I have four month old twins that still wake up every 21/2 to 3 hours to eat at night. How do I get them to sleep through the night, or at least longer periods of sleep?
My twins woke up every few hrs at that age too, so did my singleton son, it's very normal. THe best that I can say is to feed them both even if only one wakes up, then wake up the other. That way you will get them on the same schedual.
My son didn't sleep through the night until he was 10 months and my twins didn't slepp through the night until they were 11 mothns. I know it's hard, but you can do it. Good Luck
babies this young are not meant to sleep through the night. I know you are proably exhausted but this too shall pass.
If you are nursing it is totally normal for them to eat ths often. If they are on formula they should start to sleep for longer peroids soon.
They shoudl be going to bed around 7ish adn then I would wake them up to eat whenyou go to bed at 10ish.. that way they might sleep til 3 am.. and that is a pretty good night for a mom of a young bby.. my duaghter slept thorugh the night at 7 months my son not until he was a year old.
My girls were sleeping through the night by 9 weeks. I did not breastfeed after the first two weeks due to lack of production, but from birth I did have them on a fairly strict schedule of feeding every 3 hours the first several weeks. Towards the end of the 9 weeks, they were stretching it out on their own, but from the beginning, they were fed, changed, played with and napped at the same time so that they could be on a routine and I would even have to wake up one of my girls, who would have slept more, so that she could be on schedule with her sister. Had I not done this, I think I would have been up around the clock with them. When they finally did sleep through the night, my husband and I were shocked and didn't believe it the first few nights, waking up ourselves just to make sure they were okay. Try scheduling them during the day and in the evening and eventually stretching out the evening feedings and see how that works. I hope it does!
are you sure they want to eat and not just waking for attention or something else? If it is for food talk to you dr about putting cereal in there bottle to get them to sleep longer it weighs down the formula in there bellies to make them feel fuller also are they formula or breatfeed lot of facts play in this ?. Good luck
By the time my triplets were 4 months old I was adding some cereal to their formula. It fills their tummys more and keeps them sleeping longer. They slept thru the night since they were 3 months old. They are now 7.
If you are nursing, this may be common. My son woke up on this schedule while I nursed him. If you are only nursing - you may want to pump and add a smidgen of formula to help tide over and fill the tummies.
But hopefully some mom's with twins can help out~ I have just my little monkey man... He's enough. Mom's with twins or more amaze me! :)
As for his room, I needed a nightlight to see what I was doing so I could get to him (for nursing or diaper changes, etc., etc.). A small light casting a slight glow so you don't trip over anything is not anything to worry about. My son still has a nightlight and we still use the 'Lightshow' from one the air freshers (only I do not have the air fresher in it- it's too strong!). If he needs to use the restroom at night, the light is just right in his room to help him find his way around.
I am not sure why the other poster when into diet - especially honey as I am sure you are not giving your four month olds honey. :)
Of course, if you are nursing, some food groups are more likely to affect your milk than others (but honey does not cross into the milk.).
Good Luck and just make sure you rest when they do!
Dear K.:
It is very normal for twins to only sleep 3 to 4 hours at a time. If they are sleeping together you may have to seperate them. Their final feeding must be right before bed and their room must be pitch black. There can not be no light even from a VCR or clock radio. If you can see the babies then it is to light.
If they are breast feeding you will need to increase the fiber in your diet. If they are formula fed then you will need to change formulas. Use a more natural formula that has a higher fiber content or make your own formula.
Some good foods for your baby include foods like apricots, avocados, broccoli, butternut squash, cantaloupe, cauliflower, nectarines, peaches, pumpkins, rice cereal, and sweet potatoes.
Certain foods to avoid include:
Gluten, which is a type of protein found in barley, rye, wheat and some oats—avoid feeding these to your baby until he or she is six months old at least, high-fiber foods should also be avoided, honey (honey should not be given to your baby until he or she is at least a year old) According to the American Academy of Pediatrics. There is a connection between honey and infant botulism, which is a potentially fatal illness.
