https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Wed, 08 Apr 2026 06:38:06 +0000 https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/first-time-mom-sleep-deprivation/page/2#post-1953485 Thu, 20 Nov 2014 20:11:27 +0000 Adira 1953485@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@snowjewelz: Well maybe this thread will scare you enough that it ends up not being as bad as you think! Fingers crossed!!! :D </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/first-time-mom-sleep-deprivation/page/2#post-1953442 Thu, 20 Nov 2014 19:46:15 +0000 SleepyMonkey 1953442@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@twoofeverything: haha, i know! how naive we were :happy: and my sleep will never be the same either, i wake up multiple times during the night! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/first-time-mom-sleep-deprivation/page/2#post-1953371 Thu, 20 Nov 2014 18:39:24 +0000 Mrs. Champagne 1953371@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I didn't think it was that bad.... Some horrible nights mixed in with mostly good ones. I had a very alert non napper though, so I think twice in his 8 months I've napped. :bummed: </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/first-time-mom-sleep-deprivation/page/2#post-1953358 Thu, 20 Nov 2014 18:24:48 +0000 blackbird 1953358@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Rainbow Sprinkles: yeah I rocked the naps pretty heavily until about 6 weeks PP </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/first-time-mom-sleep-deprivation/page/2#post-1953349 Thu, 20 Nov 2014 18:16:16 +0000 Mrs. Lion 1953349@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>The newborn phase actually wasn't that bad for us....we had 2 wake ups a night that were just feed, change diaper, put back in crib. That shifted to just one at about 8 weeks. The thing that got me is that one night waking lasted until like 16 months. I wasn't prepared for that at all. With us the sleep deprivation was a marathon and not a sprint...but all babies are different. My 2 closest mom friends had babies start sleeping through at like 6 weeks. I've been the odd man out...so I'm hoping it will be easier the second time around. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/first-time-mom-sleep-deprivation/page/2#post-1953325 Thu, 20 Nov 2014 17:52:09 +0000 BabyTsMom 1953325@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>worse! i knew in my head that it'd be hard, but there's nothing like actually having to go through it. i definitely think it has pushed us towards one and done as well. @twoofeverything: LOL. that's me too! I still can't sleep well, even though my LO does! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/first-time-mom-sleep-deprivation/page/2#post-1953305 Thu, 20 Nov 2014 17:39:46 +0000 twoofeverything 1953305@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@SleepyMonkey: Same here. I remember how little I slept during the last few weeks of pregnancy and feeling terrified but sure "it couldn't be that much worse." OMG. Even though, on the whole, I feel like we got lucky with our twins' sleep, I still don't sleep well! One eye open for the rest of my life. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/first-time-mom-sleep-deprivation/page/2#post-1953233 Thu, 20 Nov 2014 17:05:13 +0000 catlady 1953233@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>So so so much worse. My LO didn't even sleep much as a newborn (everyone always commented on how "alert" she was). At 3 months, we joked that at least we shouldn't worry about a 4 month sleep regression because her sleep was so bad already, we wouldn't even notice. I was so wrong. I was running on 2 or 3 or 4 hours of broken sleep and working full-time, for over a month at one point. I felt like I won the lottery when she STTN the first time at 10 months.</p> <p>I have to admit, I am really scared to do it all over again! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/first-time-mom-sleep-deprivation/page/2#post-1953214 Thu, 20 Nov 2014 16:54:44 +0000 SleepyMonkey 1953214@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>It was horrendous! Every other time in life when i have been sleep deprived, I was able to make up for it over the next day or two. So I didn't think it would be that bad. But it was 1000x worse than I had imagined. Long term sleep deprivation was intense and has serious effects on my mood. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/first-time-mom-sleep-deprivation/page/2#post-1953184 Thu, 20 Nov 2014 16:40:48 +0000 Mrs. High Heels 1953184@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Ditto - I had heard and learned about it secondhand, but I just had to go through it myself to really understand how awful it really was! I thought, "how bad can it really be if the baby is still sleeping 16 hours a day even if fragmented?" - I was an idiot. