why is she waking?-Update

[Kherzy]

My daughter, 3 1/2 months, used to sleep through but this last week she has started waking every hour and half.  What gives?
oh, and I've already upped her ounces during daytime feeds incase it was b/c of hunger.

update:
Well the last 2 nights she has done better.  Last night she woke at 6am, used binky to drift back off and then I had to wake her at 8:30.  Before this whole sleeping issue happened, she used to wake at 6 then go back down for an hour or 2, so this is right back where we were.  I've changed a few things, I stopped trying to get her to extend her 45 minute naps.  Yesterday her sleeping patterns were more like they used to be.  I let her take a 3 hour morning nap then the rest were all 45 min.  I think with her getting older I became a little obsessed with getting her on a 4 hour easy and tried too hard to get her to change her naps.  With extending her naps I think honestly she was just getting more quality daytime sleep than she needed.  I get way too wrapped up in baby whispering that I sometimes forget to listen to my baby.
The other thing I changed was I had just put her up to 5oz and she would scream when I took the bottle away so I upped her up to 6oz, well it turns out that I was just overfeeding her.  I've brought her back down to 5, started cereal, and she seems much happier.  Now I just pop in the binky when she gets upset that the bottle is gone.  It takes her a minute but then she is happy and spits it out to burp. 
Just wanted to post what seems to be working for us.  Course today we were out all day for Thanksgiving so she'll probably be back off track again.  But at least now I know there's hope!

By the way, thank you everyone for your input!

[Oggy]

Kherzy

Hi my daughter is just over 3 months and has also started to wake during the night.  She was sleeping from her dream feed at 10.30 through to 6.30/7am at 8weeks.  In the past two weeks I haven't varied her feeds or nap times but she has started waking between 3 and 4 every morning looking for food.

People have said it's just a growth spurt but this has lasted for the past two weeks and so I don't think its that anymore.  Can't offer much advice but thought you would like to know this is happening to us as well!

if you find out any information be sure to pass it on to me please!

[Fizzogg]

I have heard that growth spurts around the 13 weeks mark can last longer than others.  Could they also be getting ready for weaning?  I know that it is still early days.  Our 13 weeks dd started waking twice in the night instead of her usual once and I introduced some rice at lunchtime.  I also have to wake her to feed at 2300 as she takes more if awake.  I keep her awake for about an hr as this has an effect on her sleep cycles and means she now goes til 5 am.  I know this is the complete opposite to dreamfeeding.

[PaolaG]

I am in a pretty similar situation.  My Lea is now about 3.5 months, and went from waking once in the night to waking 2 or 3 times - basically every 3 hours.  This has lasted about ten days.  I tried feeding her more during the day - which is a bit hit adn miss given that she is breastfed and I can't measure how much she is taking.   Anyhow, now  I think she has got into the habit of waking every three hours and eating, so we are trying to extend the time between her feeding to 3.5 or 4 hours.  After two days of that, it seems to be helping.  I got pretty upset about it all - and completely exhausted.  She really seemed almost ready to go through the night, and could sleep 7 or 8 hours with feeding, so its been pretty confusing that is now worse than she was as a newborn.
good luck to all of us...
best

Paola

[luckymom]

I'm in the same situation.  My 4 month old son was sleeping through the night from dream feed at 11 to 7 or 7:30 am.  Then, last week, he began waking at different intervals in the night, like 2, 4 and 6, or lastnight at 3 and 5 and 6, (and 6:30).  But he is easily soothed back to sleep without a feeding.  However, I did finish the move to 4 hour EASY last week as well, so I thought it might be food.  But DS is breastfed, so I am not sure how to make sure he gets more except a cluster tonight, and since he isn't starving, even when he gets up at 7, how do I know?  Could it be teething?  He isn't running a fever or doing any chewing on toys, etc.?  Anyone know?

[alex and danny]

I'm also in a similar situation.  My 3.5 month old has been waking almost every hour and a half - doesn't seem hungry , he fusses and eventually cries, is soothed by picking up, rearranging and paci.  I don't know what has happened?

[Kherzy]

Well I'm relieved to know it's "normal" and not just me.  We don't do the dream feed.  She would go from 9 or 10pm to 7 or 8 am.  She doesn't seem to be waking for the binky.  She does use it to go to sleep so I give it to her when she wakes but I really don't think she's waking b/c she wants it, sometimes I have to fight to get her to take it, and then fight more to get her to keep it.  I don't pick her up at night for fear she will expect to eat, although she stopped night feeds at 5 weeks.  I'm also afraid she'll be harder to settle if I'm holding her.  I hate baby sleep patterns!  They're so unpredictable and crazy and I hate losing sleep over it.  I wish I knew what what she wanted to I could fix it.  I hate feeling so helpless not knowing what to do.  Ugh!

[Lan]

According to an Australian baby book, 'Baby Love', babies under the age of 3 months enter a light stage of sleep first, then go into deep sleep. THis is why newborns are so hard to get to sleep! At around about 3 months of age, they change their sleep patterns to enter deep sleep first, just like adults. So it sounds like you baby's sleep pattern has changed. The fact that she wakes up every 1.5 hours at night (or even 3 hours) says that she is waking at every sleep cycle and she needs to relearn how to transition into the next cycle.  You might try going in just before the 1.5 hour mark and gently patting her back to sleep. Crouch down so she can't see you if she wakes, otherwise she'll think it's party time!  I'm lucky, my hand fits between the cot bars so I can crouch on the floor and stick my hand in.

Also their hearing pattern changes around this time too so she might be more sensitive to noise.

[jueboo]

Hi there, You all made me feel better!!  I thought it was just me, my LO in 13 weeks and for the past 8 nights has been awake every hour or 2, sometimes hungry other times not,  up until then he was sleeping from 7.30 - 5-6 am,  I am exhausted and dont know if he is teething ( sometimes has symptoms) needs some baby rice ( will not take anymore milk during the day) or if this is how it is gonna be 4 eva, have tried everything and relly don't know what to do