Baby Waking up Crying

Updated on June 18, 2008
T.A. asks from Wantagh, NY
16 answers

Hi,
Recently my 5-month old has been waking up around 9-9:30pm crying and it takes him some time to calm down. At first I thought it was related to the apples or pears he gets at 6pm. So I moved fruit to breakfast and lunch and just give him his bottle an cereal at 6 but he still wakes up crying. I'm not sure fruit at 2pm would cause him discomfort at 9pm. He is not a gassy baby, or at least he hasn't been.
He cries so hard, he starts coughing. I pick him up and try to comfort him. I don't believe he's hungry. He is on a schedule and since he started solids, he takes less and less of his last bottle, at 10pm. His dr. said we can drop that feeding because last week, he wanted no part of it.
I worry that he is in some pain. And if he's not in pain, why is he waking up? I don't want this to become part of his bed time routine.
Has anyone ever experienced this when they started solids? He did great with the cereals.
Thanks!

What can I do next?

  • Add yourAnswer own comment
  • Ask your own question Add Question
  • Join the Mamapedia community Mamapedia
  • as inappropriate
  • this with your friends

Featured Answers

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

M.P.

answers from New York on

I would suggest trying the Beechnut Good Evening Cereal at dinner. It's supposed to help them digest the soilds better. It seemed to help my friends son. Hope this helps!

1 mom found this helpful

More Answers

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

R.L.

answers from New York on

What is his night time routine like? Does he fall asleep on his own? When they start to become more self aware, and they are not falling asleep alone, but rather with you holding them or in the room, when they wake and you're not there they get upset and scared. So, if he's not falling asleep on his own, I'd encourage you to help him learn to do that. How long has this been going on? Because sometimes they just go through phases. My daughter did it. Sometimes she was waking at 9:30 for no particular reason, 5am, etc. When I knew it wasn't sickness, teething, food issues, hunger, or wetness I just tried to do my best not to introduce anything that could become habitual. So, for example I wouldn't feed her when she woke and I wouldn't talk or be social with her. If you do that too often they wake because they are used to the food or attention. Granted, if he's hungry feed him but don't do it as a crutch, you know? So, I'd just go in and ssssh and pat her until she calmed down and then I'd leave the room even if she was still awake. She learned to fall back asleep on her own this way and then when she woke she knew she could go back to sleep on her own without any help. I hope that helps you!

1 mom found this helpful
Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

L.D.

answers from Albany on

He could be teething. Have you tried a little Tylenol?

1 mom found this helpful

M.H.

answers from New York on

Hi Tahara,

He may have started teething. My son started around this age and did not show any teeth until a month ago he is now 1 years old. It can take a very long time for the teeth to come. The food could be giving him the vitamins he needs and now its starting the process for some teeth to start growing. This went on for 7 months, where as for my daughter she had teeth by her third month everyone is different. Try putting something on his gums ask your doctor I used baby oral jell or Humphreys tablets. Good Luck! :)

1 mom found this helpful
Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

R.Q.

answers from New York on

I never had this experience with starting solids, but DD didn't start them until she was nearly a year old and we did Baby-led introduction to solids, so that may be why. BUT from Day 1 DD would "tell" us she had to pee every night with a little cry.

First make sure your son is not constipated. If he is, consult your doctor on the appropriate course of action.

If it's not constipation, hold him over the toilet/other receptacle or sit him on a potty and
talk to him and cuddle until he relaxes. If it's a full bladder that's bothering him he'll
"reward you" with a little fountain. :D This can become a nightly routine or you can cuddle
him to pee in his diaper once you know if that's the reason he's crying. Personally, we went with the nightly potty break, because DD would settle right back to sleep--usually before I even got her bum wiped :D, but it's not for everyone.

HTH,
R.

1 mom found this helpful
Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

M.K.

answers from New York on

try putting him down a bit later,

and giving him more water in the afternoon,
he sounds like he could be constipated.

but it could also just be he is waking up in the dark and feeling scared.

putting him to bed at about 730-8pm should help him
this is usually the age where they change their sleep habits.

M

1 mom found this helpful
Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

A.K.

answers from Buffalo on

We went through the exact same thing. My DD started solids at 6 months and up until then she had been sleeping soundly from 8pm - 7 am no problems. Once we introduced solids she was up all night crying and arching her back. After a few weeks of trying to cut out/change feeding schedules I called the doctor for some advice. He said she may not be ready to digest food yet, sometimes babies don't start solid until close to 1 year. We stopped all solids and she was back to sleeping again. Poor little thing - her tummy must have hurt! We slowly went back to foods and now she's doing great eating everything at 10 months. She is breastfeed exclusively and the dr said that was really all she needed to get - food was just for practice at that point. I'm not sure about formula as we never used it so I'd check with your dr first. Good Luck!

