Author Topic: Any advice???  (Read 924 times)

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Offline Claire Marie's mommy

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Any advice???
« on: December 16, 2005, 22:41:06 pm »
Hi, I'm wondering if anyone can give me some suggestions or advice.  DD will be 8 mo  this week and is a happy, very curious, and friendly baby.  She naps pretty well, although we have the occassional day or two where everything goes out the window. :? Our problem is that she has never slept through.  By that, I mean 7p to 6a or so.  I was doing some accidental parenting by feeding her back to sleep for night wakings until about 2 months ago, when I decided that enough was enough.  It was then that I started trying to sooth her in the crib and only doing one feed at around 3 or 4am.  It worked for a while, but then she became dependent on my husband or myself to be there and it would still take up to an hour and a half to get her back to sleep.  We then decided that we would go to her, but leave the second she was calm, then go back in if and when her fussing escalates. DH does this, because she won't even calm for me.  Wants to BF.   We had a great week of no wakings until 4a and then BF and back to sleep until 6:30 or 7!!!  I felt like a new woman!!  But of course, it didn't last.  I can't figure out the cause.  We've been trying to help her learn to sooth in the same way, but she is really struggling.  Last night DH was in and out for over an hour and I finally fed her at 3 because he had to work early. Then she was back up at 5:30a, but obviously still tired.  So I guess my questions are

1.  Should I still be feeding her at 4 am?  Is there any possibility that an 8mo old still needs to be fed at night?  Is 11 hours to long to expect her to go?  She is on solids 3 times a day and is BF 4 times during the day.  But of course, the morning feed isn't her biggest because she eats at 4 a.  Also, she wakes at 4am on the dot most nights, even if she just went back down at 3am.  So I'm thinking its habit.

2.  If she doesn't need to be fed, any ideas on the best way to stop?

3.  If she does still need to be fed at night,  how do I help her distinguish when I'm going to feed her and when its time to go back to sleep.  I'm going to have to help DH here, because he can't keep doing this all night long.

DD does put herself to sleep at night.  Our routine is dinner(solids), bath, breastfeed, jammies, book and then bed.  I tried moving the feed to before bath, but the bath gets her too wound up and the feed calms her.  If you've read this far, Thank you thank you.  We're getting kind of desparate for a solution and I would appreciate any advice. 
Thanks again,
Jessica

Offline Katet

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Any advice???
« Reply #1 on: December 17, 2005, 03:58:07 am »
I would say it isn't unreasonable for a bf baby to feed once between 7p & 7a at 8months old.... many don't but many do as well.
It is also a big develomental stage at the 6-12mo age & so wakings occur for many reasons.
I would keep to not feeding until 3am, but if she wakes anytime after that feed, but try to cut back on the length, you feed, so say her average is 10mins only feed for 8 for 3 days, then 6, then 4 etc...

I would make a habit of resettling on the first waking without a feed, even if it is 3am, but say 2.30 is a second wake up, I'd feed then... that way she knows she won't get fed the first time, but if it is the second, you feed. Hopefully that way the night feed will move closer to morning... it will take a few weeks if you do it this way.

The other thing to do is just go cold turkey & say no feeds before 6am & just "put up" with 3 or so really bad nights.

HTH
dc1 July 03, dc2 May 05