7 month old - 5:30am EW

[Lindsay27]

Hello!

My 7 month old is having 5:30am EWs and I can't figure out why! 

Over the last few weeks I have tried to be very consistent with his daytime routine as we were battling 30min naps, and things have been improving greatly.  He has about a 3hr 10min A time, then both morning and afternoon naps tend to be about 1.5hrs, sometimes longer, sometimes 1hr 10-20mins, but usually 1.5hrs. 

At night he goes to bed between 7/7:30 and then wakes up for a NF usually around 2am, but can be anywhere from 1am - 4am.  Then, 5:30am on the dot he's awake.  Rarely can I get him back to sleep, so I usually bring him into my bed and he will sleep/doze on/off until around 6:30am, then we get up for the day.

I think his A times are okay, and his naps are slightly on the short side I guess, so I don't think too much daytime sleep is the issue either.  His teething has calmed down greatly over the last few weeks - he has almost completely stopped drooling and gnawing on things, so I don't think it is that either.  We don't have reflux issues, and he doesn't appear to be in any sort of pain...I am kind of stumped! 

Appreciate any input

[becj86]

Have you tried wake to sleep if its 5:30 on the dot every day?

Is there anything environmental - light, noise at that time of the morning that could be waking him?

[Lindsay27]

I don't think there is any noise that could be waking him.  I haven't tried W2S with this one, mostly because I was just dreading having to do a NF at 2am, and then wake myself up at 4:30am to do it...that doesn't sound like fun at all!  Though, 5:30am wake ups aren't fun either.

I am not so sure that it is a habitual waking, it is more like when he wakes for his NF, he only sleeps an additional 3-3.5hrs no matter what time the NF was.  It just so happens that his NF is usually at 2am, making the next waking at 5:30am.  I say this because last week he had a NF at 1:30am, then his next waking was 4:30am, and another night his NWs were 4am/7am. 

[Erin M]

Can you post your whole EASY with eating times, amounts, etc -- maybe there's something there. 

[becj86]

I am not so sure that it is a habitual waking, it is more like when he wakes for his NF, he only sleeps an additional 3-3.5hrs no matter what time the NF was.  It just so happens that his NF is usually at 2am, making the next waking at 5:30am.  I say this because last week he had a NF at 1:30am, then his next waking was 4:30am, and another night his NWs were 4am/7am.

What happens if you treat it like a NW - feed and back to bed with minimal interaction?

[Lindsay27]

Our EASY today was like this...a pretty typical day

5:30am - EW, brought into my bed and he slept on/off until 6:30am

E - 6:40am (6oz)
Solids @ 7:30 - 2 tbls oat cereal, 2 ice cubes fruit
A - until 9:30
S - 9:30 - 11:00

E - 11:00 (6oz)
Soilds @ 12:00 - 2 cubes veggies, 1 cube fruit
A - until 2pm (he seemed really tired during this A time)
S - 2:00 - 2:20, settled back to sleep (15mins), then slept until 4:30pm...this was a little abnormal for him to go so late, but the waking after 20mins likely attributed to that

E - 4:30pm (6oz)
Solids @ 5:30pm - 3 cubes veggie, 1 cube fruit (I normally only do the 3 cubes, and I give meat every other night)
A - until 7:30
S - BT - 7:30pm (7oz bottle)

I don't normally feed him again if he wakes at 5:30am (or whatever time the 2nd NW is), because I find it affects his first feeding too much.  Once I started giving 3 meals of solids his fluid intake decreased, so the mod on the bottle feeding forum recommended starting to reduce his NF down to 5oz (used to be 7oz) so that he would take more during the day.  I started that last night, and it worked well in terms of his fluid intake today (he was only taking about 3 - 4 oz per feed, but today bumped up to 6oz. 

So, the reduced NF could have impacted his 5:30 EW this morning, but wouldn't explain it the other times.

[Lindsay27]

Just wanted to mention, the gap between his 2nd and 3rd bottles was long today (5.5hrs) because the afternoon nap was a little wonky.  Normally it wouldn't be that long, more like 4.5hrs.

