4 month old up every hour - sleep regression? Help!

[octoberfarm]

Baby is 4.5 months old and due to milk and soy allergies (now addressed) has generally never been a great sleeper. But about three weeks ago he managed about a week and a half of sleeping through from about 9 to 3/4, and then going back down after a feed until 6:30 - he needed resettling with a dummy throughout the night but compared to where we had been it was bliss.

For the last week or two it's been going rapidly downhill again and he's now waking between every 45 minutes and an hour all night. I try letting him settle himself but he gets hysterical and I'm not feeding him each time he wakes as I know he doesn't need it, but when I do he doesn't seem particularly hungry, just uncomfortable - he'll wake up kicking his legs as if he's in pain and it seems to be worse if he's pooped less than usual in a day, although he pooped right before bed the night before last and it didn't make an ounce of difference.

I have a toddler with special needs and my husband works really long hours. We switch out at 5am so I can grab a few hours then, but I'm on my knees. Tonight he's been up literally every hour for 45 minutes to an hour each time, and has just woken again after just half an hour down.

Does anyone have any suggestions?

That's what we are tempted to do x

Huckleberry says 6.40 but he cant go that long awake...

Adjusting the settings to say he needs more naps might get a time sooner, but if not I'd just go for when he's looking sleepy. You're doing great

Well we got him down with no fuss. 25 mons later he is awake again and wants to feed. Tried to get him back down but I've given up. Brought him back down for a bit. He is very calm. Let's see what happens.

Good luck!

Does anyone else's little ones struggle to stay awake more than an hour in the day? Mine gets really tired at an hour after waking and if I stretch it out longer she can over burst in to tears and is clearly over tired. But I read they should manage 2 hours!

Mine manages 90 mins but 2 hrs is really pushing it and unrealistic I think.

Mine manages 90 minutes at best - tried to stretch it longer the other day and be burst into tears when I kissed him on the nose, so definitely over tired!

How's everyone getting on? Yesterday was a positive disaster over here.

Disaster here too. Cried all night. I'm starting to suspect CMPA.

My LG has CMPA. she was a LOT better when we moved to soy. She was so so clingy before that and cries every time she passed wind. She was obviously a lot younger then but I definitely think getting her off the milk improved everything. As y9u cans we, she still is a rotten sleeper but I can put her down now!!

Aries did you get her tested? I feel like I'm in a world of uncertainty and I'm no anxious. I'd love to be definite about something.

Mine has CMPA and soy protein allergy - we're now on a super hydrolysed formula that's still milk-based but is so broken down that it doesn't cause any issues. My boy used to scream for hours a day and sleep was far worse than it is now (25 minute chunks at best all night) and when we switched to the special formula, he was literally like a different child. He never smiled before and was always in pain - now he spends almost all day smiling. Definitely worth talking to your GP.

Thanks. Glad it has got better for you. He is very happy in the daytime. Gah. My head hurts

His nappies suggest CMPA. But he is very happy during the day. Does that chime with CMPA in your experiences?

I didn't get formally tested, but she had a rash all over her face that flared when she fed, diarrhoea and crying with wind all the time. We switched to hydrolised but she would scream drinking it and went down to drinking no more than 2oz a go, sometimes 0.5. So I requested soy based as me and my siblings were all intolerant and had to have soy milk as babies. But my 1st son was intolerant I am sure of it, he had terrible terrible colic but that GP said if he didn't have a rash and wasn't vomiting then he couldn't be allergic...! So he suffered for months until he naturally seemed to get a bit better around 5 months, possibly when I started weaning him, I can't quite remember.

We ended up going to a GI specialist who tested for blood/mucus in his stool, but there wasn't any. But as he'd been screaming for hours on end in pain every day, fussy/screamy when eating, and symptoms had improved when I'd cut out soy and dairy for 3 weeks (was still BFing then) but returned when I accidentally ate soy, he said it was a fair bet that he had it. Although he did list it as an intolerance rather than an allergy. He did also have a rash around his mouth (still does though!) and was ridiculously gassy. Happiest indicated CMPA too.

Not sure if that's any help @Mississippilessly, sorry, but it'd probably be worth a trip to your GP to ask if nothing else. Up half the night here and goodness me I'm tired.

I’m going to check into this thread! My 17 weekers sleep has been deteriorating over the last 10 days or so after previously doing 9.30-7 with one wake up to feed. We’re now doing 3 wake ups and constant starting to wake up grumbling from about 4am. He will only really nap in the pram or bouncy chair for 30-50 mins, but wants to sleep (and gets really cranky) after about 1 hour 45 so has quite a few naps a day.
All the advice is so conflicting! “Don’t feed them back to sleep but also maybe they’re waking more because they’re hungry from a developmental leap” He starts to get sleepy around 7.30-8 but that’s too early for my bed time and I’m trying to follow the SIDS guidance (though he will be going to bed by himself before 6 months but I still think he’s too little for that at the moment). aaaaargh.
I really struggle with lack of sleep and it’s already killing me and making me foul to live with. to those of you dealing with hourly wake ups!

Sorry to hear you're going through the same thing @birdybirdbird.

How's everyone getting along? Things were starting to look up for a few days here but he's now back to not sleeping for more than half an hour in the day no matter where we put him, for a max of an hour total a day, and up 4-6 times a night again. He's exhausted and I'm so tired. I don't know how to make it better

@octoberfarm &
@Mississippilessly

If you're both still on Mumsnet I'd love to know if/when/how things improved for you. Reading Mississippilessly's posts is like hearing the inside of my head. Feeling so confused, defeated and anxious about my 15 week old's sleep or lack of!

Hope you're both sleeping peacefully a couple of years later!