6 month old waking every 2 hours for feed

[Literati_Love]

Thanks for sharing your experience, mummytobe.

Ging- good for you for trying anything really. If something doesn't work the first or second time, I get too tired and give up. My dd fights everything at bedtime so I do whatever's easiest to just get her to sleep (nursing). The idea that I will probably have to night wean her at some point horrifies me because I will be way too exhausted to rock, swing, bounce, and pat every hour all night long.

Prinny - let us know if you try it. I don't think I want to go the sleep training route. However, there are definitely days where my resolve is lowered on that one. I had the stomach flu this week and it was miserable having a baby permanently attached to my boob in between puking. :/

AK - I'm glad that phase stopped. My dd is actually back in that phase at the moment. She'll often treat her first night stretch as if it's a nap and then want to party when she wakes up.


Apple - sorry sleep hasn't improved for you either! Mine used to do ONE 3-4 hour stretch (up every hour the rest of the night) but now she's just up every hour or more period. Blah.

 

[AK89]

Thanks for sharing your experience, mummytobe.

Ging- good for you for trying anything really. If something doesn't work the first or second time, I get too tired and give up. My dd fights everything at bedtime so I do whatever's easiest to just get her to sleep (nursing). The idea that I will probably have to night wean her at some point horrifies me because I will be way too exhausted to rock, swing, bounce, and pat every hour all night long.

Prinny - let us know if you try it. I don't think I want to go the sleep training route. However, there are definitely days where my resolve is lowered on that one. I had the stomach flu this week and it was miserable having a baby permanently attached to my boob in between puking. :/

AK - I'm glad that phase stopped. My dd is actually back in that phase at the moment. She'll often treat her first night stretch as if it's a nap and then want to party when she wakes up.


Apple - sorry sleep hasn't improved for you either! Mine used to do ONE 3-4 hour stretch (up every hour the rest of the night) but now she's just up every hour or more period. Blah.

Aw man I'm sorry to hear you're going through such a rocky patch still! These kids eh!? Are you at least getting some rest from cosleeping?

Mine does still do that actually from time to time but it usually doesn't last very long.. She was up for a party last night for about an hour or so! Little tinker

What time are you putting her to bed? And what's your routine like? How much is she napping through the day? And what time does she get up?

 

[Literati_Love]

She's in a weird nap transition limbo right now and has been for a while. If she takes two naps she stays up super late and will only sleep 10 hours at night. If she takes one nap she will go to sleep on time (12 hours after she wakes up for the day) but seems to sleep very lightly and will sometimes treat it like a nap and want to party. She sleeps longer at night that way though. I'm sure she'll get past it eventually. And, yes, cosleeping is allowing me to get some rest still but it is just getting very annoying mostly.

 

[Prinny_1]

Thanks for sharing your experience, mummytobe.

Ging- good for you for trying anything really. If something doesn't work the first or second time, I get too tired and give up. My dd fights everything at bedtime so I do whatever's easiest to just get her to sleep (nursing). The idea that I will probably have to night wean her at some point horrifies me because I will be way too exhausted to rock, swing, bounce, and pat every hour all night long.

Prinny - let us know if you try it. I don't think I want to go the sleep training route. However, there are definitely days where my resolve is lowered on that one. I had the stomach flu this week and it was miserable having a baby permanently attached to my boob in between puking. :/

AK - I'm glad that phase stopped. My dd is actually back in that phase at the moment. She'll often treat her first night stretch as if it's a nap and then want to party when she wakes up.


Apple - sorry sleep hasn't improved for you either! Mine used to do ONE 3-4 hour stretch (up every hour the rest of the night) but now she's just up every hour or more period. Blah.

Chances are that I won't sleep train, I can't handle him crying for any amount of time, but it makes me feel better that there's a 'solution' out there if I choose to use it! Poor you, I hope you're feeling better now? Being woken up regularly when you're feeling crappy is literal torture. DS1 added to my wake ups last night TWICE so it's been a bad one (DS2 did his usual 5-10; who knows, I don't count anymore).