Prior to last night he was taking 7oz at his NF, I wouldn't think that he would take a 7oz bottle at 2am and need to eat again at 5:30?  But maybe?  He has been only having 1 NF for months.

[becj86]

I wouldn't think that he would take a 7oz bottle at 2am and need to eat again at 5:30?  But maybe?  He has been only having 1 NF for months.

I don't really know much about bottles... I do know that babies sometimes do need an extra night feed after being on one for a while but not usually for more than a week or so.

I'm inclined to suggest maybe teething is relevant to this 5:30 waking.

[Erin M]

Quote from: Lindsay27 on Yesterday at 09:41:39 PM
I wouldn't think that he would take a 7oz bottle at 2am and need to eat again at 5:30?  But maybe?  He has been only having 1 NF for months.
I don't really know much about bottles... I do know that babies sometimes do need an extra night feed after being on one for a while but not usually for more than a week or so.

Not a bottle expert here either, but we do generally expect babies to go as long (or longer) during the night as they do during the day, so I would say that the 5:30 waking isn't hunger.  Are teeth a possibility?  All 3 of mine had EWs when they were teething (and with ds, it's not so much the actual teeth breaking through as it is teeth moving around underneath the gums where you can't see them anyway).

Your routine looks good, will keep thinking about it. 

[Lindsay27]

Not a bottle expert here either, but we do generally expect babies to go as long (or longer) during the night as they do during the day, so I would say that the 5:30 waking isn't hunger.

I agree, this feed in the night is more than enough to get him through to morning, I don't think it's a hunger waking.

Our routine right now is probably the best it has ever been, which is kind of why I am stumped.  Yesterday he had a 2.5hr nap in the morning, and a 2hr nap in the afternoon which I had to wake him up because it was 5pm and he was still sleeping.  He took his NF at 12:30am then slept until 6:10am, so at least he passed the 5:30am mark

In terms of teething, I supposed it could be related, but he isn't showing any of the usual teething signs - no drooling, no gnawing, and he is in pretty good spirits.  He is sort of sucking on his bottom lip and doing funny things with his tongue, so maybe it is a little related and he is just handling it better?  He doesn't have any teeth as of yet.

[Baileysmom31112]

I'm having a similar issue and I do think mine might be teething. Just wondering, if the EW is related to teething, what do you do about it??

[becj86]

Just wondering, if the EW is related to teething, what do you do about it??

Meds if you're comfortable with it. A dream-med is more likely to help or medicating if LO wakes in the early hours of the morning (like 2-3am).

[Canadian_Mom]

Could the EW be a build up of OT??  After a total daytime sleep of 4.5hr compared to 3 or less hours, he slept later...
What do you think?

[Erin M]

Could the EW be a build up of OT?? 

Could be.  Could also be that the teeth aren't bothering him anymore and he's catching up.  Always a mystery!

[Lindsay27]

Our last 3 nights have been worse    He is consistently waking at 12am, 4am, and 5:30am...I am sleepy!  I know the 12am waking isn't a hunger one, but I find the only way I can get him back to sleep is to feed him.  Last night I offered a 5oz bottle and he only took 2oz, so it's definitely not hunger.  The 4am waking, I don't have any ideas.  Last night I got him back to sleep by 4:45am, and he only slept until 5:30am.  Ugh!  At 5:30am DH brought him into our room and he co-slept until 6:20am.  The night before last I fed at the 4am waking (so 2 NFs that night), and he slept until 6am, but his feeding schedule was royally messed up for the rest of the day, so I am not a fan of doing that.

I guess I will try W2S for the 12am waking and see what happens.

Our naps haven't been great which I am sure has something to do with it, over the last 3 days I have only been getting 1 good nap a day.  He wakes early for the others and settles, but not the same as a solid nap.  I am just frustrated, sigh.  Even when we were having good days, his nights were still not great.

Could be a build up of OT, but I would think that 3hrs of daytime sleep for a 7.5 month old *should* be enough?  Still no teeth, but his cheeks are pink (no fever though) so I gave him some meds before bed the other night and it didn't make a difference.