16 week - no sleep

[Metcalfe]

My 16 week old has been EBF and has never slept more than 4 hours in any one stretch and this is not very often. He normally wakes every 3 hours.

For the past week he has been waking every 2 hours or less for a feed. I have tried not to feed him every time he wakes but can take up to an hour to settle him and he then wakes up 30 minutes later.

My OH has been giving him a bottle of expressed milk at 11pm to try and give me some sleep but he takes it when he's half a sleep and he doesn't seem to register he has had and and want more 30minutes later, despite taking 5ozs. We have struggled to get him to take a bottle and he will only take 1 or 2 ozs if he is fully awake.

He is also taking an hour to settle in his cot a night previously he would fall asleep whilst feeding and I could just put him straight down.

Last night I gave him a dummy to try and soothe him without feeding him as it was 1.5 since the last feed. After 40mins I think he was so sick of me he just spat it out and went to sleep himself.

I hear alot about the 16 weeks growth spurt and wondered if this is real, and what he is going through or has he decided this is his new sleep pattern :( Or could he be starting with Colic as he is more fussy at night now.

Sorry for the long post but after being up from 12 to 5 I need some reassurance this won?t last.

I think it is real, I have a 17 week old and its like you are describing him.

I thought it could be teeth? any signs he is teething? mine is dribbling and gnawing on me when feeding. He feeds every 2 hours at the moment. Im also thinking of starting weaning. Have you thought about this?

It is exhausting. You have my sympathy. I use a dummy too.

Im watching this thread with interest. My friends dd is 3 days younger and is sleeping through

Keep repeating the mantra "this too shall pass" - its the only way I get through the days (and nights)..

He is dribbling and gnawning. He is also biting down on anything he can get in his mouth.

I have considered weaning his soome or trying to get him to take some hungry baby milk, but I don't know whether this will make any difference if it is just a growth spurt...

The thought that this is phase is the only thing that gets you through... and the hope that after this he will sleep through although this could be wishful thinking...

The dribbling and chewing is a developmental stage, it doesn't mean he's hungry

I wouldn't try hungry baby milk as he is ebf it will be really tough on his tummy. It desnt have more calories it's just tougher to digest.

He doesn't need weaning this young either, likelihood is it's a growth spurt.

You may find that after he calms down he starts to go longer between feeds, they always say it's darkest just before dawn.

DS is 19 weeks now and we went through this, it does get better. As a result he's actually dropped a night feed now.

There is a sleep regression at 4 months as well, so it could he's not hungry (esp if he's only taking 1 or 2 oz) and is just having trouble sleeping...