Author Topic: The dreaded 5am feed!  (Read 1101 times)

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Offline Claudiamummy

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The dreaded 5am feed!
« on: November 13, 2011, 09:59:27 am »
Hi everyone,

Dd is now 7 months and doing lovely with her b/f and solids (which started a month or so ago)

We b/f 4 times a day and squeeze in the solids around the blasted catnaps that STILL rule our lives!!

Dd naps indepently 90% of the time (except when it "one of those days" kwim lol)

Dd is doing great a night, other than teething, it's usually the last feed somewhere around 7, then down for the and sttn. There maybe a wake up but she is settled in her cot easily with a light hand on her chest (asleep again in about a miniute)

 she does not wake hungry until between 8.5-10 hours after her last feed,(somewhere between 4.30 and 5.30am)  I treat it as a nightfeed, BUT, as she only goes back to sleep VERY lightly I tend to get into the spare bed in her bedroom and nurse her lying down and let her fall to sleep there with me.

 When she was younger and the feed was earlier I could easily get her back into the cot.... Even now it,s before 4am ish, but anything after is just SO fragile!! Her sleep cycles become so light

To be fair she usually rolls away, but not always....

I have two questions
1) Do lo's drop this feed eventually, I shouldn't have to wean it should I?
2) anyone else nurse the early feed this way or am I creating a prop?

Look forward to your thoughts

Thank you!!
Claire

Love and adore my perfect little textbook/touchy DD
Born April 10th 2011...thank you to Dh for such an amazing gift after only 1 year of marriage!

Offline firsttimemummy

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Re: The dreaded 5am feed!
« Reply #1 on: November 13, 2011, 13:50:13 pm »
Not sure if it helps but Oliver is back to 7pm feed then wakening around 5am - I feed him (as a night feed) and that is him til 8am when he gets breakfast.  This works for us so I am happy to keep it up.  Some nights he has slept through til 7am so when he wakens earlier I feed him as I reckon he is hungry.  It doesn't bother me wakening at 5am to feed as I know he will then have a long lie. 
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Offline Jennzed

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Re: The dreaded 5am feed!
« Reply #2 on: November 13, 2011, 22:11:34 pm »
Hi Claudia,

I'm no expert but I can tell you our experience. Dd is 9 mths and afternoon/night routine is BF around 4-5pm, dinner 6/6:30pm, bath jammies BF between 7-8pm, bed around 8pm. About half to 2/3 of nights she wakes at 4/5am for a BF. The rest of the time she sleeps right til 7/8/9am.

I think the more your solids get established, the longer sleep you'll get. And the 5am feed may disappear on its own when LO no longer needs it. The bed time BF for DD is more of a "top up" or settler for us.

My advice to you would be to do yourself the favour of getting the feed done and go back to your sleep, meaning, get up, go feed LO in their rooms in rocker or whatever but sitting up. Let feed only until they start to slow/drift and put then right back in bed. Kind of like a DF. Then you get back to your sleep.

I had a habit of bringing her into our bed and feeding her side-lying. Problems: I'd fall asleep and have no idea how long she fed, she'd be there an hour/two instead of 10 min, I'd be sore from sleeping stiff, careful not to roll over, she'd get used to bringing in our bed.

Can't say enough, get it done and put baby back to bed.

Hope that helps. Let us know how it goes :)
« Last Edit: November 13, 2011, 22:15:44 pm by Jennzed »

Offline Shiv52

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Re: The dreaded 5am feed!
« Reply #3 on: November 13, 2011, 22:13:42 pm »
Not sure if it helps but Oliver is back to 7pm feed then wakening around 5am - I feed him (as a night feed) and that is him til 8am when he gets breakfast.  This works for us so I am happy to keep it up.  Some nights he has slept through til 7am so when he wakens earlier I feed him as I reckon he is hungry.  It doesn't bother me wakening at 5am to feed as I know he will then have a long lie.
Totally agree with this x





Offline Claudiamummy

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Re: The dreaded 5am feed!
« Reply #4 on: November 14, 2011, 21:49:05 pm »
Thanks everyone....

Had a very challenging day (only 3 x30 min naps!!!) but I do think I need to try and get her back into her cot after this feed... Dh is home tomorrow so I will have some support if it gets tricky!!! But I am shattered by the 5 am starts.....


Sounds like she will start reducing this in a few months which will be nice!


Appreciate yr input and comments ladies

Thanks again

Claire
Claire

Love and adore my perfect little textbook/touchy DD
Born April 10th 2011...thank you to Dh for such an amazing gift after only 1 year of marriage!