Sleep going downhill and don't know why!

[Koogers]

My 7 month old little girl used to be a good-ish sleeper and we had reached a stage where we were putting her down at night awake and she was settling herself (with a dummy) and then pretty much sleeping through the night. These last 3 weeks that's all gone out the window and she has been waking 4/5/6 times a night. I've been going in and putting the dummy in and she's been going back to sleep most of the time but sometimes she's awake and crying for an hour or so. I don't know what's causing her to wake up and don't know what to do to improve the situation but am going back to work in a month and am seriously worried! Any advice would be greatly appreciated as I don't know where we've gone wrong :( any tips on how to teach her to self soothe would be very helpful!

maybe she is hungry?
teething?

She's def not hungry-she's eating really well during the day and I think sometimes it might actually be her body digesting the food that's waking her. It could well be teething - if that's the case do I just need to sit it out and hope it passes?

maybe she gets thirsty in the night, i know i do!
if it's teething then maybe some calpol will help?

no tips just sympathy. my baby slept like a dream in her mini cot until about 6.5 months old... then it went all wrong and she was up all night 5 times like you.

i think its just a phase they go through. I resorted to co sleeping, then mattress on the floor in the room with me...I dont think it did much but at least it disrupted my sleep a little less so I didnt feel so destroyed. I thought it would last forever but....she has just started sleeping through again when she hit the 8 month mark.

so hang in there. it may just be all the teething, sitting up, rolling over, crawling, eating solids, babbling, and even a runny nose...that is keeping her up at night.

it gets better! i am proof...although I heard that at 9 months the same thing happens again... i have that to look forward to/dread :)

Do you think it may be time to ditch the dummy? She may be getting frustrated at waking up without it and then has difficulty going back down again.

I went thru this with dd2 at 5 mths and went thru a few weeks of hell but survived. She is now a massive finger sucker!!

thanks for the messages, good to hear other opinions!
Missytequila-thanks for sharing-definitely good to hear the situation might not be forever!
Thisisyesterday-calpol has been given tonight and although she's still waking she's not as distressed so that's something!
Amijee-I have been thinking about taking he dummy away but thought if teething was the problem, this might not be the right time to do it? How did you do it?just take it away or did you replace it with some other form of soothing?

i thought i should also add that I would not take the dummy away if i were you. my baby did the same thing waking to want it put back... but then she just stopped. now if she goes to sleep with the dummy it just falls out and she does not wake screaming for it...

sometimes I stick it back in,that works to settle her, other times she doesnt want it and only a cuddle or hand on her head tummy will do.