3.5 month old habitual night waking?

[shoemom]

Just wondering if my DS's recent night waking is habitual or due to hunger? He has gone a few nights in the past for 5-8 hours without a feed, but generally wakes once around 2-3 am for a feed and then a 7:00 am to start our day. We had been doing a DF around 10:30-11:00, but a few weeks ago he started waking before it, and then one night I just dropped it cold turkey and he slept 8 hours! Since then he's been waking sooner and sooner so we're trying the DF again.
 
The past 4 nights we've done a DF around 10:30, and every night he's waking again at 1:30 am. (when we did the DF at 11:00 he woke at 2:30 for 2 nights in a row). A pacifier usually doesn't help (and he hates shh/pat-highly spirited little guy!) and then I feed him (between 4-6 oz). He takes between 4 and 6 oz at the DF as well. So, he's only going about 3 hours since the DF; could this truly be hunger? The reason I ask this is, last night at 1:30 he woke and after 2 tries took the paci and continued to sleep until 5:00 am (I went in to check that he was still breathing  and accidentally touched his cheek ; he had wiggled down in the crib even swaddled!). I then fed him 3.5 oz and back to sleep he went.

We have been transitioning over to a 4 hour EASY (right now we're at 3.5 EASY) and I might stay here a bit longer because his naps aren't always very long (he's got the 45 min. monster!) and he starts getting really cranky/tired at 1.5-1.75 hours A time.

Any advice/ input would be greatly appreciated! Thanking you all in advance- everyone here is so supportive and understanding

Jessica

[momofclaire]

Jessica,
Can you post his daytime routine?  Could he have just gone through a growth spurt?  Have you tried to up the amount he has during the day to see if that helps?  If he did or was doing fine without the df could you cluster instead?
Sorry about all the questions.
Myia

[shoemom]

Hi Myia,

Our routine lately has been changing with going from 3 to 4 hour EASY. We're at 3.5 EASY right now; trying to follow the routine somewhat in BW. My LO went through a growth spurt around 11 weeks (used to eat about 29 oz, then went up to around 40 oz with several late night feeds-he was ravenous!) This time doesn't seem the same, though I know there's another GS around 16 weeks (he'll be 16 weeks this Tues. and weighs 17lbs 9oz). I always make up a 6 oz bottle for every feed, and let him eat what he wants. He usually has a healthy appetite (sometimes will even take 7 oz) but the odd day he doesn't eat much overall (usually when he has a few BM's!!)

A typical day right now looks like this:

E 07:00 (6 oz)
S 08:30 or 08:45-10:30 (usually need to extend this nap or else wakes between 45min-1hour)

E 10:30 (5-6 oz)
S 12:00-13:00 (usually only 1 hour; difficult or impossible to extend this nap)

E 13:30 (6 oz)
S 14:45 or 15:00-between 16:00 and 17:00 (sometimes sleeps through for 1.5 or 2 hours on his own, or I extend; if unable to extend only 45  mins or 1 hour)

E 16:30 or 17:00 (6 oz)
S 17:30ish catnap (almost always refuses this nap, and lies in crib talking to himself, or go for walk in Snugli and sleeps 30 min. if lucky); sometimes we just keep him up and he goes to bed earlier

E 19:00 (6 oz)
bath
S 19:00 to 19:30 bed

DF 22:30 (he sorta wakes for this sometimes, and almost always seemed bothered when put back in bed (? gassy); the one night I tried to burp him w/out waking him and he settled fairly soon) - 4 to 6 oz


When he wakes early from a nap he doesn't seem too tired, but it does catch up with him by the end of the day or the end of his A time. RE: the cluster feed, I have tried it, but it doesn't seem to make much of a difference. Do most people put their LO to bed for a catnap between the feeds? Would I feed at 4:30, catnap, feed 6:00, catnap and then final feed at 8:00? I don't know if I could get him down for all those naps without wasting the time trying to get him to sleep (quite often won't do the catnap and lies awake).

Hope that's enough info,
Jessica

[shoemom]

Just an update on last night-I tried the DF a bit earlier (22:15), he didn't wake and he drained a 5 oz bottle. I wanted to give him more but didn't think I could do it without waking him He woke at 00:15 and a pacifier worked till he woke again at 01:50. He drained 6 oz this time and woke again at 06:00. I then got him up at 06:30 and gave him 7 oz which he also almost drained (half oz left). Maybe he is really hungry after all and it's not habitual (cause didn't wake at 01:30 again). I'll try to give him 7 oz today at his feeds and try the cluster as well. If you have any input on the CF that'd be great!

Jessica

[Pigeon]

Jessica, sounds like he IS hungry! Our LOs are a similar age (Billy was born 15 March) and I've kept him on 3 HR EASY purposefully to keep his little tummy full! Whenever I let him go up to 3.5 hours without food, we have a rough night.
A very wise woman on this board told me not to take stock every night (as you wouldn't weigh yourself every day!), but to keep a log of, say, 5-7 nights and look at the pattern. It worked really well for us.
As for the CF, we breast feed Billy at 3.45 and then again around 6 (full feeds). He then has a bath and a top up feed so he's nice and sleepy before bed at 7. This isn't really cluster feeding as the book says, but it works for us. Then his sixth feed is the df. Give the df a chance if you are reintroducing it, it could take a week or so for the effects to be felt.
Good luck!

[momofclaire]

It does sound like he is hungry. 
I would try to keep working on those naps, if he has two short naps often he may become overtired.
As far as clustering, yes, I would feed, cat nap, feed, bedtime routine and then bed. Make sense?

[shoemom]

Sure, that makes sense. Thanks for the input! I'll try clustering tonight and post back with progress hopefully

[shoemom]

Well last night was much better...finally a normal night again!! I tried clustering-7oz feed at 3:20, catnap, 5oz feed at 5:45, bath, then a top up of another 2 oz at 6:45 and bed by 7:00. He started to stir around 9:40 (probably because of our early start to the day and not the greatest naps) and then woke at 10:30. I fed him 7oz and he slept till 2:50 am. Then he took another 7 oz and slept till almost 7:00! I'm still not sure if the DF is for us; he usually seems to sleep better if he just wakes when hungry, and he always seems unsettled/gassy when we DF. I'll continue with the cluster feed and hopefully have more restful nights  Thanks for everyone's advice!!!