4am

[Fifi5000]

Does anyone have any advice on an early waking 7 month old?

My LO wakes every morning at 4am, still tired but almost impossible to put back down. Usually ends up coming in bed with me and sleeping on the breast.

He now self settles at bedtime, but will wake a few times through the night anyway, needing reassurance and sometimes a feed.

What can I do?!

Naps have also gone to pot a bit, but he’s been like this since birth regardless of how much or little napping he’s done.

So he does actually go back to sleep at 4 on the breast just not in the cot? I would keep doing this for now :) 7 months was hard for me I remember (am now at 9 months) I think there was a growth spurt or something.

The pressure to sleep is lowest in the very early morning. It's therefore not unusual to need to offer baby much more help to sleep at any wake up from about 4am.

I assume you have a ladder of reassurance methods to use? If breastfeeding to sleep and cosleeping is fairly low in your reassuring methods, then you probably will end up with baby on the breast at this time.

You could just accept this and try to find ways to discourage waking up at all, but then if she does wake just get her straight in bed with you.

To lessen the chance of night wakes, you would need to night wean and make sure baby is well fed through the daytime first and foremost. Also well rested through the day, since over tiredness causes early wakes. Then ensure the room stays dark and warm.

Good advice thanks. I have a ladder of reassurance but by 4am my bed is the only thing that works! Unfortunately I don’t think it’s just a phase as he’s been like this since birth.

Is night-weaning ok at 7 months?

I’m working on well-rested during the day, but it’s tricky as I can’t get him to nap in the cot and his buggy naps have been getting shorter!

Night weaning for me at 7 months was out of the question as my little one didn’t eat much. I think only you can answer that but I’m of the belief that babies need milk in the night still up until almost a year, their stomachs are still very small and they still need hydration, it’s of course only up to you though!

Is night-weaning ok at 7 months?

Absolutely you can.

You can start the process of night weaning (as in settling without feeding at night) from as soon as baby has regained birth weight and tracking a centile line. Literally from our of neonatal.

There is nothing, at all, being afraid of in night weaning from a calorific need point of view. The issue with night weaning usually comes from not having an alternate comforting method to use and you can't leave baby not comforted.