parenting challenges: weaning or sleeping problems?

[larson]

Anyone having similar problems please let me hear it will be easier soon, as in less then 3 months i should be going back to work:

ON has been mostly an easy baby with normal ups and downs. He is 6months 1 week old and we have started introducing solids 2wks ago: some baby rice, pured carrot, pear and squash. he was offered to suck on cucumber and melon. he appears to enjoy all of these.
however, since this has started his sleep has become totally disturbed and 20min after going down he awakes to do gymnastics in his cot util he starts crying, i help him back to sleep and so on again for few hours each night - its exhausting! he then awakes many time during the night needed to be helped back to sleep; yet he was a good sleeping baby until few weeks back, feeding predictably at 7pm 11pm, 4am and 8am.
his naps are quite similarly and suddenly very short. i cant tell if he is suffering any stomach problems, it does not appear so.

Another problem i have is that ON has been breastfed exclusively. One month ago i started to offer him formula milk in a bottle to try get him used to it. I offer a bottle each day and each night since, when he is calm and hungry, when he is sleepy or drowsy, i try to trick him but nothing works. He so passionately refuses it that it would wake him up if i offered it during a dream feed! I tried different formula milk, but each time it is as i was pouring boiling water to his mouth. He does take mild tea from a bottle without a fuss.

Would much appreciate any advice about these sleeping problems, could they be weaning related or maybe coincidental; and also if you have advice about should i continue to offer formula milk or give that one up for good?

Many thanks

Have you tried expressing milk? Maybe more stimulation in the day? My DD is 9 months and has had intermittant sleep. It's worse when she is teething.

Not on first weaning but on the first occasions when DS had more than a little bit of food, he did seem to be more likely to wake in the evening and cry a lot, so I did wonder if he had a tummyache. It's so hard to tell sometimes what the matter is!

Just a thought - it's not heat-related is it? DS is very sleep-disturbed at the moment.

With the formula, you could try different brands, different bottles, cups etc., but it could be that he will only take it from someone else when you're not around. Have you tried that?

Sorry I meant to say when 'he' is teething!

Yes, it could be heath related i suppose and it could be teething although no obvious signs.

I have never tried to let someone else give him a bottle - i'm simply always there. i worry to much he would stay hungry so i'm always there in meal times.

I relate to DS having little to much food - i though ON was having to much but i read babies can regulate themselves very well so i let him lead. For example, he ate half average size banana first time he tried it, and it simed quite a lot?!

otherwise this baby does not need more stimulation, he is the most active and bouncy 6mth old i've meet, totally ready to grab the world and swallow it down his little mouth. i'm pretty sure i've got a highly spirited child on my hands.

just a thought- we had 3 bad nights out of four last week with DS (6 months) and he had has banana on at least 2 of the days preceeding each bad night. He seemed ' sort of 'wired' couldnt settly to sleep but nothing obviously wrong. Have cut out banana completely since (just in case) and so far, back to normal settled nights- waking only to feed and going back to sleep.