6 month old night wakings learned or hungry?

[teddy13]

Hello,
My son is 6 months old, eating solids once a day and I sometimes supplement with formula at night about 4 oz a day. He wakes usually about 4 hours after he goes to bed at 6:00pm and then he is up about 2.5 hrs later for the rest of the night. Its really gruelling and I am not sure how to curb these wakings. Ideally I wouldn't mind if he woke at 10pm, and then at 6am for the day. I have tried the dreamfeeds for two weeks and have had no success. Can anyone else help me? His schedule is as follows:
6-7am wake, change diaper, breastfeed
8-9am nap for 45 mins
9-10am eat rice cereal
11:30-12:30 nap for 40 mins and then try to put him back to sleep if I succeed he will sleep 90 mins in total
2pm breastfeed
4:30 pm nap for 40 mins
5:10 bottle mix with formula
6:10 bath
6:30 breastfeed and bedtime
10:00 wakes for feeding if I don't manage to dreamfeed
and then he is up for the rest of the night every 2.5 hours

Thanks so much please help me I am sooooooo sleep deprived

[Shiv52]

I think your wakings are more down to routine. But wonder is the formula causing discomfort?  Or have you been using it a long time?

So from a routine at 6 months babies are usually on 2.5 hours a time and are in their way to fading the catnap and being on two longer naps. Are the short naps normal?  And what A time do you think he needs?

[Fiver]

I might be missing something here, but is he not having a breastfeed (or any milk) between 6/7am and 2pm?
There's also a growth spurt at 6m, so NWs would most likely happen then too.

[teddy13]

Hi Ladies...
Last night was a lot better. The formula that I am supplementing with I have already been using for just over a month he is doing well on it. I don't use it very often but the past few nights I have been using it more. I have not noticed any discomfort or change in his stools since I mostly bf. He is eating btw 6-7 and at 2pm. Today he was up from about 6 and then he napped at around 8am. I tried to keep him awake but he was so OT. I battle with his overtiredness and it always shortens his A time. Usually he is up for around 2.5 to three hours max. But if he doesn't sleep well which I am trying to extend his naps but without any luck the rest of the day his A time is decreased. He also seems to be teething. Tonight I chose to put him to nap and to bed without nursing him and he was able to fall asleep on his own both times. I am hoping that this is the beginning of great things to come. Keep your fingers crossed. Thanks for the help and I welcome any other suggestions.
xxxx

[Fiver]

At 6m, he should probably be having some milk (BF or FF) at around 10/11 also, depending on when his first feed falls.  A gap of 7-8 hours between milk feeds for a 6mo is just too big, so I would suggest that some of the short naps may be down to hunger.  The rice cereal you are offering at 9/10 really isn't anywhere near as high in nutritional value as a BF (or FF) would be.  By all means offer the solids, but bear in mind that milk is the most important aspect of nutrition during the first year.

[teddy13]

Hi,
Thanks so much for all the help. The past few nights have been better. He is eating a lot more of his solids and he is sleeping longer stretches in the beginning of the night. At the moment he has been asleep for about three hours and he will sleep about another two. I am contemplating trying to dreamfeed him at my bedtime with formula any suggestions?
Thanks

[Fiver]

You could offer a DF if you felt you wanted to, but bear in mind that adding in formula may not have any impact on how long LO continues to sleep overnight.

[teddy13]

Hi thanks so much,
Last night I added a DF and he woke up a couple of hours later anyways. I would like to know the ways in which I can wean him from comfort nursing at night. His first wake up without a DF is usually between 12-1 am and then he will wake up again about 4 hours later. On the second wake up he will nurse for a minute or two and then fall asleep. He seems to not be as hungry as the first feed. Ideally I would like to wean him from the second waking so that I can get a little more sleep. What is the best way to do this? I have tried giving him a paci but he screams and I wait to go in but he doesn't self soothe or settle. Any recommendations are welcomed. Each night I go to bed I cross my fingers that tonight is the night he will sleep all the way through. Wishful thinking I know but I am wishing! Lol

[Fiver]

That's probably about where we were with DD at 6m.  The feeds do gradually get later until they fade away.

