5 month old - HELP!

[Lollipop17]

Hi All,

I really could do with some advice - I am exhausted.

My baby boy is 5.5 months old. He's never been the greatest sleeper - he's always woke about twice a night for a feed (about midnight and 4am). I was ok with this, I could handle that sort of disrupted sleep. However, since around 4 months he's started waking 3+ times a night. It's got worse, the last week or so he's awake every 1-1.5 hours!!!

I am trying to leave him in his cot, so he doesn't get into a habit of wanting to be rocked/cuddled to sleep. He's boy drinking an oz and then he's falling back asleep, until the next hour so I don't think it's that he is hungry. I think he's being very needed as (I know I shouldn't but I'm desperate for sleep) if I take him in my bed when I'm at the end of my tether at 3am, he sleeps until about 7!

We have a nightly routine of bath, cuddles and 8oz milk between 7-7:30pm. He has no trouble getting to sleep - usually he has around 2 naps per day for an hour max at a time.

We recently started him on solids to see if this would help. Initially he was having baby porridge on a morning but we upped this to half a jar on an afternoon. We have also been giving him (on HV advice) 2.5ml nurofen to help with any teeth etc.

Sorry for the long post but I would appreciate any ideas..... this is so tiring 😩

If you need more info, just ask. Thank you for reading :)

Ds is 9 months and I'm still shattered after a broken night's sleep last night but promise you it does get better. I have had a few nights uninterrupted and it's been bliss.

Babies wake up for all different reasons (windy tummy bubbles, teeth, hunger, temperature, growth spurts/developmental leaps or sometimes comfort & just wanting a cuddle from Mummy.) What has made it easier for me is to not expect baby to sleep right through and just to take each night as it comes.

The first 6 months are the hardest and the whole first year certainly the most trying. This is because baby is rapidly developing in some major areas e.g: motor skills, speech, movement; it's all happening. They are still so tiny in the first year and do need lots of comfort and sometimes there's no rhyme or reason to it. Babies at this age aren't needy by any means as they are very little still. I noticed a turning point with DS at 6.5 months (his sleep got so much better then.) however no 2 nights are the same; he can sleep through 10 hours or wake up multiple times if something is bothering him. I just bring him in my bed if he wakes up upset and put him back in his cot when he falls asleep again. This hasn't caused any bad habits as he still has nights where he sleeps right through in his cot.

My advice is give baby all the comfort and security needed and one day baby will sleep through. Mine did and he used to be the worst sleeper and a little catnapper not having more than 30 minute naps . He now does 2 x 2 hour ones!! So there is hope!
I didn't sleep train or do anything and found ds just developed over time and did it himself. I don't believe in cry it out and have taken a more relaxed approach and in letting ds sleep when he's tired (haven't forced a bedtime) and comforted him when he's upset and it's meant now he sleeps most nights right through and he gets grumpy if me and dh don't put him to bed on time! Your baby will get there.
Sleep when baby sleeps. don't pressure yourself to do anything and take any 'you' time when you're able to get any. This phase WILL pass.

This is completely normal, it sounds like the 4 month sleep regression. It’s reslly hard but do whatever you can to maximise rest. I cosleep with my 11 month old and have done since she was tiny, it’s the only way we can all rest.

Mine was exactly the same from 4 months onwards! Honestly your OP could have been written about my DS! He's now 6 months and things have really really improved. It's nothing I've done, I think it's all developmental. He's now back to 1-2 wake ups and napping in the day much better. I'd recommend co sleeping to see you through - it was the only way I got sleep. It does get better!

You could maybe give a dummy instead of a feed at night?

Have you tried taking one side off your cot and wedging it up to your bed like a sidecar? It means you can cuddle baby to sleep and dummy insert, but in such a way that you don't need to lift or move baby from the cot.

It's a great, gentle way to teach independent sleeping.