4 Hour EASY = Many NW

[Missy Lou]

I have posted different variations of this problem but nothing has changed.  My lo is 18.5 weeks old.  She has been on 4 hour EASY for 4.5 weeks now.  It has been somewhat of a struggle for her to adjust but the days have gotten better.  She will occassionally not take the 45 minute catnap at the end of the day and is super cranky at bedtime.

She has not had problems with night sleeping since she was about 7 weeks old.  At that point, she slept good and would get up for 2 feedings.  By 9 weeks, she had one feeding at about 2 in the morning and then not get up again up 7 a.m.  At 14 weeks, she no longer took a night feeding.  She would wake up at 2 still but would go back to sleep with a pacifier.  About 3 weeks ago, she would not wake at all a few times a week.  But for the past week and a half, she has starting waking at 4 and I give her the pacifier.  But she will wake every 30 or 60 minutes until I finally get her out at 7.  Last night, she woke at 3:45 and it took an hour and a half to get her back to sleep.  She woke again at 6:15 and then whined until 7.  It hasn't taken an hour and a half to get her to sleep in over 2 months.  I am really lost about what to do.

Suggestions in the past have included lengthening awake time.  She is already up 2 hours at a time.  The catnap is necessary because she is really cranky and fussy after the catnap until bedtime.  The times she's missed the catnap and couldn't sleep, she is VERY hard to get to sleep at night. 

She isn't teething.  I did rearrange her room yesterday which may explain the problem last night?? but she hasn't been sleeping much after 4 for weeks now.  Should I start feeding her rice cereal?  Is she hungry and is that keeping her up? 

Thanks.

[teezee]

imo i wouldn't suggest moving to solids as that may create a whole new problem for your lo. during growth spurts often times sleeping habits do change as well...and lo's who sleep through early on don't necessarily sleep through later on...different needs as they grow.

do you bf or ff? ok if you could answer the list of quesitons at the top of night wakings forum 'pls read before posting that would be very helpful!..thanks

[Missy Lou]

Sorry about that.

How old is your child?  18.5 weeks old - 3 weeks early

What’s his/her daily routine?  4 hour EASY.  Wakes at 7 and bedtime at 6:45/7. 

What’s nap routine?  Two 2 hour naps and a catnap from about 5-6.  I have tried cutting down nap time and she is super cranky and sleeps worse at night.

How long are naps? 5 total

What's bedtime routine? Time?  6:45/7 bedtime.  She gets up 30 minutes before time to eat again.  We bathe, foot massage and put on pjs.  We eat and then rock and I sing to her for about 15 minutes.  Then swaddle and down.  She'll lay in bed about 10 minutes before going to sleep.  Recently, she'll get up about 20/30 minutes later and cry.  Will go back to sleep with pacifier. 

Do you bottle or breastfed?? bottle.

How much? or how long? 5 ounces.  This morning did 5.5 thinking maybe in a growth spurt.  This isn't much for her age but she's only 13 pounds and in the bottom quarter in weight for her age.

If breastfed.. one side or both?? (at each feed)

How many wakes per night? The past week, probably 4 or 5.  She'll usually go back to sleep right away if given pacifier.  Before that, maybe once for pacifier.  Also, not going directly back to sleep and now requires pu/pd.  She hasn't eaten during the night for probably a month now.

What’s your LO like when waking at night? How long is he/she up? Now she's wide awake and talking or laughing.  But that's only for about 10 minutes and then she's crying because she's so tired.  Sometimes, it's straight to sleep and sometimes it's up for an hour.  Last night, she cried every 15/20 minutes for 3.5 hours. 

When you go to him/her is she fussing or crying? Or is it a mantra cry? She's crying.  I don't let it go long because I dont want her to fully wake up because then it will require more time to get her back to sleep instead of her drifting back off while still drowsy.

What have you tried to settle?? Usualy it takes just a pacifier.  The past two nights, she's needed pu/pd for about an hour or so.

What do you do for A time and how long is it?  A time is about 2 hours.  The past two mornings though it's only been 1.5 because she hasn't slept well.  We will look outside in the mornings and talk.  We practice sitting up, standing up and rolling over.  We also practice reach and grab.  She practices putting things in her mouth.  We'll look at books or watch a Baby Einstein video (the video is for after lunch if we watch it).  She'll watch me do dishes or laundry or wash my face and teeth.

Are there developmental issues such as teething or milestones?  She is teething a little.  There are no teeth breaking through but she likes to have her gums rubbed and to chew on things, drooling, etc.  I was reading someone else's post and saw that she may be going through a growth spurt at 18 weeks.  But I don't know how to tell - although she did take another .5 ounces this morning.

Have you introduced cereal? Why, how much, and how many times a day? (for LO’s under 6 months) no

Do they have a prop? If so what is it?  probably her pacifier.  She really likes it.  She will suck on her fingers but at nap/bed she's swaddled so she can't.  She still needs to be swaddled at this point.

Do they have a lovie?  I gave her one this week.  She is interested in it but doesn't cuddle with it yet.

[teezee]

have you tried having the catnap earlier say from 4:30? and maybe cutting it down to 30-45min rather than an hr..not a significant difference but can really make a difference in night wakings. also if the catnap is too late in the evening it can interrupt sleep.

from what you are saying it sounds like your lo could be somewhat overtired/overstimulated before bed. is there anything 'exciting' going on before bedtime?

putting lo down earlier in am for a nap b/c of lack of good nighttime sleep can create a cycle of early waking as lo is just 'making up' for lost sleep at that time and won't have a need to sleep longer at night. imo i would keep lo up the usual A time maybe just make the last half hr very low key.

you can also look in the easy forum faq's for some sample routines - that may be useful also.

just in case it is a growth spurt i would keep offering a bit more at each feed - that way you will be getting those extra calories in during the day and hopefully keep her from waking at night for a feed.