The other possibility is that it's more of a routine issue.  Could that be the case?  If so, it might be worth a post on the E.A.S.Y. Forum

[Rachelss]

Just a quick one to say that you are not alone on this one...v similar challenges here at the moment with my 5.5 mo!  We're on a 4hr EASY (approx) with a v small amount of solids after milk twice a day.  Night sleep was going along nicely but has headed hugely downhill due to teething and starting to sit unaided.  From memory with my older two, some of this is a phase which does pass....eventually!

I agree with Fiver re the extra daytime milk feed.  I've also been trying to settle my little one at nighttime without feeding, unless I can see that he is genuinely hungry.

Hope this helps

[Shiv52]

One thing that struck me is that you mention he is taking a lot of solids. at this age you need to be sure milk intake isn't decreasing. Milk be it formula or BM has many more calories per oz than solid food so if milk intake decreases you will get more NWs for milk as they aren't taking as many calories in during the day.

As Amanda says your LO needs to have a feed at 10/11am as well in terms of getting enough milk feeds in.

General rule at night is they should be able to go as long as they do in the day and at 6 months you'd expect them to ideally go 4-5 hours. So what you describe is normal. No DF and a wake at 12/1 and then 4 hours later is normal for 6 months. Even for a FF baby. Some just need NFs longer.  So you may be best doing a DF at 11 and the NF should fall about 3/4 and that will get you to morning. You could make that NF a bottle so your DH could do it every other night so you can get some sleep.

If he wakes before the 4 hours I would resettle back to sleep without a feed. And the trick is to keep going and not give in after a half hour and feed. If you are going to feed, feed right away other wise commit to resettling to sleep.

[teddy13]

Thank you girls so so so much this thread is so supportive. I remember with my daughter it helped so much. I guess having the strength to commit to two is harder. For the past two night he has been waking 2.5 hours after falling to sleep at around 9:30-:945pm. He is not hungry. I tested this by offering him a bottlefeed which would have been his DF but he refused, he fell back to sleep almost instantly in my arms. The next night I didn't pick him up I soothed him while he was whining in his crib and again he fell back to sleep. He then wakes about 2.5 -3.0 hours later for a feed. I usually BF at this point, (its easier and faster than mixing a bottle) after this feed he goes right back to bed and is awake three hours later, he poops and we are up at 7am I let him play alone from around 6:30 when he is up and googling and laughing.

I think the solids are taking up too much room and the decrease in breastfeeding is also a cuase for the frequent night feeds. I have made a change today after I fed him his fruit at 10:30 I offerend him breastmilk and he drank he was really hungry. He had a 30 min morning nap on the way to taking my DD to school from 9:15-9:45 and then he is napping now again from 11:45am. He soothes himself to sleep for naps and when he goes to bed at night. I no longer rock, soothe, or feed to sleep. How can I get him to nap longer and to sleep longer stretches at night? Should I post on the EASY Forum?

[teddy13]

HI as I was writing to you...
My son is still napping from 11:45 am and its now 1:20pm!!!!!! I can't believe it I am soooo sooo happy. Too bad I may have to wake him if he doesn't wake himself so that we can go and pick up my daugther. What is the rule on napping, how long is too long?
thanks
xxxx

[teddy13]

Hi I have added more milk into his day. He seems to be calmer and only woke twice last night. He also had an early morning waking at around 5:45 he talked to himself until 6:30am and then slept until 7:30 where we started our day. I have since then BF twice and he ate his fruit. He is now soothing himself in his bed and is ready for another nap. I extended his A time this morning as suggested on the EASY FORUM but I am not sure if it is working. How do we catch up on sleep that is lost due to a wierd morning like this one today?

[Rachelss]

About your "how long is too long" for a nap, I think the general BW advice is to wake them after about 2 hours and certainly by 2.5 hours, otherwise it may start to interfere with their night-time sleep.