4 month old still waking every 2-3 hours to feed

[Mama Page]

Hi There.
I am in some desperate need of some help.  I have a very spirited baby who also has reflux.  We have had major issues with BF so I just switched to FF this weekend.  He is 4 months old, has started napping well since the switch to formula but still does not understand what sleeping at night is.  He takes 6-8 ounces each feed during the day (every 3 1/2-4 hours) and about 5 ounces at night (again every 2-3 hours)... I try to give him the soother to hold him off at night but he just cries... I did pu/pd for 2 hours the last couple of nights but this just escalated his crying until I fed him... his feeding times in the night are somewhat sporadic so he does seem hungry.  He also wakes at 5 and thinks it is time to get up.  Here is our typical day.
5 am- he wakes, and coos in his crib then starts to cry.... i keep him in his crib giving him the soother until 7
7- feed
activity
8:45- wind down for nap
9-11 nap
11- activity
11:30-12 feed
activity
1-nap
2:30- activity
2:30 or 3 feed
activity
4:30- cat nap for about 45 minutes
activity
6 or 6:30- feed
6:30 bath
7 or 7:30 bed (usually he is wide awake and bed takes about 1-2 hours to get him to sleep)
then he wakes consistently every 3 hours to feed
We are new to this EASY routine so it is by no means set in stone or perfect.... I am learning as I go.

Can anyone help???

[Lana]

First off welcome to the boards .

Now to get down to business.  At that age we did feed Bram at night if he woke up, the reason we did is because he never woke at the same time and he acted hungry.  He always settled right back down too.

Now at this age you want to put him on a four hour routine.  Say 7, 11, 3, 7 and then a dream feed at 10 or 11.  Hopefully once he gets used to the new routine you won't have to feed at night anymore.  Although at 4 months we were getting up with Bram at around 5 to feed him, but we treated it like night waking (dim lights, stay in swaddle, little to no interaction) and he would go right back down.

Do you have a bedtime routine?

HTH

[Colin Macs Mom]

Hi Mama Page, welcome! I totally know where you are coming from, my DS also is spirited and has reflux. It makes sleeping a real nightmare - no pun intended.    But really, it presents an entirely different set of challenges in addition to the usual challenge of just teaching them to sleep. Lana has already given you great advice, but I would also like to know if you have a wedge for him to sleep on, or have you elevated one end of the mattress? That made an enormous difference for my lo. It gives them gravity in their favor so to speak. If you haven't already, definitely do it. Also, is your lo on any medication and/or formula thickener?

[Mama Page]

Yes we do have a bedtime routine... not a long one... typically it is all done in his room- change of diaper, put pjs on and read a book... we also have bedtime music that we play softly in the background.  We used to bath him at night but I found i was wanting to do this in the morning as he spits up int he night and then he is stinky from the formula.  We do have a wedge for his crib and he has been on meds for the reflux- origianlly losec with gaviscon then motilium- none of them seem to help.  I haven't tried the thickened formula yet, but thought I would try today (he has only been on formula since last Sunday)....  I know some people just thicken their normal formula with rice cereal.... does anyone have any experience with this??  I think the worst thing is that he doesn't seem to go that easily back to sleep- he used to and for some reason the last month it has been hard to get him back down.  We do keep his room dark (I use a flashlight when I go in to feed him) and we try to keep him swaddled- he busts out of it so we reswaddle. 

[Colin Macs Mom]

How long did you try the meds for? Sometimes they can take two weeks or so to really kick in.    There are other meds that you could try as well, like Prevacid or Zantac, but the doc has probably gone over that with you already.... I would hope.

I did thicken DS's bottles with rice cereal, from when he was about 3.5 months I think. I didn't use much, but just a touch and we did see improvement with that. But definitely don't do that without speaking to your lo's doc/ped first. The cereal can be terribly hard on their tummies and cause gas and constipation, therefore making your problem worse.

What are you using to swaddle? You might try and miracle blanket (I think that's what they're called) or I used a kiddopotamus wrap which was a godsend.

[Lana]

The aussie swaddle is also great.  I made a big difference for us.

[Janet]

I went thru the same thing that you're going thru with DD #1.... it was hell. We're having an easier time with DD #2... mainly b/c we got the reflux diagnosed early on and she takes Zantac efferdose twice a day. You might want to ask your pedi about that. I kept her on her side, on the wedge until she was about 3 months old.... she was waking so much (and not necessarily hungry) that I thought we'd never get any sleep. So... GASP...we put her on her tummy and it's made a world of difference. At her DF I give her a bottle of formula w/rice cereal. Usually about 6 oz with 1 tbsp of cereal. It has worked. I know, it goes against what all the dr's say.... but I can tell you that she was still urping a great deal sleeping on her back on the wedge.... And I think the little bit of cereal gave her tummy something to "work" on....
Not sure if it's good or bad advice... but it's what has worked for us.

[Mama Page]

Thanks so much for all of the advice.... and I have good news... we have been getting sleep for 3 nights now- cross our fingers this lasts.... Sorry I didn't reply to all the posts, I haven't had a lot of time.  But to answer the questions, I did try losec for 3 months (both with and without gaviscon) and now he has been on motilium for 3 weeks... doing nothing for the reflux... He was never as bad at night as during the day (he pukes up a storm during the day... my pediatrician says it is because he is so relaxed eating at night).  I see lots of people have recommended zantac... perhaps we should try that.  We do have him on a wedge and have always slept him on his side.  We started givining him just a tablespoon of rice cereal on Sat. night before bed and magically he has been sleeping.  Yeah.  Again, thanks so much for your help!

[Colin Macs Mom]

Wonderful!!!