*HELP* 5 Month Old to Sleep Through the Night!

How much is he eating during the day? If you make sure he's eating enough during the day, you can start to ween him off the night feedings or at least one of the feedings. I would try to get rid of the 5am feeding first. I did a combo of the Healthy Sleep Habits by Weissbluth (mentioned previously) and the Ferber method. I'm not sure if you're nursing at night. If you formula feed, you can start weening by gradually diluting the formula until it's only water. Soon the child will realize it's not worth waking up for water. I also wouldn't run to grab them right away. Let him cry for a bit and perhaps he will put himself back to sleep. I only go to my child, now 8 months, when she is in a full cry and I know she will not be able to fall back asleep.
It's hard to know what to do and what they want, especially being a first time mom and working full time (I'm in the same boat). Every child is different and you just have to try different things to see what works for you. Try reading a few of the sleep books and trying the methods they recommend.

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Hi J.,

Have you started feeding your baby cereal yet? I know some people think it's a wives tale, but others swear by it. I started my daughter around 4 months with a little cereal in the early evening. I would give it to her in between feedings, so she wasn't starving and had the patience to eat. Then I would give her a bath around 8:30, another bottle and she'd sleep all night.

You also mentioned that he doesn't nap long at daycare; maybe he needs a nap when you get home so he is well rested. As strange as it sounds, a well rested baby will sleep better at night. There have been many times my daughter will take a nap when I bring her home from the sitter, sometimes until 7:30. I still follow the same routine and she's out like a light by 9:00 and sleeps until 7:30. (She'll wake up momentarily during the night looking for her binky, but goes right back to sleep when she has it) I may just be very lucky, but the cereal and a regular routine has helped me a lot. She is now 8 months old and usually sleeps almost 10 hours every night.

Good luck-
I'm also a working Mom and know how important a good nights sleep is :)

J.,
Most 5-month olds do not sleep through the night. What you have described sounds normal to me. As other mothers have said, there are things you can do like feed him cereal IF he is ready. This might help, but it's not a magic cure for night waking. He really is very young to sleep through the night. The good news is that their sleep patterns are always changing. I'l bet that within 2 months he will be sleeping more during the night.
Have you read anything by William Sears, MD or Harvey Karp, MD?
Good luck.
Amy

Hi! I too am a mom of a beautiful 5 month old boy:) I hate to discourage you, but he's not sleeping either. I just wanted to let you know that I feel your pain. I work too, and consider myself lucky if I get 6 (broken) hours of sleep...my how times have changed! He was only getting up 1 time per night, but has started getting up more frequently lately, which is so hard! My friends keep telling me that he'll sleep through the night when he's ready...so for now I'm just waiting for that day. Hang in there and know there are others of us out there...not much help when you're super tired, I know. Hope you have a wonderful holiday season...maybe we can make New Year's resolutions for our little guys to sleep through the night!

The thing I used with both girls to get them to sleep trhough the night is the advice in the book Babywise. Both girls slept through the night by 8 weeks. Good luck!

The bad news first: he just may not be ready to sleep through the night. I don't think either of mine made it all the way until they were older than 6 months.

BUT, it's possible that you can get him to sleep better if you put him down earlier. 8 pm is rather late for a boy that age, try pushing his bedtime back in 20 minute increments to find one that's easier. (Both mine do best between 6:30 and 7.) I have taken most of my sleep advice from a book called "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child" written by a great Chicago pedatrician (whose name I can't remember), but I think I read in there that "sleep begets sleep", meaning the more you can give them the better they'll sleep. Good luck!

J.,

My daughter is 6 mos and has mostly been sleeping through the nights. Sometimes, she will wake up at 3 am but not always. It took me a long time to get her to sleep by herself. Once she did, she would still wake up a couple of times. I realized it was just conditioning - she was so used to waking up at a certain time and eating that she would wake up at 2:30-3 am on the dot. I started just rocking her back to sleep without feed ing and I gradually increased the amount of time before I would get her when she first woke. Soon she started sleeping until 6-7 am. Try and avoid feeding your baby at 2:30 and put him to sleep. I would also see if he is interested in drinking maybe even an ounce more for his feeding before bed.

Good luck. I know how frustrating it is!

A..

No offense to the person that recommended the book Babywise but this book is not endorsed by the American Academy of Pediatrics. They state many reasons why the practices in this book or not appropriate or safe for babies. I have also read parts of it and would agree. I don't think this a good resource for mothers.

Some babies just don't sleep through the night for a long time. Dr. Weissbluth is our pediatrician and our 9 month old daughter has definitely been doing better since we started putting her to bed drowsy and awake at 7pm, but still does not sleep through the night after months on that routine. She gets a 6 or 8oz bottle at bedtime and is back up at 2 or 3 for more food. Then she's up again around 5ish to be social for an hour and then is sleepy again. She naps and eats well during the day and we wait a long time before we go to her during the night. Unfortunately, she is just a night owl:) I work full time as well and I know I don't have any advice, I just wanted to let you know that you are not the only terminally exhausted mom out there. The only thing we have found that works is that she sleeps perfectly when she sleeps with us, which we avoid unless the exhaustion is too great. GOOD LUCK! Please let me know if you find something that works!