Feed - Play - Sleep routines - Reasons?

[San]

Hi all,

I am wondering what the advantages are to a Feed - Play - Sleep routine?

I understand the advantages of having a routine, what I don't quite understand is the order of activities.

I have been pretty much trying to follow the above pattern, however as she gets older it is becoming harder and harder, especially when she isn't a very good day sleeper and wakes up an hour or more before a feed. So inevitably, if I cant settle her back down, we end up playing, followed by a feed, at which point she generally crashes out to sleep - so the whole routine ends up in the reverse order.

I also find it hard doing physical activities with her after a feed, such as tummy time (she always spits up tons of milk if I place her on her tummy, even after 30mins - an hour after a feed). Whereas if I give her tummy time before food she is much more content.

I am not sure if I am correct in this or not, but from what I can tell they recommend feed - play - sleep because it means that the baby wont associate feeding with being able to sleep, and secondly because going to sleep with milk fresh in their mouth can cause tooth decay (not that she has teeth yet :) Is this correct?

I'm just trying to get a handle on why this routine is recommended and whether or not I should continue to try and persevere with it or just go with the flow :)

[Ky]

Whatever you do consistently that suits both you and your bub is a routine!

Don't worry too much about suggested routines as they truely are suggestions! You know your bub (and obviously very well!) and the routine that you come up with will be just fine.

I couldn't even tell you our routines but I know that the most consistent part of the day was sleep and feed times (although, I never worried if they were late or early) and play just kind of slotted in with me and bub.

Keep up the awesome work ... you have a real understanding of your bub and you will reap the benefits of a great relationship with her!

[Ky]

Oh ... just make sure that the routine suits both of you! Bub's are pretty adaptable, so subtle changes to make it more Mum friendly and sanity saving are never a bad thing:thumbsup:

[reAllytee]

What you have said in your last paragraph is pretty much why they recommend this routine but that being said this doesnt work for every baby !
I had a little Boof that went to his own routine & after many a month of me pulling my hair out & fretting etc i realised well if he is happy then i will be a hell of a lot happier ! As i said every baby is different & what might work for others wont work for you & vice versa.
Im still doing wrong if i go by the books in that Boof has his bottle before bed of a nite so its definately associated with bed & if it isnt that way he is not one to be reasoned with & find me a baby that can be !!!! This is what works for him so i do it & if this is the way it is until he is 3yrs so be it. I wont have much longer after that until he doesnt want his cuddles or the likes so im lapping it up now !
Trust in yourself & bubs things will flow from there & whatever works for you is what to go with.

[San]

Whatever you do consistently that suits both you and your bub is a routine!

Well I guess 'consistently' is the key here. At night time it's fine, she gets fed, nappy changed and back to sleep. It's during the day that things get a little confused. Some times she will wake up hungry in which case we do the feed - play sleep routine. Other times she just wants to play - and the timings vary from day to day.


Don't worry too much about suggested routines as they truely are suggestions! You know your bub (and obviously very well!) and the routine that you come up with will be just fine.

We are still learning eachother quirks and everytime I think I have her figured out she decides that she wants a change :o


I couldn't even tell you our routines but I know that the most consistent part of the day was sleep and feed times (although, I never worried if they were late or early) and play just kind of slotted in with me and bub.

Her feed times are consistent. It's just everything inbetween that isnt :)


Oh ... just make sure that the routine suits both of you! Bub's are pretty adaptable, so subtle changes to make it more Mum friendly and sanity saving are never a bad thing

She is an adorable, good natured bub. There is however on thing I would love to see change and that is for her to go back to sleep after the 6am feed. I am not a morning person and struggle at this god forsaken hour :p Without fail, every morning she will wake literally as soon as the clock ticks over to 6am. It seems to be a biorhythm thing, because even if I change her nappy at 5:45am by the time the clock hits 6 it's soaked. At any rate this wouldnt be so bad if she would go back to sleep after, but alas, unlike her mum, she is playful, awake, full of spirit and unwilling to go back to sleep until several hours later by which point i am so caffinated that i couldnt have nap even if I wanted to.


