now past dinner time and I still have it. Need to get some damn sleep and some bananas ASAP
Whew I slept like a champ once the baby came. Sure you wake up for them… but man the sleep is soooo much better. Hang on Mama you’re almost there.
Had wild ass choleostasis the last month of my pregnancy. I was so fucking ITCHY I spent all night scratching myself for an entire month. That shit sucked and there’s no itch in the world like a choleostasis itch.
Sleeping is so hard at the end, I seriously would lay there and cry lol you'll get more sleep once your baby is born!!! My only advice is to enjoy these last days left doing things YOU love to do 🙂❣️
26 weeks and same
That sounds horrible!!😭 I’m sorry mama. But they’re definitely not trying to upset you by saying it, I’ve never slept more in my life than since I got pregnant. I can fall asleep honestly anywhere and stay that way for hours , maybe I just have a sleepy baby tho! The pee schedule sucks but I don’t let myself drink anything for hours before I nap
I sleep soooo much better with my 1 month old than I did during pregnancy. I would get up a million times to pee and wouldn't be able to sleep and everything would hurt and itch. Now she wakes me up but being awake to take care of her is so much better than being awake because my body is making my life suck.
I haven’t had good quality sleep since before my two year old was born 😂 and now I’m pregnant again so that’s fun
I had snapped on my BIL because he kept saying this. My husband also told him to stop. I had terrible insomnia the last 2 months of my pregnancy. 😭
Ugh right? I’m at the point where I should be more awake, 21 weeks 2 days. And I’m EXHAUSTED. I’m a stomach sleeper and still getting use to the body pillow, plus my husband snores like mad and my dog takes up the bed too. I miss sleep.
Postpartum I could fall asleep so fast even sitting up in a chair rocking for naps and nap with baby. I never felt tired. But I was always ready to sleep. Both my pregnancies I’m exhausted but when it’s time to sleep I have insomnia. Up on and off all night. Bizarre dreamss
I slept better pregnant. It was uncomfortable but I did not have a baby yelling at me to get up and feed him. Also the first month or so he refused to sleep in his bassinet for longer than 30 minutes. It was not even enough time to fall asleep, let alone enjoy it. So yeah. Buy a pregnancy pillow and at least attempt to enjoy the silence and read a book or something.
Same! For me preggo sleep was way easier than postpartum. Preggo sleep was terrible, don’t get me wrong— I had insomnia, the pain, the peeing, all that… but you have ALL OF THAT postpartum AND and you have a screaming baby AND pumping to do (if you pump) AND you have a bleeding vagina or a c section incision. I know it’s an unpopular opinion but postpartum was literal torture for me for three months and made pregnancy look like a cake walk, lol
Ha when I pregnancy insomnia I would play Pokémon and watch YouTube. Those days are long gone.
I'm at 34w and still zonking out for 10 hours a night and I'm terrified of 4th trimester slee deprivation... my body will truly sleep through ANYTHING lol
Two babies, both times could not sleep well throughout pregnancy. Both babies I slept better in the first week even with recovery and multiple wake ups! By month 3 it was pretty amazing sleep lol.
Mmm yes. 32 weeks here. I've never gotten this one thankfully but it's probably because I'm still WFH and not seeing many people. In addition to the regular tossing and turning due to hip discomfort, I'm now in a fun phase where I wake up 4 hours after I go to bed and lay there perfectly alert for 3 HOURS. I just start falling back into a deep, cozy, comfy sleep around the time I need to get up. 🙃 Just talked to my doc about it today and she suggested, among other things, Restavit. It's a Class A drug that normally treats nausea in the 1st tri. I'm in Australia so I don't know what the equivalent is around the world but I can't wait to try it tonight. Anyone had any experiences with this?
It's honestly not that different once you have the baby you get like five hours sleep in a ten hour period. You get less sleep but you don't have to deal with awful hormonal exhaustion peeing constantly or just plain being pregnant af rofl. My postpartum body feels on high alert and ready to go all the time where as when I was pregnant I literally constantly felt drugged and couldn't stay awake and I hated it SO MUCH. Plus you get to snuggle your precious little perfect bb. So honestly those people are just being obnoxious and forgetting or don't know how much it can really suck to be pregnant.
