Won't sleep though night?? Help!

[colenliam]

Hi,
My Son is about 6 1/2 months old and won't sleep though the night.  I start his nightime routine around 7:00 and he is in bed around 7:30-45.  He then wakes anywheres in between 9:30-11:30 to have a bottle, then again at 2am then a 5-5:30 and then wakes up at 8:30.  After a feed I put him in his crib awake and he will fall to sleep by himself, but not if he doesn't get a feeding.  He has never been a big eater yet he is a big baby at 18lbs4oz.  During the day he can only stay up about 2 hours almost to the minute before he is tired and if I miss that first sign then it is a fight to get him to sleep, then over tired(2 naps per day about 1h1/2 each).  during the day this is how his schedule has been for feeding:
roughly, 
9:00am 1/4 cup Cereal &Fruit
10:30 3-4oz formula
1:00 5oz formula
4:30 4oz formula
5:30 1/4 Cup Cereal&Fruit
7:30 2-3oz formula
Thats how it has been this week.  No matter how hard I try, I've been trying since he was born, I can't get anymore into him.
During the night he will take more at a feeding, like between 5-7oz per feeding.  I just don't know how to get him to sleep though the night.  I know I have to get his night feedings in during the day but I can't.  He has always spit up alot.  After every feed and in between feeds.  If I push him to take more in his bottle then it will all come back up while he is still sucking.  Projectile like.  If anyone could help that would be great and wonderful and amazing.  Thank you

[Lor]

Hi there - do you do a dream feed? My LO is also just over 6 months and has recently started having night wakings so I'm certainly no expert but I give a top up at 9.30pm - just a thought.

[colenliam]

Hi,
I was giving a dreamfeed but then he started just getting up at and around the time I would.  Last night was horrible.  He was up at 9:30, 10:00, 11:00 which i then fed, 1:30, 2:30 and then again at 5:30 which I gave a bottle at that time.  My dp and I ended up fighting cause I was trying to not feed him everytime he got up and dp couldn't understand why I wasn't, so to prove a point I tried at one time, ds wouldn't eat.
PS. dp won't get up during the night with ds.  I'm sure he know how I feel :-\not really.
I am just at a loss here, I have no idea what to do, but I can't go though this again and again.
Just to add, when ds settles back down he just lays there with his eyes wide open???

[Lor]

This all sounds so familiar and I have sympathy with you.  The great thing about this website is that you find out your not alone.  My partner always thinks LO needs a bottle but I don't feed her bacause I too have proven the point that it isn't always hunger.  I also deal with the wakings every night while he rolls over and goes back to sleep - so frustrating when he says he's tired the next day!  If it's not hunger another possibility maybe teething???  Is LO showing any symptoms; red cheeks, drooling??  If so, maybe try an infant painkiller.  Regarding the wide open eyes in the night, my advise would be to don't ever give eye contact and try not to speak (only if it helps with soothing).  Good luck tonight. x

[colenliam]

Hi,
I know, that is why I love this site so much.
1 week ago he cut his 2 bottom teeth, and he has always been a drooler so it is so hard to tell.  I just wish he could tell me what was wrong and I would make his world perfect
Thank you for you feedback, greatly appreciated

[Jo-FrasersMum]

Hi Colenliam

One of the biggest challenges I think with a 6 month old is that all of a sudden they are taking more interest in the world around them - how dare you ask him to stop investigating while you do something so boring as feeding him 

Have you tried feeding in a dark, quiet place where there is less stimulation happening around you - you might find that your DS is more willing to take a bit more if there are less distractions. 

My other thought is to do with your daytime routine.  It is really hard when you introduce solids to get a good routine going again - but I notice that for the first feed of the day you are starting with solids.  Generally babies take milk before solids up until about 9 months of age - because milk is the most important part of their nutrition right up until then.  Also, your first milk feed gets pushed back to 10.30 (1.5 hrs after the breakfast) - leaving only 2.5 hours before your next milk offering.  It could be that your DS is becoming a bit of a snacker - and is not hungry enough to take a big milk feed meaning that he is hungry again quicker and the cycle continues, meaning that he has to wake up in the night to get in those extra calories.