I tried lying him on the bed next to me last night instead of holding him while he went to sleep and the little monkey went to sleep by himself. So he can self soothe, just not in his own bed...

 

[apple_20]

Yesterday my baby ate three good meals had plenty of breast milk and one little bottle feed. She had three naps and STILL woke up ever hour. To all the helpful family members saying she will sleep better once on solids / with formula etc. No she doesn't she doesn't like to sleep longer than an hour without a mummy cuddle this is my only explanation.

Trying to get her used to the odd bottle so I can go out occasionally but she thinks it's hilarious and plays with bottle then flings herself at my boobs!

 

[Prinny_1]

Yesterday my baby ate three good meals had plenty of breast milk and one little bottle feed. She had three naps and STILL woke up ever hour. To all the helpful family members saying she will sleep better once on solids / with formula etc. No she doesn't she doesn't like to sleep longer than an hour without a mummy cuddle this is my only explanation.

Trying to get her used to the odd bottle so I can go out occasionally but she thinks it's hilarious and plays with bottle then flings herself at my boobs!

We've got children who know what they want! I think, long term, that might be a good thing?!!

 

[Literati_Love]

Prinny - wow, really? That's pretty good! My dd would never ever fall asleep "on her own" even if I am lying right beside her. Sorry it doesn't help you any though. she just loves being with her mama!
Apple - definitely not a food issue! I know my dd's issue is she DOESN'T know how to self soothe so she just wakes up every sleep cycle and can't get back to sleep.

 

[gingmg]

I'm at a loss. Just when I think things are getting better for my wife when I'm at work, it gets tough again. I don't know how to handle the guilt of not being home. Or how to help them. Some people suggested stopping co-sleeping and breastfeeding when I'm home. I guess I was hoping they would find their own way together. It doesn't feel fair to have to stop overnight breastfeeding, but maybe that is why he doesn't settle as easily for her? How would I even go about doing that? I keep saying I'm going to work on the crib, then when I'm so tired, I don't. Maybe I need to give it a better effort? This has to get better soon.

 

[Prinny_1]

I'm at a loss. Just when I think things are getting better for my wife when I'm at work, it gets tough again. I don't know how to handle the guilt of not being home. Or how to help them. Some people suggested stopping co-sleeping and breastfeeding when I'm home. I guess I was hoping they would find their own way together. It doesn't feel fair to have to stop overnight breastfeeding, but maybe that is why he doesn't settle as easily for her? How would I even go about doing that? I keep saying I'm going to work on the crib, then when I'm so tired, I don't. Maybe I need to give it a better effort? This has to get better soon.

Bless you, it's so tough. It will get better, it's just that no one knows when. DS1 suddenly got a lot better at 6 months, unfortunately I haven't been that lucky this time. I've no idea how you night wean with a baby that falls asleep on the breast. It was so easy with DS1 because by 13 months I just rubbed his tummy through the bars of the cot to get him back to sleep. DS2 is nearly 8 months now and I hope to stop at 13 ish months again. I guess it'll be a rough ride this time!

Hang in there, in a year this will all be a bad dream. What does your wife think?

 

[gingmg]

Sometimes she handles the nights fine. He might wake up twice, one of the times putting himself back to sleep and the other time he gets a bottle. That's a perfect night and so easy for her to handle. Other nights he is up every couple of hours and needs lots of help to go back to sleep. She barely gets herself back to sleep and it starts again. Those are the nights I get all kinds of upsetting text messages at work and I end up in tears. Those are the nights I'm afraid to come home because I'm afraid she is going to advocate for sleep training. Mostly she doesn't want to do it either, until she is so tired. I guess I was holding onto the thought that this would slowly get better on it's own and I wouldn't have to do anything differently. I did stop nursing to sleep at the start of the night, but not on the night wakings. I'm starting to realize that I may need to really work on the crib for this to get better. Maybe she should stop giving a bottle overnight when I am on a stretch of a few in a row. Maybe that way he will have started the pattern of not eating overnight so by the time I'm home again he is already in a new routine? I can't not feed him and let him cry in my arms. I don't know. It all sounds great until its the middle of the night and I'm exhausted- then I just do what's easiest.

