What happens after 11pm dream feed?

[bambsismom]

Hi all,

I am new to the forum but thankful that i've been introduced to BW!  I'm not able to use the search function, but what is the remaining "schedule" after the 11pm Dream Feed?

 I am a FTM with a 5 week old.  I do give the dream feed around 10:30pm, but he continues to wake up around 2am, so at that point, I give another feed, and dipe change.  It's usually really difficult to get him back to sleep at that point, and then sometimes he is up until 4:30am / 5am.  I'm usually stuck waiting for him to sleep or wake, and it becomes more of a waiting game to see what he does, as oppose to maintaining a schedule.  Any advice or input is greatly appreciated.  Thanks

[Ima shel Alon]

Hi and welcome to the boards!

Basically the DF is to give you some prediction with feedings the first part of the night. So baby goes to sleep with a feed usually, then has a DF and then you get a bit of time to sleep yourself.
But at this young age the DF doesn't eliminate other NF. It's perfectly normal for him to wake still for more NF during the night.
But I am not sure why he is not resettling after the 2AM feed. are you feeding him in the dark? Is he using white noise? are there enough signs that it's night time?
Sometimes, especially when they are so young they can confuse the night with day, or push their day in a way that their night time starts in the afternoon and finishes in the middle of the night...
If you like you can post your day in an EASY format and we can have a look at his A times and naps.

Another possibility for not resettling is discomfort. Are you burping him after this feed? How are you trying to settle him back to sleep? Perhaps you can try and leave him alone, even do the waiting in another room so you don't disturb him to fall asleep?
Sometimes us parents are doing a bit too much and that can also mess with baby's sleep.

HTH

[bambsismom]

Hi Ima.  Thank you so much for the welcome and your detailed response.  Here is the EASY format that I am  trying to follow but truthfully, his times are unpredictable and he can feed anywhere from 1.5 hours apart to 3 hours apart. After his DF, he seems to awake around 2:00am and can be up until 4am (trouble resettling him).  Then he will awake again around 6:30ish.

E – 7:00 – Feed
A – 7:45 – Diaper change. Some playing, talking.
S – 8:15 – Swaddle and lay baby in crib.
Y – 8:30 – MY NAP.

E – 10:00 – Feed (VITAMIN D)
A – 10:45 – See 7:45 above.
S – 11:15 – 2nd morning nap.
Y – 11:30 – BREAKFAST & NAP.

E – 1:00 – Feed
A – 1:45 – See 7:45 above.
S – 2:15 – Afternoon nap.
Y – 2:30 – LUNCH & LAUNDRY

E – 4:00 – Feed
A – 4:45 – See 7:45 above.
S – 5:15 – Catnap (about 40-45 min)
Y – 5:30 – PREPARE DINNER

E – 6:00 – 1st Cluster Feed
A – 7:00 – Bath, bedtime ritual
S – 7:15 – Another catnap
Y – 7:30 – My Dinner.

E – 8:00 – 2nd Cluster Feed W/ GRIPE WATER (occasional)
A – None
S – Put baby right back to sleep. -  GYM & SHOWER
Y – 10:30pm Dream Feed

E – 8:00 – 2nd Cluster Feed W/ GRIPE WATER (occasional)
A – None
S – Put baby right back to sleep. -  GYM & SHOWER
Y – 10:30pm Dream Feed

To answer your question, after a feed, he is really tired and easily falls asleep, but the problem is that he MUST be burped and that tends to interrupt his tranquility.  While burping, he usually shows lots of discomfort (yelping, crying, headbutting, lip quivering, etc.) It usually takes a really long time for me to actually get a burp out of him (hence the usage of the gripe water), and after I finally do, he is usually wide awake.   If I were to put him down immediately after feeding, he awakes shortly after with the above reaction with the need to burp, so I usually just try my best to do it right after his feed.

After he calms a bit, I try to swaddle, which he usually fights and sweats to break out of, and eventually, I end up doing what I've been trying to avoid....rocking him to sleep, then laying him down.

[Ima shel Alon]

How long are his naps usually?

What you are describing is very common, it happened to us as well. I can tell you that the nights do get better with time because either the burp is easier to get out or their stomach is mature enough that they don't need it anymore.
There is nothing really you can do about it, sorry other than trying to keep the room dark and quiet, white noise if you have can be helpful. And I would defo not be worried to rock to sleep at this age if it helps him fall asleep quicker than 4AM.

Hang in there, hun.