Growth spurt support thread - I can't find the old one in my sleep deprived state...

[LifeOfKate]

Someone please come and reassure me that this will end in the not too distant future

I'm only two nights into it, I must be a lightweight

Just read on another thread that they can last up to 8 weeks I really will be dead on my feet if that happens

They last usually 3 days ish. Drink plenty and eat lots of chocolate

And read the lovely kellymom as ever.

Think we're coming through it, DS only woke up 4 or 5 times last night

Are you co sleeping? As they do tend to wake more as they smell your milk IME.

4-5 times is exhausting

Have you tried increasing feeds in the day and also doing a dream feed at 10pm ish too?

Sorry I'm just thinking this has been going on since Thursday now, I'd be falling apart with exhaustion by now. Trying to think of ideas...

Hehe, 4-5 times is the norm tbh, I think the minimum amount of times I've been woken is 3 since he was born 15 weeks ago, and that has only been a couple of times!

Do you think more day feeds would help? The trouble is, he doesn't really feed much unless he is really hungry, so not sure how useful that would be. I think he'd probably just end up taking the same amount during the day but spread over more feeds... Not sure I'm entirely willing to go back to the newborn days!

We sort of co-sleep, he is in a bedside cot.

I know you are probably too tired to set one foot in front of the other but I found going out for a long (slow!) walk keeps DS quite snoozy and spaces the feeds out better. I hesitated to suggest it just because sometimes you're just too tired to get you both out. Good luck and well done you. It does pass, honestly!

I'd probably try cluster feeding at bedtime if it was me. So feed at 6pm, 8pm and 10pm and see if it helps night waking?

Feed every 2-3 hours in the day if it was me too. My son by this age was on 3 hourly feeding but NO more than that.

Before you know it, it will get easier. Rest when you can and sleep when they sleep x

I tried feeding at 2 hour intervals in the run up to bedtime last night, including a dream feed where he fed for aaaaages at 10pm, but 2 hours later he was up again for more food Last night wasn't so bad, he was only up every two hours, but I am missing the 3-4 hours he was doing at the beginning of the night a month ago

Roll on 15 years time when I will be trying to get them out of bed at noon

I have to confess when my DD got to a good weight and was feeding well in the day, if she fed at 12 and woke at 2am I was known to not feed her and just replace dummy until slightly later in the night, within a couple of days I'd cut the feeds down at night to 11pm, 3am and 6am. Also did a similar thing with my son but he doesn't take a dummy so he did shout for a short while before dropping off again. But I thought they can't be waking with hunger every 2 hours at night, it's just a habit. Obviously I didn't do it when they were a new born, probably at about 4 months, I think. But maybe that's just me Maybe I'm mean

Hope things get better soon x