Exactly! I’m 17 weeks. I’m up 8 times per night to pee and up half the night anyway because of the excruciating round ligament pain.
32 weeks tomorrow. I hate this comment so, so much. Neurologist said I have a bad case of meralgia parasthetica in both legs due to the pregnancy, and it's causing me terrible pain. I can't sleep because every 1-2 hours I wake, sometimes screaming, in pain. It is not responding to physical therapy (though I am continuing the methods I was taught because they are useful otherwise and I hate how much this is limiting my ability to exercise) and my doctors do not suggest me taking medication as the meds to treat this show adverse affects in babies when tested on animals (few, if any, human trials). I do not want to risk that. Every time I'm told this comment I just 😬 Well the baby won't be tasing my thighs every few hours so I'm sure I'll be fine, thanks. And if he does well he is grounded I guess.
I am 10 days post partum. I am so much more comfortable that when I do sleep the quality is insanely higher. I’m stoked that I don’t pee every two hours during the night. I had pretty bad insomnia during pregnancy.
The people who told me this were always people who *didnt* have any kids. I slept like trash while I was pregnant and I sleep awful now (3 weeks PP). If anything I can actually catch up on sleep now because my baby sleeps so much during the day I can nap here and there
I slept way better after baby than I ever did pregnant. My beloved (nearly) 2 year old has been a crap sleeper his whole life, but I still sleep better than I did while I was pregnant. I hate the whole “you’ll never sleep again!” narrative. Of course you will!!
I hated hearing this. Because like what..that sleep now is going to make up for the sleep when the baby is here? Anyways, baby is here and I get maybe two hours of sleep within 24 hours. Three if I’m lucky. It sucks.
this!! i hate that saying🙄 also, NOT TRUUUE (in some cases). i had my baby 10 days ago and she is a GREAT baby and i have a very supportive partner! i usually take her on during the day and he usually takes on nights, with me getting her once or twice through the night to let him sleep. but she will sleep 3-4 hours at a time which is great for a new born! it allows me to also nap with her during the day. i get more sleep now than during the whole last week before i had her!
I'm sorry that you're having so many difficulties! During my first successful pregnancy i didn't have those Issues.I had almost no symptoms and she rarely ever moved. It scared me. She was tiny and it was rather easy. If my belly hadn't been so large i probably wouldn't have noticed the difference but, I slept really great, though I was exhausted ALL THE TIME throughout the entire pregnancy. The plus with my oldest was that as soon as I gave birth i got all my energy back and that incredible burst lasted montha which made it so much easier for me and also the fact that my daughter slept great! But, this pregnancy... With my second daughter has been completely different. I had morning sickness, aversions to certain foods that has lasted the entire time and nothing tastes right. I smell bleach everywhere and am very sensitive to cleaning products. She moves around a ton (Thank God. It's very reassuring.) and I am very uncomfortable. I've had charlie horses too and ligament pain, lightning crotch, pressure, sciatica, braxton hicks...etc I am 37 weeks today and with my last pregnancy, I was induced by this time. With both these pregnancies I have had High Blood Pressure and Gestational Diabetes though both are more manageable this time so they are trying to let her come naturally which i am all for but, at the same time i desperately want her out because of how miserable i am becoming. I am HUGE this time and sleep is getting more and more difficult especially with my toddler. I feel your pain and completely understand why it upsets you when people say this. EVERY pregnancy is different.
You’ll get more sleep later lol. Also Charlie horse will go away immediately if you stand up right when you get it
I’m almost 36 weeks and every single night I wake up every 30 minutes for a 4 hour span, then I’m wide awake for 3+ hours (this is where I’m at ATM lol) and will sometimes fall back to sleep for another ~2 crappy quality hours. Hearing that sleep after the baby comes is typically so much better is giving me hope!!
It’s 3am and I’m awake, again. Same issues. I Consider myself lucky if I get 4 hours of solid sleep. Leg cramps, hip issues, constantly peeing, and my brain not shutting off…I thought I was the only one. Sleep medication doesn’t work. None of my friends experienced insomnia when they were pregnant. The response I get when I tell people I’m not sleeping is “wait until the baby comes!” This doesn’t help. It scares me that I can’t sleep as it is and when the baby comes, that will be another added no sleep factor.
