Tips on Helping 10 Month Old Sleep Through the Night

I am going to go against the grain here. I personally think letting a child who can't speak or do much for himself sit in his crib and cry it out is cruel. I have let my son fuss, but never cry and screaming like many of the books and other parents seem to advocate. My son is coming up on 16 months and he sleeps through the night some times and other times not. It just depends on how busy we were during the day, what he ate, how much he ate, etc. My son is slim though and I know how active he is. It IS entirely POSSIBLE that your child needs to eat at night. My son never wakes at the same time and when I do nurse him he is voracious about eating. If he was just sucking to be sucking that would be totally different, but when he sucks like he hasn't eaten in days I KNOW he was hungry. You know your child and whether or not he's eating because he is truly hungry. At 10 months solids are still just for the idea of getting to eat, but not to be a full substitute for the main source of nutrition.
This is all part of being a mom.. the sleepless nights, the worry, but the joy and gift of watching your lil one become an adult.
One thing that helps my son sometimes is to put Lavendar scented epsom salts (found them at walgreens) in to his bath water.

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Time... remember, he's only 10 months old.
Some babies wake through the night to eat or drink up until they are 2 or 3 years old.
Be grateful that all he wants to do is drink then goes back to sleep.
One caution. Don't make it an vocal time.... be kind and gentle, however, don't talk... eventually, he will believe it is play time and will totally wake up if you let him believe it's time to interact.

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The Ferber method worked extremely well for us. The book explains the technique. My son was not a good sleeper as a baby. We did it when he was 10 months old, he is almost 7 now and has been a great sleeper ever since. It's important to teach them how to be good sleepers because it helps them for their entire life.

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Hi A., Get real...babies are suppose to wake up and if it's only once or twice a night good for all.
My daughter woke up twice at night for two years, and then we had a son born, so many years of getting up!
You will get used to it and each child is different...
relax and get ready for the most amazing journey of your life... being a parent. good luck, Deb

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i think u can start giving less and less milk..are u bfing? if so don't have him bf as long if bottle just give less formula in the bottle..then let him CIO for one of the feedings til he doesn't wake for that one..then wait a week and start on 2nd waking and don't go in. ...or leave a bottle in the crib for one first feeding that he can get for himself?

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It sounds like you and your son need some sleep! From what I have learned, he can absolutely sleep through the night! :) My 7 month old slept 8 hrs at 8 weeks and 12 hrs at 12 weeks...no, this wasn't luck, just more about knowledge and how to teach your baby to sleep 'on their own.' I did the 3 Day Sleep solution w/my son also and same results.
Go to www.3daysleep.com - it will change EVERYTHING! Davis is amazing and your son will be sleeping in no time - and so will you! I threw out all the books I had read and just watched her video - it's quick to watch, it works and it will be the best $39 dollars you ever spend! :)
GOOD LUCK!!

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what worked for us was time and patience.... babies do not live by our schedule and have no idea how inconvenient it it for us to have to get up with them - and if they knew they probably wouldn't care! :) It really depends on his personality - some babies cry for a few nights and then sleep like a dream, others (like my son) cry for weeks on end and NEVER sleep through the night until they're good and ready (at two years old)! Good luck!!!

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It's harder at 10 months than at 6, but not impossible. I stopped the night feedings for my son when he was 6 months old. I eliminated the feedings gradually. This way, if they don't eat as much during the night, they shift to eating more during the day. Their total calories intake will adjust after a couple of days.

My son used to drink his last bottle at 9pm (milk & cereal) then woke up like a clock at 12, 3 and finally 7am. I first eliminated the 12am bottle by replacing the milk with water (or my Ped suggested Pedyalite unflavored). My son didn't like or want the water but after 10-15 minutes of crying, he fell back asleep in my arms. He woke up again an hour later but still didn't want the water. Finally around 2:30am I gave him the ONE and only bottle. He then woke up at 7am for his morning bottle.
The second night he cried for milk again a few times but I gave him water and only gave him milk at 4am. The drive to sleep is very good during the night, so after some protesting, they eventually fall asleep. By the third night he didn't even wake up until 4am. And by the forth night I gave him water at 4am and milk at 6am. This way he ate more during the day and didn't need to eat at night. Eventually he woke up at 7am going 10 hours of uninterrupted sleep.