 

[Prinny_1]

The fact that you have good nights is brilliant! I literally never have a night with less than 5 wake ups. It will gradually get better, it's just how gradually that's the issue. It seems like the hardest thing in the world when you're doing it, but it goes so quickly. I can remember being on my knees with DS1 after 6 weeks of hourly wake ups. Now he's four and starts school in a couple of months and, mostly, sleeps like a normal person!

Sometimes I try and remind myself that, with some seriously horrid things happening in the world, that my waking up every couple of hours to cuddle a rather cute baby is not such a tough break 😊

I sometimes feel like sleep training too (as you can see above), but mainly that's just tiredness and frustration talking. You could try making one change. I decided a couple of weeks a go to always put him back on his cot for the first two wake ups and then gradually increase the amount of times I put him back. I've managed to stick with it because it's just a small thing.

The unfortunate fact is that some babies just don't sleep great. You and your wife will get through it. There's lots of us out there sharing your pain!

 

[gingmg]

Thanks for your support pinny. You are so right. This will all slowly move into a better pattern, and if I honestly have a look at the bigger picture it really has gotten better. We never used to have good nights, now here and there we do, so that's huge. I guess I keep forgetting that. It definitely started getting better once we started trying to put him down more and more awake. And me not nursing to sleep at the start of the night has helped too. But I nurse to sleep every other time. If I didn't work at night this would feel so much better. Its just hard when the texts come flooding in on how awful their night is and how this can't continue. It breaks me and sends me into a panic about baby sleep. every. single. time.

 

[Prinny_1]

Sometimes it feels worse when you've had a good night then they revert back to multiple wake ups the next night. Your hope is snatched away! But it really does sound like you're doing brilliantly. You've certainly stuck with the putting down drowsy but awake thing, which I've found impossible with both. When you're not completely knackered you could try not feeding him to sleep for first wake up and see how it goes? It's all guess work but I would think having both of you involved like this will be beneficial long term and get your LO sleeping through the night more quickly. DS2 goes crazy if my other half tries to soothe him.

 

[Literati_Love]

Ging - sorry you're feeling discourage but I agree with everything Prinny said and it is truly great that you have some good nights (we don't ever have a night with less than 5 wake ups either). I don't think you should listen to what other people say. If it doesn't feel right, don't do it. Only what you and your wife think is important. Of course, that would be tough If she wants to sleep train and you don't! Hugs. I would reply more but I have a cranky baby on hand. Good luck tonight!

 

[AK89]

I know I'm gonna jinx myself but it's over three hours since she went to sleep and not a peep! Can't believe it!

She went 3 hours before her first feed last night too....getting there....baby steps...

 

[Prinny_1]

I know I'm gonna jinx myself but it's over three hours since she went to sleep and not a peep! Can't believe it!

She went 3 hours before her first feed last night too....getting there....baby steps...

Hurrah! Hope it lasts! X

 

[Mrsb3]

My 12 month old wakes wvery 2-3 hours for a quick snack too. It's the heat probably- however she did sleep through a few times (pot luck hey)

 

[Literati_Love]

AK- I hope that sticks! No such luck over here.

 

[gingmg]

We have had 3 nights since my last post of sleeping through the night. And by sleeping through, I mean 11pm- 5 am. Then last night was back to waking up every hour. So much for thinking we were coming out the other side. I guess it truly is a process. All in all we are doing better now than a month or two ago. Just in time for the 8 month sleep regression!

 

[Literati_Love]

Oy! I wouldn't consider that sleeping through the night anyway ahha but at least there was some progress for a while. There is always some backsliding but hopefully there will be progress overall?

My dd surprised me by sleeping 4 hours in her crib last night! She was up every hour after that but I was in absolute disbelief that she stayed asleep that long, and in her own room no less! She hasn't spent more than an hour at a time in there for many months! I'm sure tonight will be back to normal. :/