Sleeping/Eating Question

[Indianamom2]

If my 4.5 month old is eating at least every 3 hours from 7:30ish am. to 10 pm, should he still be waking up to eat more than once a night?

DS #2 WAS a great sleeper, even occasionally going 8-9 hours straight at night...then 3 months hit and it's been really rough going. Thanksgiving at my in-laws about did us all in. He was extremely hard to get to go to sleep, he would wake up numerous times a night and be up for hours. Every time I would get him to sleep and lay him down, he'd be wide awake again.

I don't mind feeding him once over night (that had been his usual pattern up to 3 months), but he shouldn't consistently need to eat every two hours or so at night by now, right?

What am I doing wrong? Our routine hasn't changed. I have occasionally tried to put him to bed earlier, but that never works...he might sleep for a half hour and then he's awake and not happy. He's not just fussing a little, it's all-out crying.

Can someone help me out here, because I'm seriously running out of ideas.

Christina

[slworld]

So looks like your concern here is him waking up several times at night, right? Is he BF or FF (not sure if that would make a difference, but wondering if maybe BF babies may feed more often, sometimes for comfort more than hunger?). If you are sure he isn't hungry, could you try a pacifier. But since you mentioned he was sleeping great until recently, maybe he is going through a growth sprut and thats why he is feeding more often. DS woke up twice a night to feed almost until 8months & once a night until 1year (he was FF). He suffered from reflux & could only take in ~4oz at a time. So he could not sleep through the night since he got hungry.

Also how may naps does he take? Maybe his last nap is too late & that is why he is unable to fall asleep until 10pm (but if he not overly tired, maybe that time is working for him). Swaddling may help too.

[egoldber]

Doesn't he have reflux? Reflux babies may tend to be night wakers becuse a) they are often snack eaters because eating large meals hurts their tummies and b)lying down causes them to reflux.

I hate to say this, but Amy woke every 2 hours at night until she was well over a year old. Yes, it was exhausting, but I didn't see a way out that I was personally comfortable with.

[deannanb]

Into the swing he goes!
:wink2:
DS was sleeping in the swing for about 2 months at that age! (swing not on)

and if you were not in your house for Turkey Day--- then he is probably off.

I think "they" say that waking up to eat in the middle of the night until 6 months or so is normal.

[gatorsmom]

At that age my first 2 babies were eating about every 3 hours during the day, then at 7pm, 10pm, 4am and 6am. They both seemed to fall into that pattern.

But Greenbean was different. He either had reflux, or sensory issues or both. And I noticed that Beth commented yours had reflux. If that's the case, he might not eat as much as he needs at his feedings because it's painful for him to be full. So, he need to eat more frequently to get all the nourishment he needs. And if he wakes up screaming during the night, I think that also points to reflux.

Some things to try:

Feed him smaller amounts more often during the days so that he consumes more during waking hours and won't need to wake as much at night to eat.

Some parents have put a wedge in their babies' cribs to help reflux babies feel more comfortable.

If it's NOT reflux that's causing the screamiing, try adding a white noise machine to the room. You could also try swaddling him tightly. You might want to make sure his room is VERY dark. And finally he may just sleep better sitting up in a swing. These were the things Greenbean needed to calm him every night up until he was 18 months old. He definitely had sensory issues- he couldn't sleep if he could see a sliver of light coming from the door, the windows had to be very dark, and he would wimper for hours if he could hear noises downstairs. And up until he was 7 months old the only thing that calmed him was to be swaddled in a Graco Sweetpeace swing and swinging full tilt with the canopy completely covering his line of vision. So, he could see nothig but a blank screen. In that swing he'd fall asleep after 10 minutes of swinging and stay asleep. I LOVED that swing.

You might also want to talk to your doctor about trying a prescription reflux medication. It works wonders for lots of parents.

Hope you both can get some rest soon!

[brittone2]

For my kids (no reflux that we know of), waking more than once a night at that age to nurse was very normal.

[mskitty]

If my 4.5 month old is eating at least every 3 hours from 7:30ish am. to 10 pm, should he still be waking up to eat more than once a night?

DS #2 WAS a great sleeper, even occasionally going 8-9 hours straight at night...then 3 months hit and it's been really rough going. Thanksgiving at my in-laws about did us all in. He was extremely hard to get to go to sleep, he would wake up numerous times a night and be up for hours. Every time I would get him to sleep and lay him down, he'd be wide awake again.

I don't mind feeding him once over night (that had been his usual pattern up to 3 months), but he shouldn't consistently need to eat every two hours or so at night by now, right?

What am I doing wrong? Our routine hasn't changed. I have occasionally tried to put him to bed earlier, but that never works...he might sleep for a half hour and then he's awake and not happy. He's not just fussing a little, it's all-out crying.

Can someone help me out here, because I'm seriously running out of ideas.

Christina

Just when you think you've figured it out, they change on you! My little guy had been sleeping through the night for several weeks and then changed due to a growth spurt. We've had a few rough nights lately. His first tooth broke through several days ago at 21 weeks old. We had an up every two hour night when that was going on (lovely with all the family in town for the holiday). Something else to consider...

mskitty