8 month old: eats every night at 3am

[brookemoore]

Hello,
My 8 month old eats about 5 ounces every night at around 3am. She gets two naps during the day of up to 1 or 2 hours each. She isn't eating solid foods yet so much as playing with them.

My big question is this: do I slowly wean her off the night time feed (decrease amount by an ounce every night) or do I just stop the feed and do pu/pd?

I try to get her eating more during the day but she doesn't seem to want any more food, so I'm thinking if I decrease the oz she gets at night she will want more in the daytime?...

So tired. Please help!

Extra Info Here:
What's bedtime routine? Time?  feed and read story. brush teeth. little more feed (eek!). bed. between 6 and 7pm.
Do you bottle or breastfed?? breastfeed, except for her bedtime feed is a bottle and a dream feed at 10 is a bottle.
How much? or how long? 5-6 oz when using bottle
If breastfed.. one side or both?? (at each feed) both
How many wakes per night? 1-2
What’s your LO like when waking at night? How long is he/she up? cries until I feed her.
When you go to him/her is she fussing or crying? Or is it a mantra cry? crying.
What have you tried to settle?? controlled crying routine (yikes, I know)
What do you do for A time and how long is it? (walks or play with toys - 2 hours
Are there developmental issues such as teething or milestones? no
Have you introduced cereal? Why, how much, and how many times a day? (for LO’s under 6 months)
Do they have a prop? If so what is it?  breastfeeding
Do they have a lovie?  a blankie, but she isn't that into it

[brookemoore]

Okay, I haven't heard anything from anyone... so I'm going to assume that I still do the 3am feed but decrease the amount slowly over the next few nights.
 

[ZacsMumme]

Hey there! W are all in different time zones so sometimes people can't get to posts in time for the up coming day/night.

I will see if I can get some eyes on this for you hun. In the meantime can you post your EASY for say the last 24 hours.

Two things are jumping out at me, 1. Her A times are very short for a 8 month old. 3 hours would be more appropriate for her age so she is tired enough to sleep well at night/naps etc.
2. The lack of solids could mean she is genuinely hungry at 3am. Have you tried not doing the DF to see when she wakes?
 

[Lolly]

We weaned my DD's night feed at 8 months by reducing her bottle gradually. She didn't have a DF but was eatin g well by then. Rather than reduce 1oz every night do it more slowly so she gets used to it, so 1oz every 3 nights works well. When we got down to abour 2oz she slept through one night so after that I just offered water if she woke.

I also agree that 2 hours A time isn't long enough for an 8 month old, although does she have one longer A time somewhere as with 2 naps and only 2 hours A time that's probably what's happening.

HTH!

Laura

[brookemoore]

Thank you to both of you! I'm sorry for sounding impatient... I'm just so tired!  

I haven't tried not giving her a DF (usually at about 10 or 10:30pm) because I often don't catch her in time as it is and she often is making a few sounds like she is coming out of her sleep by the time I go to feed her. It just seems crazy, though, to go in so early...

Here is her average schedule:

7am - wake up and activity
8 or 9 am - eat (breastmilk and I try to offer her food but she normally rejects it - making some headway with finger foods)
10am - sleep

11 or 11:30 - wake up and activity
12:30 or 1pm - eat
1:30 - activity
3pm - sleep

4pm - activity
5-7pm - I try to feed her as much as I can and then she usually is asleep by 6:30pm
10/10:30pm - Dream Feed / semi-conscious feed

I'll try giving her less to eat more gradually - decrease by 1oz every 3 nights.
I know I should be feeding her after she wakes up, so I am making the shift there, but I think because I always fed her when she woke up at night that she wasn't really hungry when she woke up. Argh - how did I get so backwards. I keep just trying to learn from all my mistakes, as Tracy advises in her books; this being a mom thing is humbling.

Thank you again for offering me your support and advice. I'm all ears!

[ZacsMumme]

Hey you are doing a wonderful job, don't beat yourself up. Being a mum is hard, and we all learn asse go, trust me I have learnt a LOT!

Re the solids, try offering them an hour after her BF she may have a bit more. At this age milk is the main food though so don't worry if she isn't too interested