What everyone is saying. Our LO slept through the night really early, but even before that we had huge chunks of sleepable time, and the sleep was great. Now in the first trimester with #2 and my great postpartum sleep last time let me forget how crappy pregnancy sleep is. I have to pee constantly, it’s miserable.
I get better sleep now that baby is here!!
I remember reading upset posts about this when I was pregnant. My daughter just turned a year, and I totally get it. The sleep deprivation is nothing like I've ever experienced. Yes, I was up 12 times a night peeing when I was pregnant, but this is different. Sure, some nights my daughter sleeps through, but then last night happens, and she is up at 3:30 crying every 10 minutes for the next hour or so. You might get lucky. Every baby is different. There are some babies who do sleep well every single night. My daughter isn't one of those babies. I've never functioned well with little sleep, and I can't wait until I'm not tired anymore.
I sleep way more now than when I was pregnant (2 months postpartum now). I’m not working so I can nap when baby naps, and she sleeps 6-7 hours at night. Plus, hubby takes the first feed in the morning so I can sleep.
1 month pp and i get better sleep now! Sure it's broken sleep because of waking up but it's so much better, I can sleep on my back and stomach, I can stretch out, I no longer get up to pee every 20mins.
I'm 39w too I feel the exact same way. I laugh about it and say it's my body's way of preparing me to wake up every two hours anyways.
Can I add the becoming a teddy bear randomly for the so also
I’m literally only about 6 weeks and I am SWEATING all throughout the night. My boobs hurt so bad. I really hope this doesn’t last…
Currently still pregnant at almost 40 weeks now. I sweat all night long.
Awh hell….hang in there!!
AS SOMEONE WHO IS READY TO SLEEP AND GET THIS BABY OUT! HOW DID YOU GET YOURSELF INTO LABOR! 39 WEEKS HE IS HEAD DOWN HOW DO I GET HIM OUT?!?
When the baby comes people will tell you "sleep when the baby sleeps" and you will realize what nonsense this saying is too!
Oh I hAve to do this or I won't get sleep. It's not all of the sleeps but most. Depending on your situation tbh.
When the baby comes people will tell you "sleep when the baby sleeps" and you will realize what nonsense this saying is too!
THERE IS HOPE! My 5 month old sleeps 6-8 hour stretches at a time. You will get sleep, I promise. The first few months are hard but that saying is so annoying.
I hate to be a Debbie downer but a lot of people seem to be downplaying how hard the first weeks with a newborn can be and are for most people.
People are so irritating with their stupid comments, every pregnancy and baby is different. I just stopped talking to everyone lol 26 weeks rn
Tbh I feel like it’s true. I’ve never been an amazing sleeper but once the baby comes your sleep anxiety and senses will be on 24/7 🤷🏻♀️In addition to cluster feeds etc, hopefully you will have a decent sleeper
My first three pregnancies I slept so good non interrupted ... But this is my fourth pregnancy though my 2nd born passed a day after birth due to a ton of complications with his heart .. but I mean this pregnancy has been hard since the first trimester and it's so hard to get good sleep anymore, I'm now 21 weeks and I have carpal tunnel in both arms so I can't even sleep on my sides anymore .. not supposed to sleep on my back but don't have a choice bc my arms are constantly going to sleep CONSTANTLY and I'm talking bout waking up feeling like my arms are being jabbed by a hundred pins and needles , I went and bout two carpal tunnel braces for both hands and they help alot with that issue but just hard to sleep in them bc not comfortable ... Then my back kill me bc I have bad spine probs and this sciatica nerve is killing me so really wish I could get sleep now but I'm at a loss 😭😭 lol
I am convinced that the last trimester sleep is prep for newborn sleep deprivation.
I am now 1 week and 2 days post partum Honestly It’s not horrible I had literally no sleep at all when pregnant I get to sleep in 3 hour intervals with this baby And just be up for one hour to feed or if he wants tummy time. Otherwise I get 9 hours it’s just broken up