could some one just check this one please?

[FlossieŠ]

Could some one tell me if this is ok as routines go?
My angel DS is 6.5 months old. Angel but has never slept through the night  .  Tried PU/PD shh/pat yesterday as it worked brilliantly for my DD. Yesterday I had a very distraught little boy who cried so much he was sick all over his bedroom floor  . Poor little thing.  I don't think I'll be going down that route again. He hardly ever cries and I don't want to see him like that again. Please can someone advise what I'd best do. He breastfeeds to sleep (I know, I know!)  - how did I fall into that trap again!!! He currently eats a fair amount of solids and only has around 3 short breastfeeds (see below) and another 3 during the night! (I'm not kidding!). Here's the routine.

7.00 wakes
A - has a play on the floor, with toys or sister while mum has some coffee!

8.00 E - Solids around a jarful.
8.30 A - more play
9.30 S - and a b/f!
12.00 wakes (here's another question - is it ok for him to be napping for so long?)
12.00 E - solids
1.00  A
2.00 S (and of course a b/f to get him there!)
4.30/5.00 wakes (another really long nap - he likes his naps!!)
5.00 E - solids
6.00 A
8.00 S and a nice b/f! I know this is quite a late bedtime, but we need it that late or else daddy wouldn't see is DD or DS during the week.

11.00 - dreamfeed
2.00am/3.00am - wakes for short feed
5.00am/6.00am - wakes for short feed again
 
Just wanted some advice on what to do to get him sleeping through the night and if this routine looks ok.
 Thanks heaps everyone! Really appreciate you looking. xxxx

[hatshetsut]

He may sleep a little long during the day (most kids around his age do 4.5 hours worth of naps. It looks like your DS does about 5 hours, so it isn't too far off, especially w/ his later bed time.) I believeyour biggest problem is the BF to sleep. The night feeds are short and he is using them as a way to get back to sleep. It looks like he habiutally wakes from 2-3 and again at 5. You could try wake 2 sleep to see if you can break the cycle, but really the best way is to break the BF to sleep habit. Sorry, the EASY doesn't look bad.

[malialeanne]

Hi there. It looks like you need to work on moving more of his sleep to the nighttime and more of his feeds to the daytime. It's generally recommended to keep milk before solids until 9 months or so, otherwise they can fill up on solids, which can keep them from taking enough milk (the main source of their fat, calories, and protein).

He is napping quite a bit. I would aim for 1.5 hours for his first two naps (one around 9:30 and one around 1:30) and try for a 30 minute catnap around 5:30 or so, if you want to keep his bedtime at 8 p.m. Once his body adjusts to less daytime sleep, hopefully he will begin to sleep more solidly through the night and wake later, giving him a 12-hour night. At that point he will be sleeping more hours during the night and need less sleep during the day.

You'll also need to reduce nighttime calories so he's taking more of them during the day. One night feed is normal for this age, but three is pretty excessive. You can gradually reduce the amount you're feeding (but that's tough with bf). Unfortunately, sometimes cold turkey is a good way to go, because he will be hungry the next day and eat well, and that will quickly break the night-feeding cycle. Many babies drop the dreamfeed at 6-7 months, so you could choose to drop that one first or last, depending on your preference. Since that's the one you have the most control over, you could begin to reduce the amount for the df--you'll likely find that it makes no difference in his overall feeding pattern. Once you have that one dropped you can try and push the 2 a.m. night feed a bit later and later until you have one night feed around 4 or 5, which he might keep for awhile.

HTH!