Seriously? Every 2 hours???!!

[malenka]

We had a rough night last night. My 4 mo LO decided he needed to eat every 2 hours all night long. It reminded me of the early days with him when I would sit there nursing him and crying  I thought we were past all that...

Does it sound like a growth spurt to you ladies? I'm having trouble getting him to concentrate on feeding during the day, so that's not helping things 

I'm so so close to giving him rice cereal, but my ped doesn't advise it yet 

[KathrynK]

4mo/ 16 weeks is typically a big growth spurt- so yes, that could well be the cause of it.

I wouldn't give him any solids yet, he's still very little
Can you post your usual routine? 

[Love, laughter, & PJs]

I agree, sounds like the 4mo GS.  It hit us hard!  It doesn't help that they're getting so much more interested in the world at this point, too, so feeding during the day is challenging.  Do you feed in a dark, quiet room during the day?  That could help.  But if it's a GS you'll just have to roll with the NW for a few days and it will pass.

Looking forward to seeing your routine as well!

[malenka]

Thanks for the responses! I do feed him in a quiet, dark room but he bobs on and off the whole time lately... 

Here's what yesterday looked like:

6:00 E (straight back to sleep)
9:00 E
9:30 A
11:00 S
12:00 E
12:30 A
2:00 S (tried to extend beyond 45 min, but he was starving)
2:45 E
3:15 A
4:15 S
6:15 E
6:45 A
8:00 E
8:30 put down awake in crib. Didn't fall asleep until 9:30
10:00 E
12:00 E
2:00 E
4:00 E
6:00 E

This morning he wasn't too interested in eating... I guess he had his fill of calories during the night 

How can I get him to tank up during the day instead of at night? or do I just have to grin and bear it for the next few days?

Btw, he's been teething for over a month now - no teeth yet though. Could this be part of it? He doesn't seem uncomfortable at night - just hungry

[KathrynK]

Your routine looks fine, he is feeding every 3 hours; like pp said, around this age they get distracted easily so feeding can be frustrating, but that phase usually passes.
Definitely looks like a growth spurt to me, I think you just need to ride it out!
hugs
xxx

[LisbonMom]

Sounds like a GS to me as well, we had it REALLY big at this time with dd2.

[malenka]

Thanks for the support ladies... here's hoping the GS doesn't last too long

[chelled17]

Just another set of eyes over here.

He may also be needing to switched over to a 4 hr EASY.  My DS was very disinterested in eating every 3 hours (bobbed on and off like yours)  So I transitioned to a 3.5hr EASY.
 It may be http://babywhispererforums.com/index.php?topic=63161.0 as he is showing classic signs.

If the GS seems to be going on longer than a few days, I would consider the transition

[kaynay]

keep us posted we are 4 mts too...getting all wonky ...looking forward to your progress!

[malenka]

I think he's almost ready to transition to a longer EASY... he can easily manage 2-2:15 A time. The problem is that he NEEDS to eat every 3 hours. This morning, he went 4 hours between feeds and then the next feed he only made it 2.5 hours. I've tried stretching things out by 5-10 minutes, but not much success so far.

On a good note, he let me get a little more sleep last night - he was only up every 3 hours

[chelled17]

The good thing about an EASY routine, is it doesn't have to be so rigid.  If nap time and eat coincide, feed him in the middle of his A time to ensure he won't wake up hungry from his nap.  So it will be more of a AEASAE sort of thing.  Just be sure not to let him fall asleep whilst he is eating, so he doesn't get that association.  But it is possible to feed right before nap time, and have a tiny 5 minutes of A time before nap.  We had a tough battle for our EASY routine around that age as well.  Trying to figure out a good balance and what worked for us took a few weeks, but it works for us now.

[kaynay]

in the BW book page 79 I think she discusses a plan for the transition and its slow over a few weeks and there are feeds that are 4 hours apart then the others are 3 and some are even less than 3 so not all feeds have to be 4 hours apart 1 at 4 hours and  at 2.5 is fine you can teeter there til they get more solid we are in the same boat last 2 days feeds were 3.75 and 3.5 and  today every 3 and 3.5 max I think that is what we are in for during the 4th month....

[Mrswu]

Hi!  Is there really a growth spurt at 4 months?!?  The public health nurse said 3 months and 6 months only...  I would be so happy is this is the case as my LO is also waking up every 2 hours at night for the last 3 days.  He won't take a full feed but probably 3/4 of one.  I will wait it out I guess.  GS's only really last a few days right?

[LisbonMom]

The thing with GS is that they aren't always certain, so for one lo it can be at 3 months, while for another it's at 4 months.

[chelled17]

Mrswu - agree with pp.  But maybe your LO could also need a routine tweeking. What does your routine look like?