5 month old waking in night out of habit - any tips?

[rubyblue]

Hi, DS is 5 months old and wakes around 4am every night. He roots but often just takes 5 minutes so I think it's comfort (or thirst)rather than real hunger. If I give him a big feed at this time he doesn't feed at 7am. Last night he was wide awake and I gave him a dummy which he was happy with but in the end I fed him as was so knackered I just wanted to get back to sleep. Trouble is we are trying to switch gradually to formula in the next few weeks in advance of me returning to work so I would really like him to cut out the night feed.

Any ideas which have worked for you to break the association with breastfeeding at this time?
Ruby

[FeelingEvil]

you could try waking him ever so slightly a hour or so before his habitual 4am wake up time. This worked for us when DD was 3 and a half months. Apparently, it breaks their habit.

[MegBusset]

One waking at 5mo is brilliant, tbh I would keep giving him that feed and count your blessings!

[MegBusset]

PS I hope that didn't sound unsympathetic

Babies at 5mo still have very small tummies so it's not unreasonable for them to feed in the night -- even if it's 'just' for comfort/thirst. If you are switching to formula then can you and DP take turns to do the night feed?

[LolaLadybird]

One waking a night is good but I can understand your desire to drop it if you're due back at work soon. Do you do a dream feed before you go to bed? Also, switching to formula may make a difference anyway.

If he'll take a dummy without getting too distressed, try persevering with it for a couple of nights. I know all about feeding them just to get back to bed quicker (DS is 6.5 mo and I've a similar thing going on here but unfortunately he won't take a dummy) but think short-term pain for long-term gain!

[rubyblue]

Don't get me wrong, compared to what he was like only a few weeks ago, I am so relieved it is just once in the night! But, if it's a habit rather than hunger, then I would like to slowly wean him out of it. Will give the slight waking an hour beforehand a go and if all else fails and we're on formula then will have to nudge dh to share some of the feeds in the night.
We give him a feed at 10.30ish which he normally wakes for and takes a good bottle.
Thanks for all advice.

[CoteDAzur]

ruby, it sounds like your DS is ready and physically capable to sleep through the night without a feed.

Stop night feeds. If/when he wakes, your DH (not you, because he will smell milk) puts him back to sleep through whatever works - dummy, rock, cuddle, sing etc.

Very probably, you will have 1-2 bad nights and your DS will sleep through the night thereafter.

As Lola said, "short term pain for long term gain"

[tweetiepop]

Apparantly a baby that age can get what he needs from a feed in 5-7minutes. At least that was what I was told when I attended a breast feeding group with my 4 mth old.

[blot4]

My ds was 9 months before I felt confident enough, or fed up enough to break his waking up in the night habit. I eventually did it by offering him a bottle of formula instead of breast feeding him, which he had a fit over. I had 4 nights of Hell and then he slept through. Such a difference to my life .

[oysterpots]

We started watering down our DS's formula - half strength. After a week or so of that, we started offering water only, or if DS really complained I'd add just one scoop of formula.

Within a week he started sleeping through. Wish I'd done it earlier!