Help with 3.5 mo old new NWs

[Ilariomama]

My 3.5 month LO has recently started waking every 2.5-3 hours at night. He was sleeping usually two 4 hour stretches and had done a 5 hour stretch once. He has been on a 3 hour EASY for about a month and does well with daytime naps. I have tried topping him off with extra milk after I nurse him during the day and that has not increased his sleep periods. I have do a dreamfeed and that does not help. Also, when he was sleeping longer I did not do a dreamfeed.

This increased NW started when I had a problem with my milk supply and it went down. However, I thought that supplementing with extra milk to make up for this would help but it has not. I try any time he wakes to see if he will go back to sleep, but he does not. He is definitely hungry. He has not shown any signs of pain regarding teething, however, I do believe he is teething as he drools and bites on my fingers. He has not yet learned to roll over so that is not the issue.

Can I get some suggestions of what to try to get back to 4-5 hours of sleep at night?

[newkidontheblock]

Well, hun, there is a growth spurt at 3 months. So, that could explain the added wakings. If he is waking up hungry, I would suggest just feeding him. They do still need the feeds at that age. It might just be that he needs the extra calories at the moment, and the wakings will stop on their own. Does he go back to sleep after nursing or any problems there? Do you do a dream feed? Would you like to post your routine for us to take a look at, just in case there is something there?

[Ilariomama]

Well, it's a long story, but I've had some problems with my milk supply. I was taking a small amount of Fenugreek for non-milk reasons and then found out that he and I were allergic to it, so I stopped taking it; however, my milk went down when I stopped taking it. A few days after this is when he started sleeping shorter spurts.

He did go through a growth spurt a couple weeks ago but I guess it could be another one. They grow so fast!

I have no problem feeding him at night and he goes right back to sleep very easily. I just thought it odd that he would sleep longer before and is waking up more now.

I have tried doing a dreamfeed before all this and after and it hasn't made a difference. I have also tried increasing the milk he gets during the day and that has not helped. Lastly, I tried increasing activity times a little during the day and that did not help either.

I was out of town for 4 days and with this milk supply issue things are a bit messed up with his routine. He was on a great 3 hour EASY 2-3 weeks ago. Here was the routine then:

E 6:40am
A 7:15
S 8:15
E 9:25
A 9:40
S 10:40
E noon
A 12:15
S 1:30
E 3:15
A 3:45
S 5
E 6:40
A 7
S 9
E 2am
E 6am

We are trying to stick with this routine now and are having issues with me breastfeeding, but even when I was out of town and he was getting only the bottle and plenty of milk he still woke every 3 hours at night.

I hope these extra details help. Let me know if I missed something.

[Ilariomama]

An interesting update. Yesterday he didn't nap long, just 45 min, then 20 min, then only 10 and then slept 5 hours at night followed by 3 hour stretch. He usually naps better. I'm not sure what this means.

[newkidontheblock]

How many weeks old is he, hun? There is a wonder week around now, which plays havoc with sleep. I have a few questions about your routine - when you write E after the nap, does that mean he has napped for that long or has he woken up earlier & just eaten at that time?

S 5
E 6:40
A 7
S 9
E 2am
E 6am

This portion is confusing me, TBH. It seems like he is doing a long nap here instead of a short catnap. I would suggest capping that nap at 30-45 minutes max and putting him down for the night at 7 instead of 9. Right now, your day is too long, hun. 6.40 - 9 = 14.5 hours. It is best to keep your day to 12-12.5 max.

When are you doing the dream feed? Because if he has last eaten at 7, then 2 & 6 sounds about right for night feeds.

Tracy talks about this actually. She says that at 4 months a window opens up when they transition to a 4 hour EASY with 2 naps of 1.5-2 hours + a catnap with an A time of 2 hours. This window sometimes coincides with a growth spurt when you not only have to give more food but extend the time between feeds so that he takes in more.
Time to Transition - 3hr, 3.5hr or 4hr EASY
3-4hr EASY Transition – In 5 Minute Increments
Average A times- BOOKMARK ME!
What are A times and how do they fit into the EASY plan?
chronological EASY samples, 4-6 months

Please go through these links. This one especially
Six Weeks to Four Months: Growth Spurts - How to tackle them

Let me know what you think about these suggestions:)

[Ilariomama]

These suggestions are great! Thank you.

My LO is 16 weeks tomorrow.

Regarding your first question about the E times, I feed him when he gets up from his nap. So his nap time is from asleep time until eating. I don't typically try to extend his awake time to make for a longer time between eating. This is because he will usually get fussy or is obviously hungry.

I see your point about the later/afternoon evening nap and how shortenin that may help night sleeping. My question is that if I put him to bed at 7 then he may sleep till midnight but then unless I go to sleep at 7 I'll get less sleep.

Regarding a dream feed, I haven't been doing one. They don't seem to make a difference for him as he still wakes up a couple hours later. Also, I'm usually asleep by then or want to be asleep as I'm exhausted.

[newkidontheblock]

My question is that if I put him to bed at 7 then he may sleep till midnight but then unless I go to sleep at 7 I'll get less sleep.

No sweety. Putting him down earlier will hopefully get you more sleep. He will be better rested and not over tired and these wakings should stop. Especially if you do a dreamfeed between 10 & 11, before going to bed, he should get a lovely long stretch. With babies, sleep begets sleep. The better rested he is, the better he will sleep.

Could DH do the dreamfeed so that you can sleep early? It may take a few days for your DS to realise and stop waking but it works so great