Regular night wakings - 5 month old.

[slawler]

Hi,
Just wondered if anyone can give me any advice on regular night wakings. My dd is waking regularly from about 11.30pm onwards. She seems to wake every 2.5 / 3hours. I was feeding her at 12.30 and 4.30 (she wont do df) but she was waking in between. I have reduced it down to one feed at 2.30 but she is still waking regularly so I am not sure whether she is hungry or if its habitual waking.
My dd is bf and on a 3.75 /  4 hour easy (although I try and stick to feeding every 4 hours)
Typical routine -
Wake and feed 7am
Activity until 8.45
Nap - asleep by 9am normally wakes up once and goes back to sleep.
Wake and feed 11am
Activity until 12.45
Nap - asleep by 1pm normally wakes up once and goes back to sleep.
Wake and feed 3pm
Activity until 4.45
Nap - asleep by 5pm
Awake and activity 6pm
Feed 7pm
Activity (bathtime and getting ready for bed)
Topup feed 7.30 for 5mins.
Down awake to sleep.

If anyone has any suggestions on how I can get her to sleep longer at night it would be greatly appreciated. She has slept better in the past, feeding every 4 hours or doing the occasional 5/6 hour block of sleep. Should I be feeding her twice a night or sticking to once a night?
She has just started using a dummy which is helping nap sleeps and is dramatically helping her to go back to sleep at night, but it isn't stopping her waking up.
Any suggestions welcome.

[slawler]

Thank you so much for replying. I've been so tired I forgot I'd posted! What an idiot I am.
I will definitely look at extending it. I thought because some people were on 3.45 minute feeding routines that because we were on 4 she must be doing the right amount and the activity would extend as she got older. I will look at this.
When she wakes up she plays for a couple of minutes and then crys. She often cries if I turn her lullaby on as she knows I am not going to pick her up, she is going back to sleep.
I thought it was all hunger but last night I went back to feeding her twice in the night and she still woke up like this -
11.30 woke - put back to sleep
12.30 woke - fed her
3.40 woke - fed her
4.55 woke  - put back to sleep
6 woke - put back to sleep
7.15 woke - up for day.

So I know some of them are not hunger. It seems to get worse if we go away or do too much. Her sleeping was ok, then I went to stay with my parents for a week and she was bad after that and then she started improving again and then we went to a wedding which was a full on weekend where she didn't really nap properly and then she is back to loads of night wakings. Its been 3 weeks now though so I am not sure if that can still be held responsible or whether it is habit or something I am doing wrong. Her catnap in the evening has been anything between 30mins and 1hour so I will keep that to 30mins - 45 as you suggested to see if that helps. Its so hard as I am getting so tired, but I don't want to complain as I know I am so lucky having a healthy lovely baby girl. Perhaps I will just have to put up with it until she grows out of it. I am going on holiday this friday and am starting to worry about how bad it could get, but I can't not go as its all booked. I am going to buy blackout blinds though and see if that helps in the morning as its so light it isn't really giving my dd the right message. Anyway, thanks for listening and anymore suggestions or adivce would be welcome. I will be remembering I posted this time.

[slawler]

I have just looked at the activity link and I see what you mean, I think she needs longer. I am trying to extend for 10mins this morning and she is already getting really cranky. She is better at being extended later in the day. (She is tired from her night wakings I think!!)
I will definitely do it slowly though. Thank you.

[slawler]

Thank you. I am going to go to bed at the same time as the baby for a few days to try and catch up on some sleep. I can feel that familiar fog creeping in. I will let you know how it goes. I am away from Friday so perhaps it will be in a new thread after the holiday to devon:)