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SLEEP => Night Wakings => Topic started by: tracefo on December 17, 2005, 16:00:19 pm

Title: Waking up to play or feed?
Post by: tracefo on December 17, 2005, 16:00:19 pm
My daughter has been sleeping through the night since she was about 6 weeks, no dream feed.  The last few nights she's been waking up and plays in her crib an hour earlier each night.  We just leave her to play but eventually she starts crying.  It took us 1.5 hours to get her back to sleep.  Is she hungry and just waking up happy instead of crying?  How do I know because the cry doesn't really sound like a hungry cry but when she gets up in the morning there is no playing anymore and she is very eager to get to the boob.  Before this she would coo in her crib and be quite happy while I changed her diaper.  Where are the individual instructions I ordered for her? 
Tracey
Title: Waking up to play or feed?
Post by: Katet on December 20, 2005, 09:16:44 am
How old is your lo?
What does your day routine look like?

My thought is that while she was sleeping through at an early age, she is now needing the extra calories & a change in the day sleep pattern as she has got older... if you could give an indication on her routine, I might be able to offer some ideas
Title: Waking up to play or feed?
Post by: tracefo on December 20, 2005, 14:59:50 pm
She is 5 months old this week.  She generally wakes up at 8 fed by 8:30 down for a nap again by 9:30-10.  She has started to take a little longer nap, finally! So she is up around 10:30 - 11 (Trust me this is way better than the 30 - 45 minute naps we've been having and I'm very happy about that so trying to change this is not an option!) She then either wants to eat sometime between 11:30-12:30( some days she's a four hour eater others she's decided 3 hours is too long)  Then a nap around 1pm awake usually by 2 eat either 3 or 4 hours from last feed and nap around 4 pm.    She then eats usually 3 hours after last feed and then again before she goes to bed for the night.  Her bed time is usually around 8 but sometimes later if she's not interested in going to sleep that early.  She goes to sleep usually by herself in her crib and is breast fed.
Hopefully that is enough information.
Title: Waking up to play or feed?
Post by: Katet on December 20, 2005, 20:23:18 pm
Routine sounds good, So I'd say it is just that she is hungry & possibly that she just doesn't need as long a sleep over night... my ds#2 (almost 7mo) cut back from 12 hours to about 11 hours around 4.5mo (with 1-2 night feeds)
It is actually very normal for most bf babies to want 1-2 feeds at night up until about 9mo, so the fact you have had her sleeping throught the night is great, but it doesn't surprise me now she is a bit older & life is more stimulating & she is using her muscles more, that she needs the extra feed, or can't last as long between feeds...that is the thing about babies, once you think you have it worked out, they develop & it all changes.
Title: Waking up to play or feed?
Post by: tracefo on December 21, 2005, 20:09:39 pm
Thanks, Kate, I appreciate your voice of experience!
Tracey