Author Topic: 20mth old is breaking me...still!  (Read 1241 times)

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Offline malibu_nikkus

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20mth old is breaking me...still!
« on: May 03, 2018, 03:58:50 am »
My little guy has only slept through a handful of timed and things are getting worse, not better.

He was waking once a night and sometimes could be resettled without feeds which after a few nights of doing this is when we started getting him to sleep through a few times.

He has milk, story and bed at bedtime, trying to keep a distance between the feed and bed. He goes to sleep peacefully without help, just his pacifier.

Now he is waking around 10.30pm and literally screaming for ages to the point I have to feed him again. When I feed him, he completely empties both sides and  then asks for more. Last night he woke at 2am also, same scenario.  Do they have a growth spurt at this age? He had failure to thrive for a few months in his first year, maybe he is playing catch up - he is eating LOADS in the day (at lunch yesterday he ate an entire avocado, sausages and fruit). His finally is getting a big belly.

What should I do about these night wakings. When I try to resettle withoit milk, he is screaming the house down for over an hour and he can't resettle.

His EASY
Wake 6.30 - bf
Breakfast- 7 30
Nap 12.30-2.30 self settles
Dinner 5.30/6pm
Milk 7pm
Stories
 without milk etc
Bedtime 7.30

10.30ish wakes (not last night, the previous two nights.he screamed for 2hrs. I fed after 1hr, but it didn't seem to be enough or something)
Last night feed #2 2.30am. Settled well last night after both feeds, but not until he had emptied both sides and then went back and drunk from both sides again.

How do I gain control of these nights again? Is a growth spurt happening? Surely he can just eat more at the day time. My other kids didn't wake for this growth spurt.





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Offline jessmum46

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Re: 20mth old is breaking me...still!
« Reply #1 on: May 03, 2018, 10:15:03 am »
Growth spurts can happen but shouldn't really cause the need to feed again overnight at this age I wouldn't have thought.  Is there any chance he is looking for the breast for comfort - possibly teething canines/molars?  Is there any chance he has a sore throat/ears?  My two have usually had prolonged very upset wakings that couldn't easily be resettled when in pain/discomfort :(



Offline malibu_nikkus

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Re: 20mth old is breaking me...still!
« Reply #2 on: May 03, 2018, 16:33:50 pm »
Thank you. In the past when he's had ear infections or sore teeth, settling for the night was a struggle. For the first time ever since these random waking later in the night began he has been self settling to go to sleep without needing me there. It's strange.





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Offline creations

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Re: 20mth old is breaking me...still!
« Reply #3 on: May 03, 2018, 19:12:06 pm »
Hi, I'm not disagreeing with the idea of possible pain from molars or something else (mine teethed the entire second year it was awful) but just in terms of the hunger idea I noticed that your EASY didn't show snacks.  Perhaps you just didn't write them down because you are focused on the night waking?
At this age milk should be for a drink, for dairy intake, and for comfort.  Solids is the primary food and because their tummies are so small they need to eat frequently.
A common routine at this age would include:
milk (at various times depending on preference)
3 main meals (eg 7am breakfast, 12pm lunch, 5pm dinner)
2 or even 3 snacks with a drink (eg 10.30/11am snack, 3pm snack, and possibly a late "supper" after dinner and before BT, maybe 6pm)
with the meals and snacks being fitted around nap times and BT as needed.

You might need to introduce more meals or snacks if you don't already have these.

When mine had growth spurts he would eat incredible amounts, astounding, but I agree with Katherine that it shouldn't really lead to needing to feed in the night.


Offline deb

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Re: 20mth old is breaking me...still!
« Reply #4 on: May 04, 2018, 17:08:41 pm »
If he's emptying breasts, I'm guessing hunger is at least part of the package. What's he getting during the day in terms of calories? Go for lots of protein & good fats for satiety: olive oil, coconut oil, fish oil, dark meat poultry, full-fat milk & yogurt, nuts & seeds.

Offline *Ali*

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Re: 20mth old is breaking me...still!
« Reply #5 on: May 08, 2018, 23:33:41 pm »
Breast milk also has painkillers in which he could be looking for if he is experiencing discomfort from teething or his ears. Plus it has sleep hormones which he may need to help him back to sleep if he is struggling due to a developmental leap or a growth spurt or due to discomfort.

Is he with you in the day? If you are apart for work or he has recently started any nursery or such it could also be to touch base with you.
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