I would suggest that you have a look at the sample routines for a 6 month old - they are in a post at the top of the EASY board - and that you try and get those feeds stretched out a bit.  That will hopefully mean your LO will start taking those bigger feeds during the day - and you get your nights back

HTH!  Let me know if you have any questions
Cheers
Jo

[colenliam]

Hi,
Thank you for the feed back, I will look at those sample schedules and give them a try.  Anything that will work.
See, I was thinking that he wasn't getting enough formula during the day, because of the schedule we have been doing.  See after all his night wakings he is not getting up until 9:00-9:30, which doesn't leave a lot of time in the day to get all his feeding in.  I just wanna get him into a routine of waking at a decent time in the A.M.  should I start maybe waking him at 7-7:30 to start his day, and go from there??
I feel so bad, everyone says its all just trail and error but how many times can there poor little systems get messed up??
Again thank you,
hope it will work

[Jo-FrasersMum]

Hi again

I think that's a really great idea to start your day at 7 or 7.30.  It will help you to get back to a more "regular" day time routine and will mean you can get an extra feeding in there somewhere.

Good luck!

[Katet]

Yes try to start your day at a regular time...what happens in the night should be excluded from the day as they can then play catch up on night sleep & so not tired enough to "roll" through the sleep cycles.

I would work on getting a day routine going & try to get the milk & solids to fall into the same hour - that will cut back on "snacking".

But just for the record... at this age night wakings can also be developmental. So it is better to think of them as "normal" than to get upset by them as your mood will be picke up by your lo & that will make it harder on both of you.

[colenliam]

Hi,
Just wanted to write back and let ya know how today went.  Took much more formula.
Here is how today went:
5:00am 6oz and back to bed
9-9:30 wake and 6.5oz
10:30 cereal & fruit(although usually takes 1/4c plus 1tbspfruit, and only took about 1/8)
11:00 nap (1.5h)
1:30 6.5oz
3:00 nap(1.5h)
5:30 6.5oz
6:30 full 1/4c Cereal and Fruit
7:00 Bath 2oz formula
7:30 Bed
for all naps and bed I put ds in crib awake and there was no fight.  Perfect.  Know I'll do the dreamfeed at 11pm and hope he will sleep though the night.  We'll see.
Thank you, will let you know how the night goes

[Lor]

Hi,
Just wanted to say well done.  Lets hope it continues.

[colenliam]

Hi,
Last night was bit better
He woke up just before I was going to give him his dreamfeed, so he had that and went back to sleep.  He woke at 2:30, I didn't go in his room he just kinda fussed himself back to sleep(wasn't really crying, just fussen) again at 3:30, and then up at 4:45 for a feeding and back to sleep.
So hopefully he is just learning to put himselve back to sleep.  i have np getting up at 5 to feed, he is only 6 months,  it is just the waking all the time.  But maybe he'll get though it in a couple days.
Thank you

[colenliam]

Hi,
I just wanted to add that since I started giving him his bottle before his solids and staying on a more 4 hour routine he has gone from taking 16-20oz/day to 32oz/day.  Amazing.  Amazing how just a little switch like that can make all the difference
This site is the best thing that has ever happen to me (beside my beautiful ds of course)
 

[Lor]

I've taken the same advise; today at breakfast I fed bottle b4 solid and she took 6oz instead of her usual 4-5 so I'll see if this helps us.  Last night my LO woke at 9.10pm, (fed at 9.30pm), went back to sleep at 9.55pm, woke again 10.55pm, 12.00am and 4.30am.  She usually goes to sleep by herself when I first put her to bed at naps and bedtime but she can't seem to settle herself back to dreamland if she wakes up.

[colenliam]

Hi,
I know, ds was doing that for awhile now, its so hard cause its like they are fustrated that they can't get back to sleep on their own.  I read an article last night about it and how their sleep cycles go, like when they wake up and notice that something is different(different position, mom not there, etc.) they don't know how to get past that and go back to sleep, where as with us when we wake up and somethings different, (the pillow slipped on the floor) we just reajust ourselves and go back to sleep),
Its just how do you teach them.  ds also goes down for naps and bed awake np-usually.  Last night and the night b4 when he got up, if he was just whippering or fussing I just left him until he went back to sleep, its different if he is crying despartatly. 
But for your and my sake I hope it happens fast
I think I also hear to much-i hear him if he rolls over!?