I used a book as a guidance adapting it to my style. It's an online book that I saved in pdf format. I can email it to you if you'd like. Send me a message with your email address and I'll send it to you.

Be ready for a few sleepless nights and then peace and quiet. For this to work you must be consistent. Goodluck!

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My son just turned 10 months old today and I was having the same issue where he was still waking up for milk in the middle of the night. It had gone down to only once in the night since he was 8 months old but still waking up once. My sister (who is a mom of 4) thought maybe my son wasn't getting enough food during the day so when I decided to work on him not nursing at night I fed him one last time in the middle of the night the day before I began and then started giving him a lunch (which I wasn't doing before, just a snack) and then making sure he was getting enough breastmilk 4 times a day. It was amazing that once I added the lunch (I was putting milk in his meals as well to ensure he was getting enough), he didn't need the nursing in the middle of the night.

He was waking up out of habit, I think, but I would sneakily go into his room, put his pacifier in his mouth and after a little bit of whining he would fall back to sleep. Not sure what you would do if your son doesn't take a pacifier to calm him without him seeing you because I know that once my son sees me it often takes longer for him to fall asleep than if I just leave him to soothe himself to sleep (crying or whining). As long as he wasn't screaming I would let him cry a little, cause usually it was a sleepy cry that he would lift his head, then lay his head down again and I knew he was really tired and fighting it. It took me about a week or so before I got him sleeping through the night and then of course he started getting a tooth so he woke up a few more nights but I continued to do the pacifier and leave him alone and now going on 4 days he is sleeping through the night.

I think it's an ongoing battle with the waking in the night thing due to teething and other issues that could alter their nighttime sleep, but as soon as you stop feeding them in the middle of the night they more often than not will lose that habit.

Good Luck! I'm still working on things but as soon as I saw that he could make it through the night without nursing, I knew that he was able to do it even on the days that he was crying, I guess I just needed to see it to believe it before I would full force go forward with no more nursing at night. I'm so glad I did and I think he is getting much better sleep because of it now, which makes him happier during the day.

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i cluster fed my daughter. what i did to help her sleep through the night was this (she was 4 1/2 months). when it came to dinner time i fed her baby food that was extra thick (mix rice cereal or oatmeal in his jarred food if hes on it) then i would give her a bottle that was 2oz less then what she would normally take (this is about an hour befor her bed time). then when it came to bed time and her bed time bottle i would give her a full bottle (so whatever your son would normally take in) with some rice cereal in it. she was sleeping through the night at like 5 months.
also keep in mind that all babies develope differently and some will wake to eat till they are 2.

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Hi A.,I think its great that he rejects the pacifire. As long as you allow your son to have milk during the night, he will continue to wake up. I always made sure my baby's were full statring at 6 weeks, rocked them to sleep, layed them down, and never had sleep issues with them, unless they were sick. Right now milk twice a night has become routine/habit for him, so now mommy you have to break that habit. J. L.

A. K

I had this problem with my oldest, the pediatrician told me to give him a bowl of cereal this would help him to sleep at night. I also placed a water bottle in the crib for him to drink if he got thirsty during the night so I could give it to him at night. This helped him to sleep through the night. Giving him cereal at night did not hurt my three children, they are now between 29 and 30+ yrs old now. Perfectly healthy too. He is also learning about his world, so he will probably want to play a little with some of his toys during the night and naps will be far and few between, so enjoy his wondrous world of exploration. It won't be long before he is going to school and has other interests other than mom and dad. Good Luck.

A.,
I agree with one of the other responses. I never thought that I would be an advocate of letting my beautiful little boy "cry it out" but that was the only thing that worked for me, and I tried several different sleep training styles. It depends on the personality of your child...and I have a stubborn one who doesn't have any problem voicing his opinion! Once I read "Healthy Sleep habits, Happy Child" I decided that my boys sleep was sooo important to his development that I had to do whatever it took. When I asked my mommy group this exact question this is the response I got from the lady who ran the group...(she raised 6 children of her own.) If someone fed you your favorite meal every time you cried for it...wouldn't you get up in the middle of the night...for shall we say lobster? Now my child still wakes...cries for maybe 3 min typically and goes back to sleep. The times that I do go in, I usually regret it because just me being there wakes him up more. Best of luck to you...be strong..and remember that a baby crying is their only means of communicating. You are the adult who can assess if they are in need of something or want something.
PS. as soon as I started letting him cry the video monitor became a great investment so I could actually see that he was crying in his sleep!
C. H

