Transition to 4 hr EASY or work on nighttime feedings???

[Mackie]

I just started my 4 month old son on the 3 hr EASY to get him used to a routine.  The hardest part is nighttime...I have a hard time determining if I should do PU/PD forever or if I should feed him.  Lately I've been feeding him because he's used to eating every 2-3 hours and I'm concerned he's starving at night (or just not used to it).  I wanted to get the day time routine established first before I tackled the night.  Now that he's been on EASY for 8 days, I'm wondering if I should transition him to 4 hr EASY or work on him going longer between feds at night.

We've been following the 3 hr rountine from the book and his naps have been 30-60 min.  At night my problem is that I like to go to bed early so the dreamfeed is rather inconvenient for me.  I've been breast feeding him at 7,10,1,4,7 sometimes dreamfeed 10:30, and if I don't do the dreamfeed (hoping he'll sleep longer) he wakes up anyway and I feed him, then I've been feeding him at 3a and sometimes 5 or 6.  So, should I focus on keeping the 3 hr EASY and try to get him to go longer between feeds at night, or transition him to the 4 hr EASY and once he's used to that try to work on the night feedings.

Thanks

[*Mona*]

hi

i think it's worth trying 4hrs routine and see if it improves his night time sleep. BUT if he's waking more or less same time every night, then it's propably habitual wakings and you could actually work on both issues the same time. but probably concentrating on a new routine will be tireing enough so maybe go for it first.

here's the link to the 3-3,5-4hrs transition:
https://babywhispererforums.com/index.php?topic=63161.0

can you post your routine, not only feeding times?

keep us posted
Monika

[* Paula *]

I agree with Monika, it might  be worth trying the 4 hour EASY, although if your lo is not used to eating for such long stretches, it might be worthwhile tranisitioning to the 3.5 hour first and then the 4 hour.

I do agree that if he is waking at the same times during the night it is more out of habit than hunger.  Have you tried offering water during the night - perhaps he could be thirsty?

[Mackie]

It's hard to say what is going on at night.  Because when I started the 3 hr EASY I tried to get him to go all night without feeding, then I realized that might be too much change for him, implementing a routine and making him go all night without food when he was eating at least 3 times during the night.  So I decided to focus on the daytime routine and feed him when he woke up at night.  Now he's waking up every 3 hours at night and I'm feeding him.  So I'm wondering if I've lost ground.  When he wakes up at night he cries pretty hard and can be very hard to calm down (which is why I end up feeding him).  If he goes back to sleep it's only for another hour or so...  He won't take a bottle or a pacifier.  So not sure how to handle the nights.

[* Paula *]

How many feedings is he having at night?  It is still quite common at this age to have 1 night waking.

[Mackie]

Dream feed between 10:30 -11:30, 2:30 or 3 then 5 or 6a.  So sometimes we start our day at 6.  So 2 feedings.  Do you think that is pretty normal?  Which feeding do you think I should try to get rid of?

[*Mona*]

hi, definitely the 2:30/3am one.
starting a day at 6 is not that bad after all...

how was your night?