4 month sleep regression- light at the end of the tunnel

[nearlymumofone]

I posted here a while back about the hell i was goig through with the 4 month sleep regression. And it really was hell. However I've been meaning to post here to let anyone going through it know there is light at the end of the tunnel. DS hit it at 16 weeks, and it lasted till 6 months, with the worst weeks being form 16-20 weeks. I was EBF at the time and I think this actually didn't help the sleep sitruation, at 5 months i introduced solids and a bottle, he was established on solids by 6 months and ff and slept through the night without waking. I can't tell whether the formula or solids helped, whether it was either or both, but his sleeping well coincided with him being well satisfied and full (he was very poor at bf and not gaining weight so it wasn't going well at hence i gave in at 5 months). We also introduced a blankie which was a godsend and put him in his own room. All of which seemed to positively contribute to him sleeping well. Maybe the regression would have passed without us doing these things, however they seemed to work well for us. Now DS is 9 months and unless he's ill/teething sleeps through the night (from 6.30-6.30 ish).

I just wanted to give hope to anyone going through it at the minute that it will get better.

Thanks Bet01 I have a baby bjorn, which I love, she doesn't sleep in that either!

My mum keeps saying, what a lovely wide awake baby...I might trottle her soon!

I do need to lose some weight so...maybe.

However I'm not using my baby carrier much at the moment as it is hot and sunny again, finally, I was wondering when summer was going to start.

We have come out of the otherside with the growth spurt, for a week she was waking every hour to feed over night. Last night she fed at 7, went down at 8 after a battle. She didn't wake until 4.30 for a feed. Straight back down and then slept to 730. I feel like a different woman today.

She has even had a hours sleep in her cot by herself this morning.

We will battle through this! This to shall pass

Wow Chica that is one alert baby! I stand corrected on the sling solution, but at least it's getting better for you. Last night wasn't quite as good as the previous couple but not back to square one: asleep at 9.30pm to 1.45am, then woke at 3.30, 4.30 and 5.30. Managed to stay in bed until 6.50 by feeding him. So not great but the first stint was good. Also got him in his cot for that bit!
We also had a ruddy awesome 2 hour nap from 9am-11am!
How was everyone else's night?

Hi all, and hello chica
I think, or at least I really really hope that we are in a growth spurt, he fed every 2hours last night and had a random bit at about 4am when I changed his nappy, put him back down and he fell asleep fine but woke up after 20mins and DH had to rock him then brought him into bed. We did stay in bed until 8 though. He has fed quite a bit this morning so far so staying hopeful!
bet sorry your night was not quite so good but the first bit is great, and brilliant nap too.
DS having a great lunchtime sleep now (famous last words...)
hope apple and chop had good nights

Hey, sorry your night wasn't as good bet. Good first stint though, I always feel better when the first stint is longer. Great nap too!

Wow chica great sleeping!

Borg DS has that random awake thing some mornings. Glad you got him back off though.

Our night was better, down at 8.30, fed at 2 and 5.30, up at 8.30! He was very awake and excited to see me at 5.30! Naps have gone wonky today though. Although he is asleep in his cot as I type, 45 mins and counting.

Hopefully tonight is better again for everyone :)

Hey. I know this is probably not what you want to hear or what MN like to advocate, but DS showed a massive improvement when on solids and formula. He was definately hungry (not gaining weight) and I believe that's what was causing the greatest problem. He started on solids gradually at 19 weeks and formula gradually at 5 months. It didn't work over night but by 6 months he was sleeping through the night (at this point he was well established on 3 meals a day and 5 formula feeds). It's possible he would have done this anyway had I continued to EBF and waited till 6 months to introduce solids, but my feelin is that the formula and being established on solids worked for us. I had only ever planned to EBF until 6 months anyway, so it wasn't much earlier. Having said that I did go through a massive guilt thing for about a fortnight when i originally introduced formula, and I fought doing it for weeks. Now I look back it was the best thing I did.

And if it's any consolation, during Ds sleep regression I was obsessed by it! It really was hell (he averaged on waking 5-7 times a night, 3-4 feeds at least and that's after taking hours to settle!!!). But everything is good now, and it will be for you, in time. Stick with it.

Morning all, how were your nights? I'm sorry to say ours was dreadful! He went to sleep at 9.30pm on my lap but just when I was about to take him to bed he woke up again. Took him anyway at 10pm, he wouldn't settle in the cot so in bed with us again!
I fed him to sleep by 10.30pm and looked at my watch next at 2am but I definitely fed him before then. I was definitely awake with him every hour after that. I also couldn't sleep, to make matters worse.
DS was really restless too. He was shaking his head from side to side, rubbing his eyes, and somehow wriggling near to me so he could rest his head on my boob! He seemed less hungry and more restless last night actually.
I'm wondering whether I should change my diet to include less sugar and caffeine? I did overdo it a bit yesterday as was so knackered. No more frapuccinos for me! I'll try that and also get some hungry baby milk too.
Nearlymumofone- I agree with you about ebf. DS wriggles over to me in bed to feed whenever he fancies it, maybe because it's there. Also breastmilk is digested quicker isn't it? I'm going to give DS his first solids on Saturday and also introduce a bottle before bed and see what happens.
Cross-eyed with tiredness this morning!