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/first-time-mom-sleep-deprivation/page/2#post-1953181 Thu, 20 Nov 2014 16:38:33 +0000 MapleMoose 1953181@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Worse than I expected.<br /> My LO has extremely low sleep needs. Even now at 13 months her usual is 7 hours overnight (occasionally sleeping through the night without waking up, but only 7 hours) and her naps are and have always been 20 minutes long. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/first-time-mom-sleep-deprivation/page/2#post-1953167 Thu, 20 Nov 2014 16:31:41 +0000 Periwinkle 1953167@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Worse x 100. I don't think I could have imagined what it would have been like. LO was not a good sleeper and really didn't STTN somewhat consistently (still usually at least 1 wakeup at 2 years old) until 22 months or so. I don't think I've recovered yet. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/first-time-mom-sleep-deprivation/page/2#post-1953157 Thu, 20 Nov 2014 16:27:21 +0000 mrs. tictactoe 1953157@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I actually felt ok because I was able to nap during the day a bit while he slept, which I know I won't be able to do as much once we have #2. I was really tense and on edge, though, which I assume was a combo of lack of sleep and hormones. I was sooooo irritated by every little stupid thing. If my husband breathed too heavy, I was scared he'd wake the baby, lol. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/first-time-mom-sleep-deprivation/page/2#post-1953137 Thu, 20 Nov 2014 16:17:49 +0000 chanada 1953137@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Worse! But DH told me that he knew and expected it to be bad. I learned that I really need and love my 8 hours straight of sleep at night.</p> <p>Still not getting uninterrupted sleep and the little one is already two! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/first-time-mom-sleep-deprivation/page/2#post-1953092 Thu, 20 Nov 2014 15:57:17 +0000 oliviaoblivia 1953092@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Ree723: same. I expected it to be much worse than it was.<br /> I slept better with a newborn than I did during my third tri due to insomnia.</p> <p>We lucked out with a great sleeper. I'm worried about life with a toddler and a newborn. Praying #2 likes sleep as much as #1. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/first-time-mom-sleep-deprivation/page/2#post-1953086 Thu, 20 Nov 2014 15:55:34 +0000 birdofafeather 1953086@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Rainbow Sprinkles: @lawbee11: i was also more rested when DD was first born because the last few months of my pregnancy were HORRIBLE for sleep. i was up every hour to pee or change sides because my arms fell asleep. my pregnancy insomnia was really bad. when DD was born, that all went away and even though i was up every 2-3 hours, it was more sleep in a row than i had been getting in months. and i also went to bed at like 8 pm! that's not gonna happen with a second, so that scares me! ha. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/first-time-mom-sleep-deprivation/page/2#post-1953073 Thu, 20 Nov 2014 15:49:17 +0000 .twist. 1953073@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>In the beginning I didn't think it was so bad, but I was clearly not sane. After it all caught up to me I crashed and it becameSO much worse than I expected and didn't get better until 6 months. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/first-time-mom-sleep-deprivation/page/2#post-1953070 Thu, 20 Nov 2014 15:47:51 +0000 Mae 1953070@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Months 1-3 were fine. Yes I was up all the time the first month especially, but I had that new mom adrenaline thing and I was expecting it. Months 3-6 have sort of sucked because her sleeping got way way way worse and at that point I was NOT expecting it and was just really frustrated. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/first-time-mom-sleep-deprivation/page/2#post-1953063 Thu, 20 Nov 2014 15:46:28 +0000 Ree723 1953063@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Don't hate me but it was so much better than I had expected. Neither DH nor I ever experienced the tired fog new parents are supposed to go through. Yes, DD1 woke up every three or four hours for a feed for the first two months, but it never bothered us that much and by ten weeks, she was sleeping 12 hours through the night and never looked back, so I think we just got lucky. </p> <p>To be fair, we had also prepared ourselves for getting absolutely no sleep for the first few months, so to be getting solid three or four hour stretches from the beginning was so much better than expected. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/first-time-mom-sleep-deprivation/page/2#post-1953062 Thu, 20 Nov 2014 15:46:25 +0000 Mrs. Sunshine 1953062@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>It didn't bother me at all until we hit a sleep regression. Then I was a horrible zombie woman that screamed at her husband &amp; cried when she wanted to scream at her kid. Having a newborn was cake compared to her 4 month regression. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/first-time-mom-sleep-deprivation/page/2#post-1953049 Thu, 20 Nov 2014 15:44:31 +0000 snowjewelz 1953049@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Adira: sometimes I feel like I should just avoid these posts for now lol! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/first-time-mom-sleep-deprivation#post-1953044 Thu, 20 Nov 2014 15:43:13 +0000 mrsvdv 1953044@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@loki: somehow you'll be fine! My tips are really prioritize your sleep and look for help immediately when you feel too stressed/anxious/scared! That's what I should have done too! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/first-time-mom-sleep-deprivation#post-1953037 Thu, 20 Nov 2014 15:39:12 +0000 mrsvdv 1953037@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Worse x 10000000!!! Omg I cannot believe how we got through it. My problem was that I couldn't sleep when he slept because I was very anxious all the time so instead of sleep, I'd worry about something.. and to be honest DS didn't sleep all that much during the day as a newborn. It took more than a year PP before I felt like I was starting to get over it. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/first-time-mom-sleep-deprivation#post-1953009 Thu, 20 Nov 2014 15:31:22 +0000 lawbee11 1953009@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Rainbow Sprinkles: See but at 3 weeks I was still on the "newborn high." I was tired, but not THAT tired. It wasn't until 2-3 months of sleep deprivation that it finally caught up to me and shit got real! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/first-time-mom-sleep-deprivation#post-1952985 Thu, 20 Nov 2014 15:23:02 +0000 Rainbow Sprinkles 1952985@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Someone close to me just had her first baby 3 weeks ago, and she told me that she is MORE rested now, because she just sleeps whenever her baby sleeps during the day. She guessed that she has been getting at least 12 hours of sleep a day since her baby was born! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/first-time-mom-sleep-deprivation#post-1952982 Thu, 20 Nov 2014 15:21:54 +0000 Rainbow Sprinkles 1952982@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I thought FTM sleep deprivation was bad, but when I had my second, I just had to laugh at myself "back then."</p> <p>In my personal experience, the sleep deprivation with two kids was about 10x worse than it was with just one. With just one, you can sleep when they sleep. You're up all night? That's okay, because you can take a nap when they nap the next day! (at least during your mat leave or if you SAH)</p> <p>With two, there's no hope if you're up all night with the newborn, because you have a toddler who will be up all day and need your care. There's not a single chance, not one, to catch up on rest during the day. And if you're super unlucky (like I was), you have two kids waking up all night instead of one. My DD didn't STTN until she was 2. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/first-time-mom-sleep-deprivation#post-1952981 Thu, 20 Nov 2014 15:21:36 +0000 edelweiss 1952981@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>i'm with @birdofafeather: . i had read enough horror stories about the newborn days that i wasn't surprised. for me, my LO waking up at 4am during months 5 through 11 were absolutely killer. and transitioning to a toddler bed. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/first-time-mom-sleep-deprivation#post-1952979 Thu, 20 Nov 2014 15:21:22 +0000 BrandNewMom 1952979@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>As a newborn? Better!<br /> But at 12w she stopped STTN and started waking up 2-10x a night. Now 9.5mos and still waking up 2-6x a night. So tired. :sad: </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/first-time-mom-sleep-deprivation#post-1952971 Thu, 20 Nov 2014 15:19:23 +0000 birdofafeather 1952971@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>The first year wasn't that bad. It's been the regressions in year two that have kicked my butt! Maybe because I expected it in the beginning but now I'm blindsided by it! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/first-time-mom-sleep-deprivation#post-1952901 Thu, 20 Nov 2014 15:04:59 +0000 meganmp 1952901@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I had no idea how bad it was going to be. I figured I'd be up every two hours, but some nights I was up the entire night dealing with one kid or another. I had no idea how hard it was, and now I know a lot more about my own sleep needs and how high they actually are! It's one of the things that keeps me in check when I think about having another kiddo:) </p>