6 Month Old Not Sleeping At Night...Help

[mumbrain37]

Hi. I wonder if anyone can share their experiences or advice about this?

As title, our 6 m/o DD has lost her ability to sleep the past 3 weeks or so and we need help.

Our health visitor hasn't been very useful - just asked if we're feeding DD enough (she's taking around 900 ml formula and 3 x solids daily)

GP has brushed us off with "some babies don't sleep". But meanwhile we're exhausted and getting desperate.

DD slept fine until 4 m/o, though not self soothing so being rocked to sleep she was just waking a few times in the night for a dummy, which was fine.

We began gentle sleep training with controlled crying around 4 and half months and DD could then self sooth, could get herself off without rocking and sleep was fine mostly through the night.

She has just turned 6 months and night time sleep has been awful the past 3 weeks or so; needing rocking to sleep every time, then waking every 15 minutes or so.

We will put her to bed around 6pm, needing to rock her to sleep, and then she'll wake after around 15-20 minutes, need rocking back to sleep repeatedly until around midnight when she'll sleep for maybe an hour and then back to waking every 15-20 mins until around 3-4 am when she's awake for good until maybe 9am and daytime naps begin every 2 hours - she'll then nap for maybe 20-30 mins.

I've read that 6 month sleep regression is a thing and also potentially teething, but what is quite annoying is that most the time when she wakes we'll pick her up to sooth her and she'll give us a big cheeky grin! Which leads me to think it's not pain waking her up.

Thanks for reading

What would happen if you try to bring her in the bed with you?

This happened to my ds at every sleep regression possible! He has always been a horrible sleeper. Download the wonderweeks app, it shows the times your baby will go through a developmental leap and will be more fussy, (doesn't stop it from happening but at least you know when its coming).

Sleep deprivation is hell so you have my sympathy but my ds is now 17 months and has only slept through a handful of times. It will come one day haha!

Op I feel for you..... have you tried white nose and a dummy? It does sound like a phase, I hope it is for your sakes as no sleep is the absolute pits..... good luck 

Thanks for your replies.
To answer some questions: we're trying co-sleeping as of last night - DH attempted it and it made no difference, he had a terrible night of her waking every 15 mins and needing rocking (well, bouncing on a exercise ball) back to sleep until he gave up at 4am and they had better sleep sitting in an armchair together for a couple of hours.

I'm co-sleeping tonight and we started at 7pm which went well but then I came downstairs after an hour she woke, needing bouncing back to sleep a few times.

She's been taking Gaviscon infant for months due to suspected silent reflux, so I don't think that's the trouble. Plus, as I say, this only started around 3 weeks ago. The only time she's ever been unsettled at night before was with a bad cold.

We do try to use a dummy but mostly she just spits it out. We went through a phase of using white noise when she was very young (maybe a month old) and not sure if it made a difference because her sleep seemed to improve pretty quickly at that age anyway.

What seems a bit odd is that her naps are okay still - around 45 mins, or actually 2 hours today, but maybe that was because she was exhausted after such a bad night. But at night time she's not even reaching a full sleep cycle. I just don't see why she wakes after 15 mins. We've been considering it could be hunger but she takes 5 feeds of 150 - 180 ml formula with 3 baby meals daily which I'm sure is plenty.

I just don't know what to do. We're considering paying a sleep consultant for advice but cynical DH thinks we'll just be told to use PUPD and not much else.

Did it start roughly when you started weaning her? Could it be something in the evening meal is not agreeing with her or an allergy? Are her nappies OK? Any mucous? Constipation?

Strangely, the first really bad night we had was literally the day before starting solid foods! She seemed very windy / uncomfortable that night and was crying out and farting a lot. We thought that some solids might help with wind and also reduce any hunger pangs.

She then settled for a few nights - maybe a week and then the bad times began. So, it's possible that the solids are having a negative impact.

We had her on Nutramigen for around 8 weeks because we thought she may have had a lactose intolerance, then eventually moved to Hipp Organic, which she's been on for maybe 2-3 months, seemingly without issue.

Anyway, we're going to try tomorrow without solids to see if she sleeps better and then slowly introduce solids again and keep a diary.

Oh, her poops are mustard colour and often very formed to begin then wetter. No mucus. Poops around every 2 days. The Gaviscon is well known to cause constipation, so she has lactulose if not pooping for few days.

Breast or bottle fed?

Do you offer milk overnight?

Sorry, I see you've sad a type of formula, so assume not breastfeeding as well.

Also what solids are you offering?

Fruit/veg puréed have less calories than breastmilk or formula, but are quite 'filling' in terms of taking up tummy room and potentially reducing milk intake if a lot of solids given.

It's normal for babies to take milk overnight well beyond 6 months.

No, we stopped night feeds a little while back. I'll give her a feed tonight if she's unsettled (she will be!) and see what happens. Thanks

So, night before last, I co-slept and it was better - she woke maybe every hour but quickly settled when I gave her a dummy.
Last night DH was with her and she slept well, in her cot from 7 to 2.30am, then woke and he gave her a bottle to see if she was hungry but she wouldn't go back to sleep. At 4.30am he came to get me because he was out of ideas and I managed to get her to sleep in bed with me in about 20 minutes. DH is now beginning to think that she won't co-sleep with him, just me.

So, looks like it's not hunger. We're taking a break from solids today to see if it makes a difference. DH is with her again tonight.

I'm keeping this updated because it's helpful for me to have a record and it could be helpful for others.