Oh Bet what a night! I hope you're taking it easy today - have you got anyone to help you with DS so you can get couple of hours kip?

I'm pretty sure I read that you have to drink LOADS of caffeine for it to make any difference to your breast milk. I'm a massive coffee drinker (more so now!) so when I was breastfeeding I did quite a lot of reading about it.

Here: www.babycentre.co.uk/baby/youafterthebirth/nutrition/caffeineandbreastfeeding/

We had a mixed night.. took an hour and a half to get him down. DP and I ended up having to hold his legs and arms down whilst he dropped off as he kept waking himself up. If I wasn't so tired I would have found in amusing. He then woke at 10.30 and then 3.30 shouting and wide awake. I gave him 4oz if hungry milk but he still wasn't drowsy. I couldn't get up at 3.30am thats def the middle of the night so my DP went and slept in the spare room and I put ear plugs in and we just let him shout. He wasn't crying just shouting and awake and must have dropped of. He woke and did the same at 5.30 and I was going to get up but he shouted himself to sleep again and the next thing I knew I woke up and it was 7.40am and he was still snoozing.

I think it's made me realise I've been getting him up instead of letting him shout and ignoring him! Does anyone else's baby do that?

Just realised how long and boring this post it. Its funny how obsessive this sleep thing gets - I spose its when you're not getting any!

borg and chop hope you're still getting improvements? How was your night?

Chica - sorry I missed you off! Did you also have another good night last night?

Sorry to say our night was not much better than yours! He went to sleep at 8, woke at 11ish so not bad there. DH tried him with some formula but he's a bit of a boob monster (DS not DH!, although thinking of it DH is too!), and refused it, DH persevered and rammed 20mls down him but he was crying and spluttering then went to sleep until 1. He also woke at 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and DH took him away and I slept until about 830 so feel quite good now.
I can't remember what I did at each wake up but I think he is getting dependent on being fed to sleep. This is annoying as he has always gone to sleep by himself pretty well, but when he was doing his 30min to 1 hourly wakings after and during his cold I just fed him as I was too knackered to try anything else, aargh now need to try and sort this out. Thought it may have been a growth spurt but the 20ml then sleep seems to disprove this
Sorry for ramble apple he had a little shout getting to sleep (the only time he wasn't fed to sleep I think), but in the night I always worry about DH having to be up for work so I usually pick him up once he starts to cry. I could leave him a bit maybe??
bet oh no! hope you manage to get some rest today.
nearlymum thanks for the tip, DS only 17weeks so not keen to wean yet and as mentioned he is not a great fan of the bottle! He still poos loads so I don't think his guts are mature enough for food yet!

He also woke at 3, 4, 5, 6, 7

Jeez, I feel like crying for you. What a horrendous night. Really hope you get some sleep today. Wish there was something useful I could say..

Thanks apple, it seems worse written down, TBH I feel better being on this thread. If one of us has a good night then I think "great, there is hope" whereas if we're having bad nights at least we can sympathise!
I have ended up up feeding him to sleep for this morning nap as he was getting hysterical, he wasn't hungry. I am doomed. I can't believe this time a few weeks ago I just popped him in his cot, rubbish!

Poor you Borg. Applecharlotte, sounds ok-ish? I know this won't last forever but I can't help really questioning how we chose to parent DS. Like we should have him on a routine, he should be able to nap in his cot, I've created a rod for my own back having him in bed with us and feeding him to sleep. Etc. But when you're so sleep deprived you just do what's easiest! Thanks for the link about caffeine, that's put my mind at rest!

Borg, I suppose we shouldnt worry too much about feeding to sleep because our babies used to self settle and now don't, with no change from us, proving that they change their own little minds all the time no matter what we do!

Hi Bet, you're right, i know people who have tried hard to get their babies to self settle (i.e. cry it out etc.) and then they develop more and just stop anyway. It just seems that they (the babies) will do their own thing, and sort their sleep out themselves and there is probably nothing we can do. I'm sure you parent your DS really well, just think how happy and safe he feels in bed with you and how nice it must be to be fed to sleep rather than be left crying.

Saying that, DS went down wide awake tonight without a fuss and went to sleep in about 5 mins so he can still do it! I doubt this will make a difference to tonight but I live in hope!

Hope everyone has better nights tonight

Borg, that's good to know! How was everyone's night?
Mine was terrible, feel like giving up today! DP worked very late which didn't help matters as I was texting him to check when he was coming home. This is what I think happened: fed to sleep at 9.30, fed again at 11pm, 1.15pm, 1.30am, 2am, 2.45am, 4.30am, 5.30am, 6.15am and DP took him at 6.50am and I had an hour in bed. I couldn't sleep to make matters worse so was awake between 1 and 3. So bored of this now!
Anyone got any good news to share?!

Morning.. what a night Bet! You must be shattered today. Its so annoying when you get a bit of time to sleep and then can't! It's as if us mums have to be on constant alert - or thats what our bodies think anyway!

If its any consolation, I think we're out the other side now - which means that you can't be far off?

Fed at 6.30pm. Let him chat/shout himself to sleep between 7.15 - 7.45. We've been bouncing him to sleep in our arms but he's just too heavy for me to do this anymore - my back is shot. DP doesn't get home from work till 8pm ish so he can't do it.

Anyway, he woke at 12.30 and chatted a bit, but i left him and he dropped back off. Fed at 2am, pretty much a dream feed. Then he woke at 4.30, shouted for a few minutes then dropped off then woke for the day at 5.30 and I left him to shout and chat for half an hour then got up at 6am with him.

I feel a normal level of tiredness today. Going to head out for a walk round the park later as I'm scared if I don't get out and do something I won't tire him out enough!

How's everyone else doing?

I'm glad things are improving for you Applecharlotte, sounds like a pretty ok night last night. Weirdly I feel ok. Managed to have a nap with DS from 9.30-11am. Without the nap I don't think I'd be functioning!
I'm hoping you're right about almost getting through it now. To be honest there's no more hours in the night for him to wake up in without being constantly awake!
Hope things were better for everyone else?

apple great news!
bet am afraid I have to join you on the rubbish night, I can't even recall how often I was up. Have not managed to nap today as all naps have been in the pram and he has pinged awake as soon as we get home. I'm dreading the weekend as DH is on nights so really hope tonight is a bit better.

Oh Borg, it's even worse when you can't nap with them isn't it? I've just managed to get DS to nap on my bed by feeding him to sleep. I was a bit worried he'd get confused it was nighttime but he doesn't seem to.
How was last night for everyone? Ours was OK-fed to sleep at 10pm, woke up at 3 but shushed back to sleep til 4. After that I stopped looking at the clock, but I certainly feel less tired today so I think there were less wakings. Also he was less hungry when he woke so maybe we've passed the worst of it. Not sure, taking one day at a time really!

Bet that sounds really positive, the first stretch was great, really hope it continues tonight. How old is your DS, just wondering how much longer I have of this! Last night was much the same but he woke for the day at 6 rather than 7/730 which was rubbish. He managed to nap in his cot for a bit but it was when then gasman was here so I couldn't get to bed. Tried in vain a few times to go to bed with DS, close my eyes and the would open them and he would just be staring at me giggling, i think he thought it was some kind of hilarious game!

Well it looks as though things have picked up for apple

Right off to bed, 9pm on a friday, have been in my PJs since 730

Off to bed for me as well. Things seem to be changing for the better on this thread.. I hope it continues. I'm heading to my mums for 10 days for some much needed childcare assistance so won't be able to post. Good sleeping vibes to you all, thanks for letting me vent on here with dull postings about our sleeping patterns :)

Borg, you can tell I'm tired, I put the wrong time on my last post! I should have said woke at 1am and patted to sleep til 2am! So not as great a stint but not bad.
We're trying to put DS down in his cot which we managed last night but he only did 9.30-11.15 before waking up. I don't know if it was being in the cot that woke him up. After that I think it was hourly again though can't be sure. DS is 16 weeks now and this is the 14th night we've had of it so I hope we turn a corner soon!

I blame apple for jinxing us with that "things changing for the better" statement, I'll just blame her. Hope you have a nice time at your mums
Well we did very slightly better last night, he woke up every 2 hours or so until about 5 then faffed around until about 7. Unfortunately woke up in the middle somewhere by a neighbours house alarm. I then got up to see if he would take some water instead of being fed again but he looked horrified!
Bet did you bring him back into bed after that? It doesn't seem to make much of a difference for us, I'd be happy to co-sleep if it made things any better! Not sure he is feeding too well in the daytime now, I think I must be stuffing him at night, boo

I blame Apple too, seeing as she's not here!
Ruddy alarms, they're such a pain. We live in the middle of London so we get really loud police sirens at all hours, which DS manages to ignore now.
How was last night? We had another two hours in the cot, and yes then in bed with me and DP. I don't think it makes him sleep any better either, but it's easier to have him next to me so I can bf him lying down.
I think overall he woke less last night. We're still not getting a longer first stint, but I don't think he's waking every hour after that any more. I don't look at the clock any more tbh!
We tried him with some mashed banana and baby porridge this morning. totally uninterested! Just looked confused and spat it out, so I'll take that to mean he's not ready. Will try again in a couple of weeks I think.
So, fingers crossed for us all again tonight...