I am so sorry to say that the only thing that worked for us was to let him cry it out....it was torture and my baby boy cried for almost 2hours straight, but then he slept, and the next night he slept thru the night, then the following night he reverted back, and cried for almost an hour, then the next night for 15 min, and then he slept thru the night...it was very important that he learned to sooth himself back to sleep-it was only painful for a few nights-but make sure that you do check the diaper to make sure he hasn't peed thru his pajama's-because if this happens-they get cold and you of course want to change the diaper and make sure they aren't wet, then tell them its sleepy time and leave the room. Good luck, I know its hard, but I promise your little boy wil wake up the same way if they cry it out- my babies smile the minut they see us- and still do if they had cried it out. (My little boy was waking 3x a night for a bottle) they don't need it. As an easier transition- You may want to start the first few nights with a dream feed @ 11pm and not feed again until 6am.

Good luck and make sure your partner is on board and you make yourself a cup of tea, turn up the tv...etc.

HI A.,
You giving him the milk in the middle of the night has created this habit. His body naturally wakes up expecting it. You need to stop giving him the milk because he certainly doesn't need it. It will be hard at first, but he will get used to to it and eventually sleep through the night. He'll never miss it.
You can replace it with water or just simply rub his back to get him back to sleep. Most of the time in boils down to letting them cry themselves back to sleep. Otherwise you may creat another habit like being rocked to sleep. It usually only lasts a week or so of the crying.
Good luck!

Run the vacuum cleaner when they get up and don't go in to them. I had to go back to work when my twins were 11 months old and it worked for me. They slept through the night quite soon. Good luck.

I asked my doctor if my baby needed to be fed during the night at six months and she said no. I asked if it was okay for her to cry it out and she said yes. I personally would not let my child cry for more than an hour. I read that is enough time in the Healthy Sleep Habits, Healthy Child book. The pacifier helps. My daughter eventually took to it but now I am worried about weaning her off (she is 13 months)! You have to do what is right for you. Lots of people have opinions on crying. We chose it because we tried lots of things and the entire family was tired and cranky! Good luck!!

Your son does not need to eat; he is in a pattern that causes him to wake up two times at night and looks to you to soothe him back to sleep. Your son needs to learn how to soothe himself back to sleep- the only way to do this is to let him figure it out on his own. This will result in crying- as this is his primary form of communicating displeasure. He will not be happy that you are asking him to soothe himself, but in a few days or so you will both be sleeping through the night- you will be rested, and he will be fine that you had him cry. When you give him this opportunity he will eventually figure out how he can soothe himself.

If you can't do this a couple tips:
-make a pact with your husband or whomever to not get him
-check on him if you absolutely have to (often produces more crying) at decided upon intervals- and DO NOT pick him up or feed him- speak gently to him and then leave- increase the length between intervals each time

Also, things to think about:
-sleep environment
-sleep routine (simple)
-amount of sleep he is getting- he should be taking 2 naps a day right now of approximately 2 hours each give or take and go to bed around 7ish

Check out the following posts for more information on the above topics:
http://www.lullabyluna.com/2008/12/happy-new-year.html

http://www.lullabyluna.com/2009/03/sleep-ponderings-from-...

C., mother of 3, sleep consultant, sleep blog writer www.lullabyluna.com

Dr. Weissbluth's book "Healthy Sleep Habits Happy Baby"...has been helping us with our 7 month old son. If you haven't read it maybe give it a try

Hello A.,

My son is only 3 mos. old but was waking up every few hours just to play and sometimes to eat. A friend kept telling me to bathe him in lettuce I thought it sounded ridiculous. She said all the woman in her family had been doing it to their children for yrs. even up to the age of 4. I finally broke down and tried i got a head of ice burg lettuce broke off about 15 pcs. ran the bath as usual and let him soak in it for a while got him dressed within the hour he was fast asleep and slept for a good 7yrs. now I do it every night. I asked the doctor about it and she told me that even for adults like dill , lettuce makes you sleepy. She said "Don't you feel tired sometimes after eating a salad?" I realized I did. I hope if you try this it works for you the good thing is it is completely natural. Good luck!
S.

My 10 month old does the same thing!?!