hungry baby - wwyd?

[firsttimer78]

DS1 is 18 weeks old and, after a period of sleeping through the night, has over the past 4 weeks increasingly woken for feeds through the night (EBF) to the point that he is now up every 1.5 hours! Advice from the HV is one of the following and I'm having trouble making a decision so would appreciate your opinions/experiences!
Option 1 - express milk during day so DH can give him some feeds at night (quite when I'm supposed to express with a lively baby who feeds lot and sleeps little is another matter!)
Option 2 - give him a top-up formula feed at around 10.30pm.
Option 3 - get him onto solids.
WWYD?

Meant to say formula might not help.

My DD (16 weeks)is night waking after previously sleeping through. My HV advised putting baby rice in a bottle of formula before bed. When I said she is a total bottle refuser (EBF)she advised me to start weaning as the guidelines are about to change again.

Went on a weaning course yesterday run by children's nurse and a HV and they both said start at four and a half months.

I have older children who were weaned at 4 months (guidelines at the time) and I know my DD is now ready - but there's something reassuring about being given the go ahead by the professionals. I'd probably have waited a bit longer if they'd told me to.

So to answer your question, at 18 weeks, I would wean xx

Thanks again everyone. Think this has been my first proper 'wah, what do I do for the best?!' of parenting so it's been helpful to read the different opinions of those who've been there, done that!

No idea on the BF side, but everyone who has said 4mths is common growth spurt age is absolutely right.

Stick with it for another week and see how he does.

I never found that weaning made a difference, tbh. They take in much more nutrition from a feed than the wee bit of baby rice.

the NHS and DOH advice is that increased night waking is NOT a sign of readiness for food, but for more milk

and to the poster whose HV advised rice in the bottle !! Words fail me, it's a choking hazard, it's not healthy, it;s outdated advice and can lead to obesity if done with regularity , it also can lead to dehydration as it alters the water/food balance in the bottle. formula HAS to be made up accordking to instructions to ensure it is safe. adding anything to the bottle is absolutely not advised

if your baby is draining a 9 oz bottle every hour, i'd swtich to hungrier baby mikl, but if a baby is that hungry, why would a spoon of rice or mashed carrot be more satisfying than milk

if breastfeedign, more breastfeeds is the answer.

Both mine had a growth spurt at 4 months.

With DS1, it coincided with just about every sign there is to say he was ready to wean. He was actually drooling when he saw food, and trying to snatch it off our plates. I felt almost cruel letting him be in a room where adults were eating. He started baby rice, and slept through again from that night.

DS2, breastfed, clearly not remotely interested in food at that point, tried to increase the breastfeeds, but was suffering from thyroid problems and it nearly floored me, so I introduced two formula feeds. Still didn't help with the night feeds, and he didn't sleep through until I weaned at 5 months.

If your baby's clearly ready to wean, then wean. if not, and you can stand the increased BFs then do that. If it's too much for you, then a bottle of formula.

(Better mention that, once I'd introduced formula, the breastfeeds carried on for another two months, but at sic months, he was refusing at some feeds, and trying to grab my changing bag where I kept the bottles!)

six months

Def option one if just riding the storm and bf as and when isn't an option. Dd did this too.

I second everything QueenOfFlamingEverything said, i really couldn't have said it better myself.
Am shaking head in disbelief at rice in baby bottle suggestion.

Sorry, meant to add my own experience. DS went through a particularly gruelling stage at 4 months, although had never slept through, so it didn't feel so bad IYSWIM :o
I got through it by co-sleeping and trying to grab sleep during the day. He improved slightly at 5 months (pre-weaning) and sleep improved drastically at around 9 months, which I'm pretty sure was due to him moving around more and generally getting more tired during the day.
Keep it up, it will pass :)