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View Full Version : 7 1/2 month old won't sleep through the night...need schedule!



jcono
03-03-2005, 04:41 PM
hi! my 7 1/2 month old is still not sleeping through the night. i have read ALL the books and tried various methods. i'm going to go back to Ferber tonight. she has always been REALLY gassy and wakes around 3 a.m. with gas, and won't go back to sleep without cuddling with me or sometimes eating. she falls asleep on her own and in her crib...at bedtime and at night. yet when she wakes up she cannot fall back asleep on her own. does anyone have any suggestions or any typical schedules for a baby her age? she hasn't gained any weight in two months (although her length has increased)...but i don't know how to get her to eat better during the day so she won't want food at night. any help would be GREATLY appreciated!

Karenn
03-03-2005, 05:04 PM
I think I'd focus on making sure she naps well during the day. That has always helped my children sleep better at night. I can count on both my children waking at night if they have had short or non-existent naps.

Is she breastfed or formula fed? I'm sure you've read Weissbluth since you've read all the sleep books, (I've read all of them too. Sleepy moms are desperate moms! :) ) but according to him, it is normal for some breastfed infants to wake to eat at night until 9 months of age.

As far as a schedule I'm not much help. My DS wasn't on a schedule until closer to 10 months and DD isn't on one yet. Naps around 9:00 and around 1:00 (sometimes 12:00 ) worked for my DS once we were able to get the schedule going.

HTH,

jcono
03-03-2005, 08:24 PM
thanks for the advice.

she has been napping better lately...1 hour to 1 1/2...so i'm thankful for that and generally, she'll go down pretty easily for her naps. i'm just perplexed b/c at night, she won't stay asleep.

she's formula fed. i had an emergency c-section with some complications so the breastfeeding was a real struggle. that makes it even odder insofar as others are concerned. she really fights the bottle during the day and shows no interest in sippy cups yet. we've been on every formula b/c she was just so gassy...she's finally a lot less gassy, but still manages to wake up with gas at night. she's currently on ProSobee w/ Lipil. i give her mylicon drops before bed, but they don't do a thing!

Karenn
03-03-2005, 10:40 PM
Sleep is so confusing! I wish I had more suggestions! My only other thought would be an earlier bedtime. But honestly, if her waking is tied to her gassiness, I'm not sure any of the "sleep tricks" will work. They need to make something better than Mylicon for gas! I know it does nothing for my kids! I hope you get it figured out.

jcono
03-04-2005, 07:41 AM
thanks:) she was tired last night and was out at 7:00. i woke her up at 10:30 for a dream feed (i know i shouldn't, but i knew she didn't drink enough during the day yesterday to make it through the whole Ferber process without feeling terribly guilty). she woke up around 3:15 and I did the Ferber method until 4:30. do you know how long you are allowed to make them cry? i was so glad she fell asleep when she did, as i was getting to my breaking point. she then slept until 6:00 and i figured it was okay to feed her, but she just snacked and when back to bed for 45 minutes. do you think i should hold off until 7 to feed her if she does it again?

kcampbell
03-16-2005, 03:40 PM
Hey, I have a 71/2 month old as well. She has been a relatively good sleeper so we may be just lucky but I can share our routine. She is still breastfed. Our usual day is (5 feedings, 2 good naps)
630-nurses then back to sleep till on average 9am
1030-nurses,plays
Noon-naps for 1 1/2 to 2 hours
230-nurses, babyfood/cereal lunch plays
400-naps for 1 1/2 to 2 hours
630-nurses, babyfood/cereal dinner plays
800-bedtime routine, bath, etc
900-nurses then to bed
I put her down for naps "awake", sometimes she uses her pacifier but we try to restrict it to naps only. She occasionally wakes at night and we try to let her fall back to sleep on her own without going in her room. Once I realized that she could sleep through the night I stopped feeding her after "bedtime". I think no matter how good of a sleeper, most babies wake up some nights here and there. It also seems that as she is trying to crawl, is teething, etc we go through some new issues at night. I do hope that helps.

emilye
04-03-2005, 09:40 PM
I have a son the same age and we have been dealing with the same issues. Just when I get him going through the night something happens to mess things up again ... this time it was vacation and a stomach virus all at once. He is formula fed too, and has not eaten during the night since he was about two months old. Now I am getting the feeling when he wakes up at about 5am its because he is hungry. I would not mind that if it was the only time he wakes up but he is doing the 3am wake up too. Usually the only thing I can do is pick him up and rock him back to sleep. Is there any other way to teach them to fall back asleep with out "crying it out" I do not have the stamina to endure it at 3 in the morning and usually give in. I know its so bad:}
I feel your pain.
I also do find the daytime schedule helps so much and now that we are home from our travels I intend to stick close to home this week and try to get back on our nap schedule. But if he gets up at 5am that blows the whole nap schedule because he is exhausted and falls asleep about 7:15am. I am confused.
Sorry this is so long!

butterflyjen
04-04-2005, 07:13 AM
Hi there -
My DD is the same way and the same age. Last night we got her down at 8:30. She was up at 9:30, 10, 11, and 12 when we let her CIO (I knew she wasn't hungry at that time). She stayed down till about 5 and is just waking up now (7AM).
From what I understand this is normal for this age (frustrating, but normal!). I hope your DD grows out of it soon!