A question that all parent’s face at some point:
Should I change a poopy diaper at night or worse, early in the morning?!
This is a very scary predicament. Do you change a diaper knowing that it could possibly wake up your baby for hours or dare I say…for good.
Do you take that chance?
Here are some guidelines to follow for those doubt filled moments:
If they are sleeping. Do not wake a sleeping baby for a diaper change.
Now this has exceptions. Generally however, if your baby is sleeping and not uncomfortable then let them wake up on their own.
But this differs for newborns. Newborns will likely need more diaper changes at night. They will also be up for a feed or two at night so at this time, it’s okay to change diapers. They can endure a little more handling than older babies and as we know, they still need some assistance to sleep.
For newborns: Yes change a diaper if it’s poop, but it should be done in the dark (don’t turn on the lights), a little night light or better yet, red light with little stimulation and interaction and back to bed.
For babies over 4 months: This is where it gets tricky. As much as your child is a great sleeper and can fall asleep independently, it’s hard to change your baby’s bowel movements.
The good news is that it’s temporary. It lasts a few weeks and it will eventually shift.
Some toddlers also like to have privacy. to poop so offering that during the day or before bedtime may help.
Adjust your diet: If your little one is on solids we may need to adjust their diet and try not to offer natural diuretic food at dinner or before bed. We want to encourage your baby to have a bowel movement during the day. Avoid fibrous foods before bedtime and stick to foods that will “bind” them up like bananas, apples, oatmeal.
While it’s still important to offer a wide selection of different foods, having foods that will encourage their bodies to have a bowel movement early on will eliminate the need to go at night.
In the meantime what do you do if they wake and need a diaper change?
If it’s poop, change it.
Change poop in the dark and back to bed.
If you are having to assist back to sleep (hold, rock, feed, bounce, bedshare, ect), then that is something you will need to fix first. If your baby is not able to put themselves to sleep these interruptions can cause long periods of awake time and exhaustion for both of you. Here is the next step to fixing that: Your Dream Plan.
What if it’s early morning and you know they will be up for the day?
You have two options:
Change it in the dark with little stimulation and hope they put themselves back to sleep - it may not happen since any interaction in the morning hours can cause them to be up for good.
Wait, if it’s close to wake up time. Waiting until it’s as close to wake up time as possible and then changing their diaper and getting them up for the day. We don’t want them to get a rash but typically they can go a few hours with a poop before it starts to give them a rash.
This is totally up to you and your judgement.
If your baby is really good at putting themselves to sleep, they are more adaptable and can handle a diaper change. If they are not, then wait and get them up for the day a little earlier.
What about Pee?
You don’t have to change pee overnight. Poop yes but not pee. Diapers are designed to hold all night long.
*make sure you have a diaper that fits well, if it’s leaking go up a size or double diaper.
Lather on the cream
When I say lather on that white diaper cream, I mean like icing on a cake. Give a few good layers of protection, that will help avoid any rashes.
Waking a baby fully to change their diaper for pee especially over 4 months will disturb sleep and it not really necessary. If you feel like you NEED to. do it, then in the dark and back to bed awake.
Sleep Issues CAN be resolved
Babies will pee or poo while awake so it may also be that your little one is having issues with sleep and are staying awake for long periods of time so the poop is a result of sleep issues instead of sleep issue coming from poop.
Is there something else that can be waking them up in the early mornings? Check your environment, schedule and how they fall asleep.
That is something that we definitely need to get resolved.
In the end, if you are offering assistance to sleep, then after you change their diaper you will have to continue to assist to sleep. It’s not fair for them to expect that not to happen.
If you want to change this, then you can! You can get your baby sleeping independently and that will in itself solve your problems at night, including diaper worries.
I’m excited to be able to help you resolve this and feel rested and happy, because that’s what you all deserve!
Learn more about how to get a plan and support with me:
