17 months and never slept through the night!!!!

[Rightnow1245]

Hi,

So I need help with what to do with my little boy at night! I really have no clue how to get him to sleep through the night!
So I’ll give you a little background info and any advice will be great.

He has never been a great sleeper but he has a good routine, well I think it’s good!
He is still breastfeeding so no formula and he eats everything.

7.30: He gets up in the morning
8.30 breakfast
9.30 head out for the morning to an activeity or to meet friends.
Lunch at 12/12.15

Breastfeed 12.30
Naps between 12.45/1 for 2 hours
Wakes anytime from 3
3.30 Snack once he wakes
Then sometime we will do stuff in the afternoon but normally not much as it gets dark so early.
6.30 dinner
7-7.30
7.30 bath and book ready to breastfeed at 8 and in bed no later than 8.15 and self settles to sleep by 8.30ish

This is where the problem starts he then wakes at 2.30am, 4.30am and 6.30am for breastfeeding and then up at 7.30.
I have tried to cut the milk out but he just screams and screams and won’t sleep until I give in...we have spend hours at night trying to settle him back to sleep without milk but nothing works..

Help needed please xx

I'd go completely cold turkey with the breastfeeding and give him a bit of cows milk before bed and if he wakes in the night water down the milk until eventually it will just be water and he won't wake for that believe me!

Others might not agree with me but I've got 5 children (the youngest being 2) that I did this with and it worked

Also I think he's having he's tea too late and going bed far too late.
I'd bring his tea forward to 4:30-5 and have him bathed and in bed for 6:30pm

My ff feed DD was off milk by that age but woke up at least that often for cuddles or to tell me something.

At 9 months ds was waking 5/6 times to bf.
Sent dh in with a bottle and he had an ounce. Second night refused any milk. Third night slept 7-7 and has ever since.
Send dh in and cold turkey with bf during the night. The fact your ds will settle initially is great!!

Just to give you hope, mine is 20 months and slept through for the last three nights in a row for the first time!!

Mine didn't sleep though until I night weaned at 20 months. It's habit and comfort rather than hunger.

Feel your pain, my 17 month old is a bit like this but has improved the last few weeks, averaging 1 night feed. One thing that has helped a bit is giving him weetabix just before bathtime with loads of milk. He also has all 16 teeth so thinking he has less niggling him.

Going cold turkey with breastfeeding is not good advice unless you're ready to stop. My DS stopped breastfeeding at 17mo and still doesn't sleep through at 2 years old!

Thank you all for your message!
He can’t have cows milk as he is allergic to it but I guess I could give him oatmilk which is what I use for breakfast?
I’m not ready to give the breastfeeding up yet as it’s proven to be beneficial to them if you can keep doing it to age 2.

We did try an early bedtime uhtredsonofuhtred and found he was waking at 5am for the day! That just isn’t the life for me lol... so we had to push bedtime back 😬

jackshouse how many times a night would your little one wake?

madeforthis I Defo think it’s a comfort thing.. maybe I just have to be strong and say no milk at night?

Aprilshowerswontbelong That does sound like a good plan to send DH In.. we have tried this also but maybe not enough 🤔

LiquoricePickle really hope mine is the same! Did you change anything?

bear wow all those teeth! I do the same top him up with some weetabix before bed.. the first part of the night he will sleep mode which makes me think it could be hunger ?

QuilliamCakespeare oh no it’s so hard when they don’t sleep! 😢

It’ll stop eventually - he’s still very young and if feeding him gets him to sleep I’d be grateful you have something so easy and ready to use! I’ve got 8 children (youngest is 2 and wakes once or twice - more if teething/ill etc) all of them bar the 2 yr old sleep through the night - I can promise you that once they reach their teens you wonder if you’ll ever see them again!!! XX

I’ve always taken the stance that if boob does the job we boob! 😃

Yep, it is indeed shit but this too will pass. Good luck!

I had this exact same problem until very recently with my DS who is approaching 16 months. He would not sleep through and it was driving me crazy.

I was constantly online and looking for ideas and in the end it was a book that helped and I would really really recommend it - “Precious Little Sleep”

Eliminating the pre bed feed might be the way to do it as he might be getting too drowsy to properly self settle maybe? I know that was a big one for us! It took a few weeks but finally for the first time ever, he’s been sleeping though 😁

Ps my son still breastfeeds in the day, just not before bed - and because when they wake up they want to be as they were when they went to sleep, he no longer wakes up for boob at night! Phew!

One of my sons was like this, at one point it was every 45 mins He just grew out of it around 20 months.

I Defo think it’s a comfort thing.. maybe I just have to be strong and say no milk at night?

Your choice- weigh up whether you’d rather feed and get back to bed, or have nights where you’re up all night trying to resettle.

I chose to keep feeding at night. It didn’t stop until I stopped bf, but it did stop.

I night weaned at 20 months as I was 18 weeks pregnant and wanted to stop bf before the baby came. It took a coyof weeks. Used the jay Gordon method.

No idea if it works if you don't totally wean and I did both.

Good luck