S. L.
My two month old is doing the same and my doctor has since diagnosed him with reflux based on some other symptoms as well of course. My point is that my pediatrician was concerned at two months that my son should be sleeping for longer stretches at night. I would talk with your doctor or the nurses at the office about this. Maybe ask about reflux and explore that with them or see what else could be waking them up. My daughter started sleeping for seven hours straight at two months and continued to stretch it out to 13 hours over the next few months and taking 2 or 3 naps during the day. And I breastfed her exclusively. And she was a chunky baby so certainly getting enough calories. Another resource that I found very helpful was Healthy Sleep Habits Happy Child by Weissbluth. Keep it up - I know firsthand that the sleep deprivation is awful - and I only have one infant!
Children under a year tend to wake regularly through the night, just as they tend to sleep regularly during the day. The medical definition of 'sleeping through the night' is 5 hours.
Babies need to eat throughout 24 hours for the same reason adults can't eat for the week on Sunday: they use calories throughout the night (growing) so become genuinely hungry --in need of food. Their tummies can only hold and digest so much, and it is not possible to feed them 'once and for all' for the night or the week.
You need to sleep when your babies sleep so that you are not sleep deprived. If you have to work during the day, you still need to sleep more during the day than you do. You may need to hire additional childcare to make this possible.
Gary Ezzo's Babywise 'information' has killed several children, who were unable to get sufficient food throughout their day to survive. Failure to thrive starts with persistent hunger and then many babies' bodies shut down (to conserve calories) --stop growing and sleep a great deal of the day.
Children should not sleep through the night when they're growing rapidly, and it is unusual for children to sleep longer than about 3-4 hours at a time until they're 4. Whether or not they wake their parents (or their parents are wake-able) is the only factor that makes it look like kids are 'sleeping through the night' long before they actually are.
K.; maybe its time to add some cereal to their diet? the baby cereal, can be watered down or milked down, so it can be drinked or swallowed through a feeding bottle, or and x style nipple, they may be hungry , and of course thats why they eat, so eating a more flling food may keep them asleep a bit longer, at 4 months old they should be ok to handle this if they are on a milk diet only , other wise they also may be getting cold, and be woke up, if thats the case try swaddling, just enjoy life and try to sleep when they sleep, this will help too, so you are not as tired, have a good day D. s
I got my twins on the same schedule - wake one if the other wants to feed and gave them their last feed around 10 - 10.30. Around four months they started to last till 5 am before they wanted feeding. Perhaps you could try a bottle for their last night feed and really get them full so they will go longer through the night. I also introduced solids - baby rice around this time and I think that really helped them feel fuller for longer. Do you belong to a twins club? I am a member of Northern Macomb mothers of multiples and we meet at the Lutheran church on M59 and Van Dyke 3rd Thursday of the ____@____.com of free advice from moms who have gone through what you are going through if you want to try us out....
It is very normal for any 4 1/2 month old to still get up every few hours to eat, especially if your babies were small at birth. I know one mother of twins who kept her babies in the same crib for quite a time. It seemed they wanted to be together like they had been and slept much better. It will get better as they get bigger and can eat more at one time. No worries!
Structure their day like this: Have a starting point in the morning...whenever your first feeding is and try to make that flexibly about the same time each morning. Then wake time. Then back to sleep for their naps. This structure really helps to structure sleep patterns and metabolism. It has really worked for us 3 times now!
Snuggle spot...It is a baby bed/pillow that makes a baby feel like it is being held when you cant hold it. www.laneybug.net
I don’t know about you but I had a spoiled baby that only liked to sleep if someone is holding her. I got tired of sleepless nights so I invented this pillow that I call the Snuggle Spot. The pillow snuggles the baby so they feel like some one is holding them and they are safe. Babies love it, the first time I put my daughter in it she slept 9 hours straight and every night since! I put her in the pillow fully awake with a full belly, and swaddled. Since the pillow snuggles them the swaddle stays intact! I recently went out of town and I did not want to pack the portable crib, changing pad, etc. so I just took a chance and only took the pillow. It was amazing, even in a diff environment she slept all night. I just put her in the pillow in the bed next to me or on the floor next to me. It is the perfect Co-sleeper! I changed her diapers in it, She likes to watch colors and lights of the TV so i put it in front of the TV. It fits perfectly in portable cribs and in regular cribs. My Daughter has reflux and has to be elevated so that her formula stays down, The pillow slightly props her up so that she is comfortable and stays clean!!! If you have and questions or concerns or want to place an order feel free to send me a message. The pillow is totally custom, you can pick the fabric, name or saying.
