7mo was STTN but now NW x2 a night... do I need to drop the DF??

[gemma2313]

My ds2 is 7mo. His routine looks like this (most days)

EW 5.50 (I'm sure this is as a result of my husband alarm / and his waking so not sure I can stop it.. argh! ds1 did it as well  ).. and ds2 wakes happy-ish so...

E -  6.20ish... BF
     - solids @ 7 - 7.30 ... only just started actually taking solids
S - 9 - 10.30 (1.5hr nap.. I don't let him sleep past 10.30.. if he goes to sleep a little after 9... too bad i'm afraid!!!). sometimes this nap is on the move.
E - solids first @ 10.45
      - BF @ 11.30
S - 1.30 - 3/3.30 (1.5hr nap.. sometimes 2hrs)
E - BF @ 3.30
    - solids  @ 5
A - bath / book etc
E - BF @ 7
S - 7 or 7.30 depending on last nap

DF - 9.30/10

We are still in the process of dropping CN. Some days if either nap is shorter and he wakes before 2.30 from his PM nap he may end up having a CN.
Sometimes I end up pushing the final A time to close to 4 hrs even with an early bed time.. and occasionally we have an OT wake up before 9pm. I usually feed if he does this and depending on the time of it may or may not do a DF as well.

Either way he has been waking REGULARLY every night for the last month at around 12.30/1am AND 3.30/4 am.... and still waking early.... its driving me mad cause he was doing 7 hrs after a DF from about 14wks til 6mo.

At first I thought this NW was due to hunger and have been feeding when he NW... I also started with solisd during the day about 4 weeks ago but until a few days ago he just wasnt interested in solids. Even with him taking the solids the last few days he is still NW. If I dont feed its a BIG deal and he doesnt let up until I do. Apart from NF he is very much an independant sleeper. Often during the night when I do feed he is awake afterwards and resettles himself by himself in the cot. He has no dummy or other props and I have recently introduced a lovey teddy. He does have White noise but sleeps without it if need be. I leave it on all night mostlly to disguise noise from my toddler who is in the adjacent room and not very quiet during the day or night! He sleeps independantly for his naps as well and rarely do I have to worry about settling him. (thank god that phase is over!! I'm very proud of the fact that I perserved with his sleep training in those first few months despite the hurdle of having a 19mo AT THE SAME TIME!!!)

I then concluded that maybe the NW was because of too much sleep due to the CN so we dropped that. Thing is he doesnt stay awake at night. no cot parties so I'm sure that the A time is about right. I honeslty don't really use the clock I just watch him and when he's tired I put him to sleep... the routine above is approximately what he does most days atm.

I now think that maybe the NW's are because the dream feed is disrupting him. His nappy is always VERY full by 3.30am.. so I end up having to change his nappy then (which I know is a big disruption) but if I don't it always leaks.
Is he too young to drop the DF? He is a sensitive - textbook baby.

btw he has 2 teeth and I'm pretty sure that its not teething every night.


If its not the DF what is it ? could it be a seperation anxiety thing and am I contributing to the problem by feeding him?

[~Sarah~]

Honestly I would try dropping the DF and see when he wakes due to hunger.  At this point it does start effecting their sleep.  I forgot exactly when Tracy said to drop the DF, but I do know that someone suggested I drop it around 6mo or so an see what DD would do.  She still needed a quick feed sometime between 1-5am but she would eat and go right back to sleep. 

IMO it would be worth a shot just to see what happens.

I dropped DS DF right around 5.5mo and DD at about 6-6.5mo

HTH
Sarah

[gemma2313]

started dropping  df and already nights are getting better. He's also started actually taking his solids so thats helping!!

[~Sarah~]

So glad that helped!!

[gemma2313]

When did you drop CN was it about the same time? 6 -7 mo ?

He's definately taking solids. One NW seems to be average now.. heaps better than 2 but still frustrating.

Last night he woke at 1.30... so I ended up feeding (I know bad mummy...) and then he woke at 5.15 and WOULD NOT go back to sleep... grrrr.... He ended up going to bed early last night cause he had no CN....

Day before there was a CN and we had 2 wake ups!

He took the most amount of solids that he has so far today so I'm hopeful and it was his first day with chicken so lets hope that protein helps my cause.

Did you gradually drop the DF or just stop it?

First 2 nights I fed at 9.30,
then next two at 8.45/9 ish,
he didnt go to bed tonight until 7.45 and had his last feed at 7.30 so I didnt do a DF at all.... will see what happens....  the 8.45/9 seemed to disrupt more than a later DF...

[~Sarah~]

We did drop the CN between 6-7mo and we just went cold turkey with the DF.
I will say though that if she still woke up at night and it was at random times, I still fed her figuring she was hungry bc she ate and went straight back to sleeping.  Then she just stopped waking up at night.  Last week one night she woke, so I just went straight to feeding her and she ate and went back to no NW since.

HTH

[gemma2313]

yeah... I have to say thats why I have been feeding at NW. He doesnt fuss about at all... even if still awake after teh feed (rarely) he puts himself straight back to sleep. I'm sure his NW is hunger.. and his NW varies so much from day to day. In the last week he's STTN once, woken once about 3 times and woken twice about 3 times.... my body clock is shot!

when you went cold turkey with the DF did you get her still waking up at normal DF time for a few days?

He woke last night at 10... so I fed... and then again at 3.30... so I very reluctantly fed again and had to change his nappy cause it was too full... he then woke this morning at 5.15 and refused to go back to sleep AGAIn... argh... DH and ds1 was up at 6 so no more sleep for mummy....and its a long day today cause I'm working (with him with me) this morning... the joys of motherhood and your own business!!

I'm sure the DF disrupts and maybe he woke at 10 last night cause he was OT at bed time... I didnt mean to get him to bed late but we put the xmas tree up with DH last night while he was home and it meant a little later the normal.... will see tonight.