need help implementing EASY for my 2 month old

[KareenaK629]

Hi,
I read Babywise and Babywhisperer and the methods were working great!! My son at 1 month was STTN. Now, at 7 weeks, he keeps waking up at around 5 am. His last bottle feed/dream feed is around 10:30 and in bed around 11, which is about 4-5oz of breastmilk. I tried using the paci to “test” if its hunger and I know its not cuz he goes straight to bed. I pick him up but he gets fussy and wont calm. I even try to reswaddle him, change his diaper, shush and pat. I would like to avoid using the paci now and I know he isn’t hungry cuz he drinks a lot at his dream feed. What can I do at these 5am wakeups?! Should I let him cry it out?? How long should I let him cry it out? Also does he need to be soothed before every nap and at nighttime? I have trouble putting him down at night unless he is soothed to bed.

Any help would be appreciated!!

[*Kara*]

Should I let him cry it out?? How long should I let him cry it out?

Under no circumstances should a baby be left to CIO.  BW does not in any way advocate this method as it breaks the bonds of trust between baby and mother.

At 7 weeks, I would strongly suggest feeding him if he wakes at 5am.  In all honesty, any night waking after baby has slept for 3 hrs or more should be assumed to be hunger driven.  He is still so tiny that he does need to eat very frequently.

There is new research that supports the use of a paci until 6 months of age as there is evidence that it reduces the risk of SIDS.  Babies do have a very strong need to suck, a paci can be great for this!

Also does he need to be soothed before every nap and at nighttime?

Yes.  He is only 7 weeks old.

Please try to remember that independent sleep is something that takes lots of time to teach to a baby.  There will be months of night feedings and wake ups.  This is all totally normal - not great for momma, but normal for any baby.  At 7 weeks, this baby is still so new to the world that any sleep alone is a huge achievement...

Have you got a typical day's routine for me to look at?  Could just be a case of needing a new routine...

[Shiv52]

What can I do at these 5am wakeups?! Should I let him cry it out?? How long should I let him cry it out?

At 5am, at 7 weeks...absolutely feed him.  A DF and TWO night feeds at this age would be totally normal so the fact he only has one is AMAZING.

As Kara has pointed out BW methods do not advocate leaving a baby to CIO at any stage.  I also want to point out that the original researchers who support CIO no longer recommending leaving a baby under 6 months to CIO so even they would say it is much too young.   There are always gentler methods. 

Please try to remember that independent sleep is something that takes lots of time to teach to a baby.  There will be months of night feedings and wake ups.  This is all totally normal - not great for momma, but normal for any baby.  At 7 weeks, this baby is still so new to the world that any sleep alone is a huge achievement...

TOtally this ^^^  It is a skill like any other and it takes time.  At this stage you are setting the scene for an independent sleeper.  If your routine is working then that is much easier.  At this age I was doing a relaxed winddown and rocking and comforting to near sleep and then putting in her basket and ssh-patting on to sleep and as teh weeks went on put her down more and more awake. 

You are doing a great job at trying to start as you mean to go on.  But cut yourself some slack.  at this age babies need mummy cuddles more than they need anything else.  If you have to comfort for sleep that is fine.  because your baby has only been here 7 weeks.  Everything is still so so new.  He is doing great on the sleep front so i really wouldn't worry.  At this stage the fact they are getting good sleep is more important than how they get there. 

[becj86]

Going 6hr without a feed at 7 weeks is a really good stretch (at this age, the definition of STTN is sleeping 5hr without a feed) and the DF is effectively shifting that to when you would be in bed, so he's actually doing really really well! So when he wakes at 5, that is waking from hunger and he should be fed. He will then likely sleep another 2-3hr and instead of trying over and over again to resettle, you will get to sleep too

Independent sleep takes time, its a skill, just like learning to feed himself, read or ride a bike - there are many steps involved in the process and he needs you to help him learn how to do it, so yes, settling him down for sleep is still necessary. The other thing is that babies' sleep changes, especially in the first 4-5 months of life - they 'wake up' from the newborn stage and they have to learn to relax their bodies and minds to get to sleep, then their sleep becomes more cyclical and they have to learn how to get through the light sleep transitions to continue sleeping.

[Fiver]

Just to add that if you are BF (which I suspect you may be given reference to expressed breastmilk) that at 7 weeks, NFs are absolutely essential in terms of establishing and maintaining a good milk supply after 4 months.  If the milk producing hormones in your body aren't being stimulated when they are at their highest (between midnight and 6am) there is a good chance that further down the line you may face issues with supply.

I know being woken in the night isn't pleasant (hey, I LOVE my sleep!) but it does rather come with the territory of having a baby and probably will (for one reason or another) for a couple of years to come (if it's not hunger it's teeth, illness, bad dreams, etc etc....)

[*Kara*]

I know being woken in the night isn't pleasant (hey, I LOVE my sleep!) but it does rather come with the territory of having a baby and probably will (for one reason or another) for a couple of years to come (if it's not hunger it's teeth, illness, bad dreams, etc etc....)

^^ This.  I was up last night with my 21 month old.. she typically does STTN, but she still has the odd NW and needs her momma to get back to sleep.  Part of my job description

[willowsmummy]

I personally let my baby cry and went in every 5-10 mins. I couldnt spent hours upstairs trying to settle her with my son downstairs alone. with the early morning feeding i gradually cut down feeding time and eventually she didnt wake. I did this because she wasnt feeding at 7am so messed up our easy. Good luck xx

[Fiver]

At BW, we wouldn't want to condone or encourage any sort of CIO or Controlled Crying technique as Tracy suggested more gentle methods of aiding our LOs to get the sleep they (and we!) so dearly need.  See also Shiv's post above ^^

[KareenaK629]

Thanks everyone!!!