As i said every baby is different & what might work for others wont work for you & vice versa.

That is very true, they are little individuals afterall, each complete with their own personalities and desires. I was just wondering if there were logical reasons for this routine because it does seem to be so widely accepted and recommended. I must admit that I am wary of getting her into a routine that she will end up needing to be weaned off at a later date (such as relying on food for sleep). It seems easier to try and get the routine correct now rather then struggling with the outcomes later. OTOH, like you say, perhaps I should just go with the flow and not worry too much about these things and just enjoy :)

[annsam]

My understanding is that the feed comes before play rather than sleep as more of a precaution against bub throwing up and asperating the vomit especially lying on their backs. Plus it can make them more stimulated to have a full tummy.

At the end of the day though, do whats right for you. My bub ended up with feed before sleep as it made him sleepy. The routines change constantly as the bubs do so just tweak it as time goes on.

[~Emmylou~]

You're right the basic idea is that they don't associate their feed with falling asleep - and so learn to fall asleep on their own without the "crutch" of a feed.

I followed this with DD from the start and she's never taken a bottle to bed or wanted one during the night. And she's always been able to put herself to sleep. I never have to sit in there with her or anything - just put her in bed, kiss goodnight and leave.
So yeah I'm a big fan of this method and will do it again with this bub.

[Elijahsmama]

I always done play - feed - sleep as i found it worked alot better for us and that way DS would go to bed with a full tummy and hopefully sleep longer. I thought i might be developing bad habits with him wanting a BF before sleep but it wasnt a problem because when i cut his BFs down he went to sleep no dramas without a feed. The only time he has a feed before bed is his night sleep now and sometimes after his breakfast cereal. So do whatever feels best for you and your bub.

[faery]

i tried that feed - play - sleep for three days. three days of my baby screaming his head off and crying, and them me crying with him!!
so we gave up and just go with the flow. he prefers being awake, so we just work with that. and as for feeding to sleep, he loves it and i have come to love it as i get much needed rest with early bedtimes and we get to snuggle together in bed.
it really depends on your baby, some are just not textbook-followers

[DIANNEKB]

Well it didnt work for me and bubs as he is a catnapper so it never worked out... he may sleep for 10 minutes and then he wanted to play and then he wanted to feed again and no sleep ... so now we just go with the flow and have a nighttime routine and during the day we just do whatever makes him happy...

[San]

Thanks for the comments everyone. :)

I think I will just go with the flow, if she wants to play before a feed I'm not going to chain her to the cot and stop her. She is just one of those bubs that likes to play a lot during the day and I think we are both happier if we arnt constantly fighting a battle of wits (because inevitably I lose anyway :p

[Littletreasures]

my sister told me to do the feed play sleep thing but it didnt work cause DS would throw up all of his milk so we went with the play feed sleep and now 1 year on he has a bottle right before he goes to bed and it works for us

[GIZMOE]

Hi

Poppy is just 3 months old and up until now she never had a routine. Funny enough she has work out one for herself!

Night time her last bottle is at 9 pm then she has a nice relaxing bath a little snuggle with Mum and Dad then she sleeps til 6am. After her 6am feed I change her ( usually very full with wee wee!! ) then I just put her back into the bassinette settle her for about 15 mins and she is off to sleep again until 10am.

After the 10am feed during the day I keep her upright for 30 mins ( she is a spewy baby ) then I put her on her jungle mat to play for 20 mins while I get her bath ready and clothes. Then she has a bath. AFter a bath we sing and read and she does a little tummy time. Then she is out like a light until her next feed. I ususally find if she wakes up before a feed is due, taking her for a walk in the pram or putting her in the sling helps. If she is fussy I know she has wind and once we get that out she is back to sleep.

The funny part is I never started this rouutine she worked it out for herself!!

Amy

[Milliner]

They say Feed-Play-Sleep, because if bub plays first then he will get tired and not feed properly then he will not sleep prop because he is hungry then will not feed prop because tired and so on. It's just one big cycle!

[borntobemummy]

I think the main reason advised not to feed before sleep is bubs will get used to having a feed to get to sleep, and won't learn to self settle.:yes: