How to sleep train?

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My daughter is 7 months.. and wakes average 4 times a night for a bottle she doesn't need 🙄 she wakes and drinks an once, maybe 2, but that is all..
So I'm looking for some advice on sleep training methods please? My last one is didn't sleep through til 11 months, when she still woke 4/5 times a night! Then I just had enough and ignored her for 2 nights and she's been fine ever since :) but I feel bad doing that for this one as she is a. It younger, opinions please? 💕

Babies (well most people in fact) wake for a variety of reasons throughout the night. Hunger, thirst, comfort, too hot/cold etc etc. Obviously as adults (and more able children) we can satisfy these needs for ourselves, but babies need heir parents to do it for them. That's why she may not always have her bottle, that's not her need right then.

She's very young to do sleep training. I recommend reading the Gentle Sleep Book, it's a great read. And perhaps trying to settle without a bottle at some of the wakings.

I know it's hard. I have an 8 month old and a 2 year old. I am tired!

I do wonder about her being young, but then I've googled before and read about sleep training as young as 4 months 🤔 so that's why I thought I'd just ask other people their experience..

When she wakes I don't get her out her cot
(She's next to my bed) I just offer her some milk and then she self settles again, so settling her without bottle I wouldn't really know where to start now cus I don't do much more than a feed!

Very tiring ha, bless us

I only have 1 daughter so only done it once but it worked and it was great.

In total it took 1 week to do. I'd put her to bed awake, with her dummy and dream sheep on so it was a routine, and sit next to the cot but facing away. Every time she spit her dummy out she'd cry and I'd put it back in, but not a word to her. Keep doing this until she falls asleep.

Night 1 took almost 2 hours, night 2 around an hour, then it pretty much halved each night until she'd fall asleep pretty much straight away. After probably night 3 I could sit in her feeding chair in the corner of the room rather than right next to too.

She's gone to bed perfect ever since and she's now almost 2

ZombieMama42
How old was baby when you did this? Sounds good! Expect mine doesn't have a dummy, she refused to!

Have you tried sending dh in with the bottle?
Ds would wake for bf several times - just to resettle not feed. .
Sent dh in with a bottle of formula - had an ounce and fell asleep
Second night dh offered water and ds had none!
Third night dd slept through 12 hours and has done for many months now at 2.7!!

6/7 months

Yeah, if they don't use a dummy then that's fine, just get into a bed time routine like jammies, feed, and if you guys use any sleep aid and try the same method. Fingers crossed for you, Hun.

Dh sleeps downstairs cus he has uni, so I choose to handle the nights and he gets up with our toddler, so getting him to do the feed wouldn't work.. I might try offering water though, but I bet she drinks it and wakes loads haha, worth a try! I don't like letting her cry it out cus she gets so upset, but neither of us sleep at night and both of us need to to cope with the day! So perhaps it worth trying again

I used the Good Sleep Guide by Angela Henderson for my DD at 6 months. Actually the health visitor recommended it so I felt confident doing it. My DD became a much better sleeper very quickly and I've never looked back
www.amazon.co.uk/Good-Sleep-Guide-Holistic-Parenting/dp/1907359001?tag=mumsnetforum-21

Apart from my first I,shut door on them all,at 9 months. They all learned to sleep through within four nights. They all,sleep better now than the eldest who was mollycoddled and persuaded to settle using every means possible. 7 months is probably OK but for me it still felt nearer to young baby than a 9 month old. By 9 months they could sit themselves up, roll over easily etc.

Sorting this is dh responsibility too!!
You getting a full night 's sleep will benefit the whole family and dh should want to contribute to you feeling better so stop being a martyr!!
Asking for him to pitch in for a few nights doesn't mean you aren't coping you know!!

I might get that book this week then!

I agree the age is still where I'm unsure 🤔 she sits and rolled very well (of course I know there is more to it than that) but it may still be too soon for her

And dh does offer to help me, I just know the routine better and prefer doing it myself, plus I'd wake when he was up anyway and hear the crying etc so makes no difference really, I'm asking for help on here though 🙂 always good to hear from other mummies!

Just updating..

So last night i fed water when she first woke up, she drank around 3 ounces then went back to sleep.

She then woke again a couple of hours later on and I offered the remaining ounce which she drank, but then cried because she wanted more, I left her to see if she would self settle but then became a little bit invested and let her cry it out (took 40 mins) until she fell asleep.

My question now is, tonight after she has had her bedtime bottle, do I offer water again when she wakes? Or bite the bullet and just deal with crying for a few days, because I'm concerned if I offer water instead of milk that she'll just wake up for that and not break the habit (she likes water)

Thanks :)

But she might be thirsty?!

If you read my original post, I mention that she very rarely drinks more than an ounce he her bottles. She wakes up 5 times sometimes without even drinking a half a bottle throughout the night, it's just habit really

Blank, I'm sorry, I'm going to have to respectfully disagree with you. Being thirsty doesn't mean that you have to gulp down gallons of water, sometimes a sip is enough to satiate your need.

When you say she's waking up and crying, is this full scale crying or a little murmur? If she's full scale crying, she needs something, even if it's just a bit of reassurance. If it's just a murmur, of course leave her for a few minutes to see if she goes back to sleep, but I think it's very unfair to leave a very young baby alone, in the dark, screaming because it's 'habit'.

It's okay I found a technique that works.
My room is dimly lit with a white noise on and she is directly next to my bed, she doesn't full scale scream, she just cries in and off.

Last night she woke up the first time for 30 mins, I let her cry it every 10 minutes I shushed her and rubbed her back (this settled her back down and she calmed instantly) but I didn't do it too long so she self settles still.

The second time she woke I didn't even have to intervene! After 10 mins of on of crying/murmuring she fell back asleep, then I fed her a bottle soon as she woke up, seems to be making good progress and she coped really well!