1 mom found this helpful
Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

K.S.

answers from New York on

Hi Tahara,
Same thoughts as some of the others, teething, waking himself up and realizing you're not there, constipation.

My little one had such a hard time when we introduced solids/cereals. We tried at 5, 6, and finally at 7 months she could handle it. She just couldn't process it and had a hard time pushing out a stool.

Just my thoughts.

Kristal

1 mom found this helpful
Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

A.J.

answers from Albany on

Could be teething. Teething starts way before teeth actually cut through. Infant tylenol, ointments to temporarily numb the gums, etc.

A.

1 mom found this helpful
Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

J.M.

answers from New York on

Hello Tahara A,

Both of my kids did that. I found it to be teething issues. Docs say that whenever a child is going through a major milestone they wake up like that. It also happens when they are about to start walking. It is short, and generally harmless besides the fact that you are suffering. I used Humphreys 3. It is a homeopathic remedy for teething. It usually works. When they went to bed I gave them 3 pellets then again when they woke up in the middle of the night. Within 20 minutes they were out. It is also for wakefulness. It is about $5 and you can find at most drug stores. You have to ask the pharmacist because they sometimes keep it behind the counter. (It is OTC) If it doesn't work then at least you tried something right? lol

PS,

I found that if I gave my son the blanket to chew on he improved. He still chews it now and is still teething but I don't really mind. Good luck!!

1 mom found this helpful
Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

M.T.

answers from New York on

Hi Tahara. At this age, my first thought is teething. Are you thinking it's related to the fruit because it started at just the same time that you introduced fruit? If he's eating fruit more than once a day, and is only uncomfortable at that one time, I wouldn't suspect the fruit is the culprit

1 mom found this helpful
Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

S.H.

answers from Rochester on

Have you tried looking to see if he is teething? I remember my son's first two teeth came in around five months and it disturbed his sleep pattern at night. I have been told that is when the pain is worse. You can try a topical analgesic to see if that helps. Also, is there something going on outside around that time that he may be hearing? My son started waking up at 3:30 in the morning at around 7 months and got in to sort of a routine with it, he stopped when I finally weaned him at 1 year. Check out all posibilities to make sure you aren't missing something. It could just be that he is sleeping too much during the day or wants to be up with you. Good luck.

1 mom found this helpful
Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

W.M.

answers from New York on

My son did the same thing for a month or two around that age. I think it had something to do with he would wake up & want to make sure I was still there. I would go in - confort him & he would go back to sleep. After a month or two of this he would put himself back to sleep & doesn't do it anymore. I believe that is the age when they learn object permanance (when mommy leaves she is not gone). Just give him some time & he will outgrow this stage. My son would scream so bad sometimes I would really scare me, but I always went to him & conforted him. He learned that if he really needed me mommy would be there & I think that allowed him to go back to sleep on his own if he woke up.

1 mom found this helpful
Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

J.F.

answers from Boston on

Could it possibly be that he is teething? My almost 5 month old, who is usually quite a mild mannered little guy, has had trouble taking a bottle, and has been more fussy and less consolable than usual the past fe days - then we just noticed a hard, sharp piece of tooth coming through the gums. it is a slow process for him and he does seem to be in pain (screaming, pulling his ear, wanting to bite down and chew on things, not sleeping long cycles before waking and crying.) we just tpday gave him some homeopathic chamomile teething drops and they seem to help... hopefully whatever it is - it is just a temporary thing... good luck!

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

K.C.

answers from New York on

Hi,

I recently went through a similar situation. My daughter was 6 months old at the time and had been sleeping relatively well through the night. Suddenly, she started to wake up screaming. Nothing seemed to be wrong. She had just started eating solids so I thought she might not be getting enough food. I didn't want to get back in the habit of midnight feedings so I tried giving her more food throughout the day especially before bedtime - didn't work. Then we tried letting her cry it out but after 15 mintues of crying she was worse off. So I chaulked it up to teething but since she wasn't irritable during the day and after a month and no teeth I didn't know what it was. I never spoke to my doctor about it but after doing some reading I decided it was separation anxiety as I was the only one who could calm her yet if I left the room she'd freak out even more. Many a night I spent on the floor sleeping with her. I finally decided I had to make my husband go in everytime as sometimes she only wanted her pacifier but if she saw me she'd want me but with him she'd go right back to sleep. I figured if she was in pain she'd be bothered all day long not just at night. Good Luck

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

A.D.

answers from New York on

Hi Tahara, Your baby could be teething, One of mine started at 4 months. We had those teething rings you could put in the fridge or freezer. Hopefully it is a simple as that and nothing to do with the solid foods. Welcome to motherhood. The issues change every day. I raised 5 many years ago. Best wishes, Grandma Mary

For Updates and Special Promotions
Follow Us

Related Questions