Night feeds

[sunshine75]

Dd is now 7 months and having 1 feed in the night (2.30ish - although sometimes later). I don't mind as she is hungry (despite getting 4 bf and 3 meals through the day!!).

However, bf really wakes me up and after she has fed I am awake for a good hour and half. Feeding lying down/half asleep etc makes no difference, it's like a caffene injection.

I know there is nothing that can be done - just felt like having a rant.

But....... when will the night feeds end ...AND.... is there anything I can do to gently persuade her to go a bit longer/sleep through?

sunshine - I was exactly the same so we dropped our dream feed last night and I couldnt sleep anyway as I missed feeding - completely pointless...

Others may disagree if they've had babies that have slept through on their own but i think the simple answer is that they stop feeding in the night when you stop feeding them - they are never going to give up something so lovely and comforting on their own so its really a matter of how you feel about it - if you're going back to work etc.

do you do a dream feed when you go to bed? does your dd wake up really hungry?

No, dream feed was a nightmare. It was more of a wake up and scream feed followed by waking up in the night anyway. She goes from 7 until 2.30 which is good but I just really want to see some indication that this middle of the night feeding will eventually end.

She used to sleep from 7-6 when she was about 4 months and it got earlier and earlier until weaning (at 24 weeks). I really though that once she had solids it would start to get later and later.

I dont think that solids makes much difference to feeding in the night. I was told that if they wake up at the same time each night then its more habit than hunger - is that the case do you think? You could then try either timing the feed and cutting it down by a minute each time (though I've never tried this but there must be threads on it) or comforting and not feeding.

When we stopped the middle of the night feed it only took two nights but we still had a feed at 10.30pm.

Worth a try I suppose.

I know its tricky - I was in two minds about it - I didnt really mind feeding in the night but am completely exhausted and so stepping back and looking at it it was the right thing for me...

so I dont think theres any point trying anything though until you're really committed to it cos once you've started you have to carry it through if you see what i mean. I think its much worse (and a bit mean) to sort of try it halfheartedly and then give in because you could have just fed them in the first place.

is dd your first?and if not what did you do last time?

My first - so I'm a bit clueless to be honest

sometimes it isnt that helpful to have done it before because all babies are so different anyway - can only reiterate that mine havent slept through on their own and they have needed some sort of sleep training - you need to decide for yourself if you want to go down that path and when you would be ready.

I think it may well get harder the older they are though - or in fact take longer - have a look in the sleep section...

Saw hv today and she siad that by 7 months and on 3 meals aday they should be able to go without feeds in the night. However, as dd is small then I should continue for another month or so.

I think you should just do what you're happy with - yes babies at that age are probably able to go without night feeds but if you dont mind doing it then I dont see that it really matters.

I think what she was trying to say - in their usual hamfisted way - is that you probably neednt worry if shes hungry because it may well be more habit than hunger...did she mean 'small' as in falling through percentiles or small generally?

Oh god I feel your pain!!! I have a 6 mo DS2 who has slept through less than the fingers on one hand. DS1 slept through consistently from 12 weeks and was breastfed, DS2 is bottle fed and vastly bigger and on 3 solid meals as well so he should not need feeding surely..? I think I have made it worse for fear of waking up DS1, feeding him is a quick way to get him back to sleep, and therefire doesn't wake up DH who commutes at ungodly hours. He has a dreamfeed at 10pm ish and then another feed anywhere between 2-5pm. I'm trying to gradually reduce the amount he has at this feed, he now has 4oz. Does jst giving them water instead work? Any experience? But I am with you as well on the staying awake bit, I started my day at 4am...

and my typing & spelling is shocking as a result..!

At this age night feeds are completely normal, and 1 feed is very good!

Even the quite strict author of Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child (Marc Weissbluth, advocate of Cry It Out and nap routines) says that babies can need one or two night feeds up to 10 months.

I tried getting my DS down to 1 night feed a few weeks ago (he's just 10mo now) and it was a nightmare. We don't leave him to cry (any more - we did to fix some serious sleep problems at 6mo) and he just was not ready - he genuinely seemed hungry and would settle straight after his feeds. In the last week or so he's consistently (with one teething exception) had just one feed, and slept through once. He just seems to be ready.

Many of us would kill for one night waking at 7 months. My advice would be to try to deal with your own sleep issues rather than your baby's night waking - the BF hormones should make it easier for you to sleep so it seems a bit odd.

I have a comfy feeding chair in DS's room, have the light down very low and don't do anything to wake myself up. I used to like to read but that really made things worse as it woke me up more.

Good luck and I hope you manage to get back to sleep after your feeds!

chairmummiaow - yes they are normal if you dont do anything about it - and thats fine if you're ok with it.

and for all the babies that eventually go through themselves there are lots of others still waking up a lot older. It then becomes a bit of a gamble doesnt it - how long do you leave it to sort itself out before it becomes obvious that you're going to have to intervene bearing in mind that any sort of sleep training gets harder as they get older - its a tricky one isnt it...

Well we're waiting till around a year if he's still waking once every night. I'm comfortable with this as all of the baby rearing schools of thought (that I've come across) seem to think that by a year, they don't need a night feed.

I suppose its a trade off - a bit more sleep versus the very real chance that your baby is actually hungry when they wake...

Yes, she is small. 2nd centile for weeks. although has just started to push towards the 9th (think this is why the hv said don't change anything).

Anyway last night she woke at 1.45 and I was soooooo tired I said to dh to go and out her dummy in because I couldn't get up. I was expecting to have to feed her within 20 mins. No.... she slept until 4.30. I gave her a tiny feed ('cos I didn't want her to reduce her 7am feed) and she went back to sleep until after 7.

Guess she doesn't really need the early one afterall.