5 month old EBF DD waking 5 times a night - growth spurt or does she need food?

[helenelisabeth]

Title says it all really. DD2, 5 months, was sleeping through the night. This week she has started waking continually and never seems full. Would you wean onto baby rice or is it a growth spurt?

She is a biggish baby, haven't had her weighed for a few weeks but she has been following the 75th centile.

It would say to me that she is ready for food. They recommend 6 months but each bebe different.

Growth spurt. Don't give her food just yet - it has less calories than milk anyway!

Ds2 did this at 5 months - I fed through it and he went back to once a night. He is now 6.5 months and I'm in the process of weaning him and guess what - he's feeding 5+ times per night again - I'm hoping it's just another spurt (you can practically watch him grow atm )

Wicked - I had same question. Also thought that a few teaspoons of food wouldn;t help compared to delicous milk!

Then realised she's outgrowing everything so prob growth spurt.

Growth spurt imo. Solid readiness has nothing to do with night waking. Milk has more calories than solids so wouldn't fill her up better than milk. Solids might take longer to digest meaning she goes longer between feeds, but they wouldn't be providing any more nutrients/calories in the process so your LO might well want more milk at other times. Unless she is sitting happily unsupported and grabbing at food & stuffing it into her mouth she is unlikely to be ready & needing solids just yet.

Hope you manage to get some rest in the meantime - are you co-sleeping/feeding lying down? It really helps minimise your loss of sleep as does having naps in the day time if/when she does.

Thanks everyone for your good advice.

Terramum, oh yes we do co-sleep (only when she is having a particularly bad night)! Its the only way I can function especially as 5 year old DD1 is off on half-term atm so extra busy!

Where solids are concerned, I am thinking of starting to introduce baby rice as she is showing all the signs. 6 months is a guideline and anywhere around that is okay imo. She's only 3 weeks away from the official guide age anyway. I feel cruel eating in front of her atm, she looks longingly at my weetabix in the morning!

I do think some of the problem is that the older she is getting, the harder it is becoming to get her to feed for long during the day, this could be why she is making up for it at night. Maybe this week has been bad because DD1 has been off and there is more hustle and bustle in the house which is distracting her feeds.

Complicated these babies where food is concerned!

Thanks again.

Well shoot me down. I say wean. I had similar situation with dd. Yes milk may have more calories but it is the gaping hole from an empty stomach which is creating the waking. If this carries on it may become a habit to wake and lead you back to square 1. A big baby at 5mths can handle being weaned. 4mths was the norm for years and as so many people are ready to point out, they are ALL DIFFERENT with regard to what they need.
I would give a small amount of baby rice/cereal at the evening meal time with breast milk, which may be enough to see LO through until AM, or at least cut down the night wakings so you are not exhausted.

Thanks tori! I agree, they are all different, I weaned DD1 at 4 months, as was the guidelines then. No doubt if I had another baby in 5 years time, the guidelines will have changed - AGAIN!

What signs is she showing Helenelisabeth?

Terramum she is basically starving! Doesn't seem to be full ever. I have offered her the breast 5 times already today and she has taken it. Fair enough but I have a house and a 5 year old DD to see to and cannot be sitting down all day feeding (as much as would love to!). Will maybe try her on some baby rice next week, if she seems game, then I will continue, if she's not interested then will leave it for a couple of weeks. Will mix it with formula or ebm, that way she is still getting nutritional calories.

TBH helen that sounds normal - I'd eaten/drank something 5 times by mid afternoon today as well ( Breakfast, morning snack, lunch, afternoon snack & cup of tea)....honestly starting solids has very little to do with being hungry unless it's coupled with all the other signs (sitting unaided, picking up things & putting them in her mouth, starting to chew on things/copying your chewing at mealtimes, losing the tongue thrust reflex)....Milk can satisfy her needs just fine until all these are displayed. It's just a case of finding time to do so LOL. Can understand that this week was probably the worst one for a growth spurt it being half term.

Honestly it does get better. I found that once I expected things to change occasionally & accepted that DS might slow down or or up his feeds without warning that they didn't affect me so much. Knowing it doesn't stay that way really helped get through the hard times....keep repeating "This too shall pass....this too shall pass..." & get someone else to help with the house for a few days, or leave all non-essential jobs, get a few takeaways in etc

This link has info about starting solids that you might find interesting:
www.kellymom.com/nutrition/solids/index.html

& this link might help with seeing to your older child as well:
www.kellymom.com/babyconcerns/newborn-toddler.html

Alternatively...If she is happily sitting up unaided & has lost the tongue thrust reflex then maybe she is ready. Have you considered baby-led weaning? That way you can know for usre if she truly needs solids or not - maybe a trial 'meal' of steam veg sticks to test the water? If she picks them up & eats them then she's probably ready!

Tori - please! The SIZE of the baby is nothing to do with it - the internal development of the gut is nothing to do with the overall size of the child.