Is he really hungry?

[blushingmare]

I feel like I should know this as DS is DC2, but I don't think I ever got it right with DD either, so here goes.

I had high hopes for DS's sleep as he is so much better at self-settling than DD ever was - for naps and bedtime I can put him down awake and he will more or less settle himself to sleep. As a newborn and up until about 2.5mo, he was doing 6 hour stretches during the night - so I thought I was onto a winner!

Anyway, he's now 3.5mo and for the past month he's been waking every 1.5-2 hours throughout the night [sigh]. I partially cosleep and slide him in next to me when he wakes, feed him lying down, usually fall back to sleep myself and then slide him back over when I wake up again. Doing it this way means I still feel like I'm getting enough sleep, although I wonder if it's part of the problem, but that's another thread. I wonder whether I should be trying to settle him without feeding, but I a) just choose the easiest route back to sleep for him, me and DH and b) don't feel confident enough that he isn't really hungry.

When he wakes and I put a hand on him to see if he'll settle, he grabs my hand straight away, takes it to his mouth and starts sucking vigorously! He seems really hungry, but can he really be hungry every 1.5 hours all night?! I want to have a go at helping him to settle without feed for a few wakings, but I know I won't be able to hack it if he starts crying and I constantly feel doubtful that perhaps he really is hungry.

During the day he feeds every 3-4 hours, short feeds, but they've always been short and so was DD - think I have a fast milk flow and he gets quite a lot in a short space of time.

Sorry - this has ended up long, but any advice from anyone with more knowledge than me would be much appreciated!

I would say no, probably not hungry every 1.5 hours. Though you might get some folk suggesting he's having a growth spurt, which is possible.

I suspect he just really enjoys sucking on your boobs

It sounds like your doing everything perfectly there's no harm in feeding him as it's the easiest option to get him back to sleep at least I can't see the harm I did this with my baby when she was this age and now she's 7 mo she sleeps through the night and has done for a good few months so it could be a growth spurt or just a comfort thing but he may just stop on his own and suddenly go longer stretches
It feels like it goes on forever when you're in it and wondering what you can do to get them to sleep more!

Bf is more than satisfying hunger - it satisfied the powerful need for comfort and connection. It is fine to feed your baby when he 'asks'....why would you not? :) He is very young still.

satisfied = satisfies

What tiktok said

4 month sleep regression? About 16 weeks normally.

Personally I feed them if they ask. Dd1 fed every 2 hours day and night until she was about 2yo. When I got fed up and started refusing some feeds. Dd2 is down to one wake up at 1am at 10 months. However at 4 months she was also waking every 2 hours. They do what they do, and it is all subject to change without notice :)

Oh and I still feed both to sleep and cosleep with them both. Yup a 3 yo and a 10 month old. The 3 yo sleeps through now, thank fuck, since I night weaned her 5 months ago

Mine did this about the same age (though not quite so often and not cosleeping). I found feeding every 2 hours during the day (i.e, more often than baby asked) helped to reduce the night wakings.

Thanks for replies all. I know he's still little, and I don't mind doing it now, I really don't - in fact, I love having him next to me and those sleepy feeds I think I'm just so conscious that I fed DD to sleep all the time and she was still waking for feeds every 2 hours til about 14 months - it felt like a long slog! He just feels instinctively like a better sleeper than she ever was and I don't want to make him dependent on feeding to sleep if he doesn't need it. But hey, he obviously needs it now, so what can you do Thanks anyway - it's good to hear others' experiences.

Also it's good to hear people say on here that things can change without you intervening. I had to actively "do" something to stop DD feeding at night, but it sounds like some other babies will just change on their own. Maybe he's one of those [hopeful emoticon]

I've certainly not intervened with dd2 and still feed or sling to sleep for all naps and bedtime. Hardly ever put down, and yet only wakes once usually at 10 months. She's just naturally a better sleeper :)

I'd try to get the feeds the other way round - every 1.5-2 hours in the day and 3-4 hours at night.

Well thanks for the suggestions. I've been feeding him every 2 hours during the day for the last 2 days and both nights he's done a good 5 hour stretch, so maybe that's the way to go. Just difficult keeping on too of 2 hourly feeds with a toddler in tow too! Can't have it both ways I suppose!