'At over 7mo, he shouldn't need feeding in the night'

[BouncingTurtle]

So said my friend's HV... her baby is a little bit older by about 3 weeks.

Now my ds is feeding through the night anything upto 5 times

Up until a week ago, he we go something like this :

Feed and bed - 7pm
Feed 10:30pm
Feed 2.30am
Feed 5.30am and maybe up for the day, maybe another hour or so sleep,

ATM he is doing this:

Feed and bed - 7pm
Feed 9-9.30pm
Feed 10:30pm
Feed Midnight
Feed 2pm
Feed 4am
Feed 5.30am

Times are very approximate btw.

I guess atm a lot of it is to do with it being so hot as well.
I can cope with the first schedule of feeds, but I'm utterly knackered with these more frequent ones he is doing atm.

DS is solely breastfed, my friend's ds is ff - would that make any difference to explain why HV said what she said?

Any thoughts suggestions that don't include bottles welcome (he is a complete bottle refusnik atm)

Tis bollocks imo - how many adults do you know that go happily for 12 hours with nothing to eat or drink, and who wouldn't go get something in the night if they needed it ? I know plenty who keep a glass of water beside the bed at night.

My DS needed a feed in the night until about 15 months, and my HV said that if I was happy, why worry about it.

The hot weather will make a difference too

No idea about FF

But DD fed similar times to your ds until about 10m, then I felt she was adequately fed in the daytime (on food) so took a harder stance and settled her by patting and holding down in the cot, plus some controlled crying.

Feeling so exhausted is awful though, have a chat to your HV about getting some support to ease off the feeds.... it definitely worked for us, albeit a bit later.

How is he doing with weaning? I found this gave me the confidence to leave DD with no feeds because I knew she wasn't hungry. Could start with a cup as well by then, as opposed to a bottle.

of water, I mean.

My lo had a feed in the night till she was 13 months, and this weather will make him more thirsty too

Ta, Cmot, I thought as much, but wavered a bit... but I think he is still very young for sleep training.
Isn't there a 7mo growth spurt as well?

I'm going out now, will check this later.

BT as far as ff infants go if the baby is getting the right amount of ff in the day then she is right

bf however is a whole different ballgame I have only just stopped feeding ds2 in the night at 12 months and sometimes it was because he was genuinely thirsty not for comfort
now he still wakes sometimes for a drink of water and he gulps it down

are you co sleeping I found taking ds into bed when he was doing very frequent feeding helped me with feeling more rested

and how is he doing on the weaning side of things? I tended to give a carbo rich meal such as pasta in the evening to help him sleep a little longer not sure it worked but psychologically for me it helped
we did mainly finger foods so I just used to give him pasta to pick up

I fed my DS in the night until I stopped feeding him at 2yo. it's not unusual. especially when it;s hot out.
he may be having a growth spurt as well so feeding more because of that.

bollox

DS went though (many) phases of feeding every couple of hours at night - there are things you can try to stretch feeds out (have you read the No Cry Sleep Solution?) but a lot of it is developmental IMO.

I wouldn't worry about night feeds until he's a year tbh

wiukd second cosleeping advice if you aren't already

we coslept full time from about 6 months as it was the only way I could stay (vaguely) sane

you know my dd turtle and you know how she's turned out. She did this as a baby. I was back at work FT by then and the only thing that worked for us in the end was to co-sleep. It worked great and I only regret not doing co-sleeping earlier. It solved the extreme sleep deprivation I was suffering and everyone slept better and were happier in the end.

I don't know if you co-sleep or up to trying it, tho.

sorry turtle, just noticed I am not under my usual name. but i was at the bfing picnic with you and my dd is the gorgeous 3yo who was wearing the red spotty dress.

Well I think you have to trust your instincts. With DD1, she was still waking in the night for a cup of milk until we finally stopped it at 2.4. She genuinely seemed to need it, and only woke up for milk, going straight to sleep after being given it.

DD2 is 11 months, and was breastfed until 3 weeks ago, waking 7-8 times a night for a feed until 5 weeks ago. 5 weeks ago I night weaned her, and she was going to bed at 11pm, waking 3 times a night, but settling with a cuddle. 3 weeks ago I stopped breastfeeding altogether, and since then she has been going to bed at 7pm and sleeping through until 6am.

I don't know what was different, she is chunkier than DD1, so perhaps I felt that she really was getting all she needed in the day. But I have been shocked at how quickly I have seen change, and it has confirmed my suspicions that she was waking and feeding purely for comfort. (Although I don't think that there is anything wrong with that in itself, of course. I was just ready to finish BF).

The period from about 6-8 months was my dd's worst time for sleep. We put some NCSS ideas into practice and things did improve, but I'm not sure how much was due to NCSS and how much was just because of her age. She still feeds at least once in the night now, at 18 months - I haven't made any effort to stop that though. I wake in the night needing a drink, so I can't complain when she does the same.

Gosh what a suprise.
Yet another HV talking complete SHIT.

My dc (3 of em) all had small bf during the night for agrs. Dd2 still does and she is 2 tomorrow.

I am not saying you should do it till he is 2 ,may not suit you but 7months is far too young to worry about that. He may still need the calories imo.

It could also have to do with teething- combined with the heat, it might make him uncomfortable and he wakes up hot and bothered.

All babies are different my exclusively BFed DD was sleeping through the night at 16 weeks (12- 7 then feed then sleep till lunch- it was bliss!!!) she started teething very early on (she had 4 teeth by the time she turned 5 months) and it totally killed her sleep pattern.
It took another 2 years to get her to sleep (sometimes ;)) through the night again.

To OP: It sounds like your DS needs a dummy.

ds (15m) also going through period of feeding lots extra in the night - and we'd been down to one 3am feed too, got my hopes up

he has my sympathies though. We have dinner when he does at 6pm, then I might have biscuit or fruit through evening, then a bowl of muesli before bed at 11, and sometimes I still wake up hungry.

It is completely different when he's comfort sucking.

Hello everyone, sorry I've only just got back home!

Thanks all for your advice, feel much better about things now!

Caribee - yes I remember you

Cotedazur - alas he has a dummy already!

He is feeding less during the day, it is a real battle to feed him especially when we're out an about as he is sooooo nosey!! I think this is contributing to it as well! I'll just ride it out I think.
We do co-sleep some of the time, especially when he is very wakeful in the night or when DH is away but I find this doesn't make things much better as he hates feeding lying down most of the time.
I think I'll have another look at NCSS, I've already implemented a few things which have helped us break the feed-to-sleep at 7pm.

my 7mo is currently on your sleep pattern a), but last 2 weeks it was b). or worse. i have no idea why it changes, i spend ages micro-analysing the day's food/feeds/sleeps, but there is no pattern.

i think feeding in the night is totally normal for babies/children, but not seen as normal in our society.

i can offer no solution, sorry, but it is just a phase that will pass i'm sure.

Thanks

Just wanted to say that DS's sleep has vastly improved over the last few days - last night he went to bed at 7pm and woke up at 1am, 4.30am and 6.30am! Much improvement!

So if anyone else has a 7mo like this, it does get better