Hi Elaine,
Unfortunately our babies are trained from birth to wake up for feeds at certain hours or not sleep through so we come home with unsettled babies. Well we did however Mum and baby seem to be home with in 24 hrs these days so what the reason is now I don't know. It has been 27 yrs since my last baby.
I feel for mums with babies who don't sleep at night although can smugly say I never had this problem with either of my children. They both slept all night from birth. I kid you not.
I well remember the almost stand up fight I had with the midwife in charge of the ward when I had my first child. The nurse bought him to me in the night saying it was feed time and so I got up and got ready only to see he was asleep. When I told her I wouldn't wake him to feed him she took him away saying okay but you will have wake him and feed him if he doesn't wake up in the next couple of hours as he is a newborn etc etc. A couple of hours later she was back and he was still asleep
(back then we weren't allowed to have the baby in the same room so they were kept in nurseries) I again refused so she told me she would feed him herself. Well that was it, I refused to let her take the crib away and kept him beside me, I sat up all the rest of the night just in case she came and took him away. In the morning the Matron complained to my Dr who told her that if I wanted to demand feed then that was my choice and she was not to interfere. Gosh she was angry with me.
The Dr then told me about babies being trained from birth etc. So very right in my experience.
Mind you I am a freak when it comes to babies

had max of 2 hrs birthing, just like shelling peas, no sweat
Kathleen
Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans.
- John Lennon