i have a carton of formula int he house - is it the answer to my Nights of Torment and Woe?

[Tutter]

i imagine the answers will be split 50/50 between those saying "yup, i'd do the same" and those saying "it'll make not a jot of difference"

ds2 (4.5mo) is having shocking nights (see threads passim) - wakes over and over

have tried everything

the only thing i can think is to see if a formula feed before bed makes a jot of difference...

Tutter expressing 4oz in one go is good, especially if you're not used to it. I wouldn't worry about matching the amount, but maybe express again if ds sleeps through another feed or if you're feeling uncomfortable.

Or you could just dream-feed ds?

You don't need to match amounts of milk - formula doesn't equal breastmilk. Perhaps would express before bed again because babies tend to get more milk out than a pump does.

Tutter - I had exact same experience with ds. He was the perfect newborn, slept through at 7 weeks, but started waking at 3 mo, then more at 4 mo, until it progressed to every 1 or 2 hours. He would just scream and scream until fed, nothing else worked. I have been giving him formula from 3 mo as I was sick of expressing and could never get out more than 2 oz, plus with two older kids I just didn't have the time to keep sitting there expressing !

Anyway, what I wanted to say was formula may not help him sleep better, (though I do know a lot of people who have done this and it has worked). It made no difference to ds, and it is only now he is 6 mo and in his own room that we are making progress and he now only wakes twice.

But I'd just like to say that introducing formula does not need to mean end of breastfeeding - I wanted to get to 6 mo too, and found giving formula has actually helped me make it this far, and now I feel I will go even longer. If you are doing both, what is the harm ? In my eyes you get the best of both worlds ! I wouldn't have got this far exclusively breastfeeding as mine is constantly starving !

tutter, my DD did exactly the same thing as this, at precisely the 4.5 month mark. She had previously been sleeping all night with only an occasional wake for a night feed. Then at 18 weeks she was up two or three times a night. I think they have a mammoth growth spurt at this time.

I tried her with a bit of baby rice but it didn't make a jot of difference, so went back to exclusive BF and after a week of waking every night, she went back to some semblance of her normal routine.

Now at 25 weeks, she is back to sleeping 11 hours a night, but admittedly we are weaning her now, but she only gets one "meal" a day.

interesting, thanks

i intend to carry on bfing, no matter what. praps didn't make myself clear. with ds1 i introduced a nighttime formula feed but continued bfing til 9mo

this time had hopes to exclusively bfeed til 6mo, then mix feed til 12mo

anyway, let's see if it has made any difference

so far i haven't had to go to him

but i'm not counting my chickens- it'#s a long night ahead still...

cannot be arsed cleaning and sterilising pump again, so haven't expressed any more

can't bring myself to disturb him for a dreamfeed (not something i tend to anyway tbh)

Don't actually need to resterilise the pump because it is only your own milk that has gone in it, if that helps

oh hope the night is better Tutter

you do what you need to do, don't stress out

IT IS ONLY FORMULA

I would have given mine Carnation milk if it meant sleep

Tutter - I think we were on the same prenatal thread. July.

My DS2 is also 4.5 months. 22 weeks on Sunday.

Not sure of the cure... i am interested to see how you get on... but thought you would like to know that we are having exactly the same problem.

DS2 used to wake twice 11pm-ish and then 4am-ish.

We are now very disturbed between 7pm and midnight with 2 feeds during that time (one boob and one EBM) and then AT LEAST twice and often THREE times between midnight and 6am. Its killing me. This has been going on for about 2 weeks and I am at a loss as to what to do.

Under pressure to give babyrice. But may try bottle of formula like you. I did try formula once to see if he would go from 11pm - 6am rather than 4am.. didn't make any difference. And at that point I didn't realise how lucky I was. I wish we could just go back to the 4am waking!

well, relatively speaking, it was a good night

not a peep from him til 3am, when i fed him

he then woke at 4:45 but was settled easily

up at 6am

won't leap straight to any conclusions - will try another night to be sure (before i stop expressing the same feed to maintain supply) - but that was by far our best night for weeks

trimum, sounds like you've been having the same problems - you have my sympathies

Good stuff Tutter!