Author Topic: What a mess, please help!  (Read 1129 times)

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Offline brightside

  • Resident BW Chatterbox!
  • *****
  • Showing Appreciation 20
  • Gender: Female
  • Posts: 1018
  • Location: UK
What a mess, please help!
« on: June 10, 2006, 08:24:47 am »
DS has had a cold now for 5 weeks. He is MUCH better now but still has an ear infection which he is now taking antibiotics for. The good thing is that you would never know he was ill. He is in great spirits during the day. However at night he has been waking for up to 2 hours at a time and just will not settle until sheer exhaustion kicks in. When he was doing this, we would shh/pat and only occasionally pick him up if he was very upset. After a few days of this, I wondered if it was a growth spurt and so fed him. He took the whole bottle!  :o However, this has now gone on for about 4 days and now seems to have developed into a habit of a regular night feeding. The time also seems to be the exact same time. We are now on day 2 of w2s but he still woke at 12.30 last night. My worry is that now he seems to NEED the feeding because its become part of his daily calories. He also wakes up at 5.30 for another bottle and takes about 6oz of that! I'm just not sure how to respond to his wakings. Even after a feed it can take him a while to settle but nowhere near as long as previously without the feed. His cry is mostly a mantra cry. How long should I leave him doing that? Prior to this cold, I've not fed DS in the night from 8 weeks old and he has been a pretty good sleeper apart from the odd brief waking.

He sleeps well during the day, taking regular naps from 40 mins to 2 hours so I don't think its overtiredness. During the day he has 3 solid meals (started solids about 4.5 months) and 5 bottles around 4-6oz each. He doesn't use a dummy anymore and has a lovey (small teddy).

The routine at the moment is something like this:
12.30am wakes for 8oz bottle-think this is a habit waking as is the same time every night-can take 30 mins or more to settle again, sometimes goes back straight away
5.30ish has 6oz bottle and back to sleep after about 1/2 hour
8am wake
8.30 breakfast of baby rice and pureed fruit (4tbsp rice+1 tbsp fruit)
9.30 3-4 oz bottle
10.15 nap
12.15 wake-sometimes this nap is just 1.25 hours making the next nap a bit longer
12.30 pureed veg and sometimes fruit too
1.30 5-6oz bottle
2.45 nap-sometimes earlier if am nap was shorter
3.30 wake
4.30 veg+ sometimes fruit too
5.45 nap
6.30 wake
bath, 7-8oz bottle
bed 8.30

I was doing a DF at 10pm which I had moved forward to 9pm so as to cut it out. Even at this time he would still take 7oz. When he started having a bottle in the night though the DF was only a small amount I decided I might as well not do the DF. I Know it would mean that if I did it again, he might not be hungry at 12.30 but he would still wake up and the only way to settle him in less than 2 hours was to feed him. I feel like everything has become a big mess.

Thanks for any help.
« Last Edit: June 10, 2006, 10:42:44 am by brightside »
Cath, 33

<img src="http://b3.lilypie.com/WBuI0.png" alt="Lilypie 3rd Birthday Ticker" border="0"  />

Offline Colin Macs Mom

  • Queen B
  • Global Moderator
  • Resident BW Chatterbox!
  • *****
  • Showing Appreciation 854
  • Gender: Female
  • Posts: 26994
  • Location: Bothell, Washington, USA
Re: What a mess, please help!
« Reply #1 on: June 10, 2006, 17:50:55 pm »
Hi Cath! Sorry to hear you're having some troubles but I'm glad that DS is getting better! Man, 5 weeks of being sick is rough!!  :(

I think you are absolutely right that the night feed(s) have probably become more of a habit than a necessity. You did the right thing by feeding in the night when he was sick, but the downside to that is fixing the habit, if formed, later.  ;)  You routine looks really good to me so I don't think you need to make any adjustments there. Have you looked at the sticky at the top of the forum called How I Stopped the Night Feeds with a 9 mo. Old? It's really great information. If you try the watering-down method, I think you will see success with ending the night feed. As you reduce the amount of formula in the bottles you should see an increase in his intake during the day. Before you know it he won't want or need the night feed. I did it when my DS was about 6.5 and it only took 4 days!!!  :o  ;D 
Jessica
Mom to Colin Ronald, August 18, 2005
Spirited + Reflux =  :o


Offline brightside

  • Resident BW Chatterbox!
  • *****
  • Showing Appreciation 20
  • Gender: Female
  • Posts: 1018
  • Location: UK
Re: What a mess, please help!
« Reply #2 on: June 11, 2006, 08:39:59 am »
Jessica: thanks for your reply. Last night I tried to reinstall the DF. He took 1oz and then started screaming. Obviously wasn't hungry then. We tried to settle him and after 1/2 hour I decided to give him the rest of the feed. He took the lot!  :o Comfort feed, do you think? He then went straight to sleep. At least then I knew he wouldn't be hungry if he woke at 12.30. I also did wake to sleep at 11.15 and he didn't wake at 12.30!  ;D Will do the same tonight I think. I would rather feed him at 10pm than at 12.30 but I am going to dilute the feed tonight. I don't think he needs it for 'food' but for comfort. Do you agree? Think the 5.30am wake is also a habit now so will have to try w2s there too!  ::)
Cath, 33

<img src="http://b3.lilypie.com/WBuI0.png" alt="Lilypie 3rd Birthday Ticker" border="0"  />

Offline First Time Mom

  • Resident BW Chatterbox!
  • *****
  • Showing Appreciation 91
  • Gender: Female
  • Posts: 4043
  • Milena and Graydon
  • Location: Toronto (Canada)
Re: What a mess, please help!
« Reply #3 on: June 11, 2006, 11:56:19 am »
Hey Cath,

I'm certainly no pro but my 2 thoughts are a) cut back from 3 naps to 2 naps, maybe he's ready to transition. b) to get more in him in the day switch the meal and the bottle ie. give the bottle at 8:30 as he may take more than 3-4oz and give the breakfast at 9:30. Perhaps even cut back on the solids (quantity) or the actual meal (I would pick lunch) to get him to take more of his formula in the day and less or none at night. The formula is going to have more calories than the solids right now (for the quantity they are eating) as a few spoons of veggies or fruits are next to nothing in calories. Then if he continues to wake offer water and if a specific time of wake is happening do w2s.

I don't remember you getting rid of the dummy! I'm impressed, well done!!
<img src="http://lilypie.com/pic/2009/11/12/ijf3.jpg" width="64" height="80" border="0" alt="Lilypie - Personal picture" /><img src="http://lb1f.lilypie.com/RVjWm5.png" width="400" height="80" border="0" alt="Lilypie First Birthday tickers" />[url=http://lilypie.com/]<img src="http://lilypie.com/pic/2009/11/12/ijf3.jpg" width="64" height="80" border="0" alt="Lilypie - Personal picture" /><img src="http://lb1

Offline Colin Macs Mom

  • Queen B
  • Global Moderator
  • Resident BW Chatterbox!
  • *****
  • Showing Appreciation 854
  • Gender: Female
  • Posts: 26994
  • Location: Bothell, Washington, USA
Re: What a mess, please help!
« Reply #4 on: June 11, 2006, 18:24:06 pm »
Yay!! Glad to hear that you are seeing improvement!  8)  Whether or not the feed is for comfort or hunger is hard to judge - only you can really do that.
Jessica
Mom to Colin Ronald, August 18, 2005
Spirited + Reflux =  :o