I have a seven month old son who is not sleeping thru the night, he wakes up every few hours to eat. We have been traveling for the last month and have moved into a temporary house for several months while our house is being built. So there has been a lot of changes. I have tried to let him cry it out but after about a hour I give up, plus the house is small and it keeps my daughter up. He is not a big sleeper during the day either, but always in a good mood. Any suggestions on how I can get him to put himself back to sleep without using me as a pacifier. He has also started refusing a bottle and a pacifier.
Does he take a bottle and food before bedtime? Mu granddaughter takes a bottle with baby food mixed in and she sleeps pretty well. Might wake up one time. She is 9 months old.
It sounds like you already know what is going on. So many changes are sure to mess with your child's sleep. I think the refusal of the bottle and pacifier is a bid for more comfort from you to help him deal with the changes in his life. He's still fairly young to be sleeping through the night and remember, "sleeping through the night" really only means 5 hours straight. Also, crying it out is supposed to be a controlled, small increment process (5/10/15 minutes), not crying for an hour. I highly recommend The No Cry Sleep Solution by Elizabeth Pantley and also Solve Your Child's Sleep Problems by Dr. Richard Ferber. My baby slept like yours until she was 10 1/2 months. Pantley's book gives all kinds of great advice to help you make sure you're doing everything you can to help your baby sleep before making him cry. That said, we still had to try cry it out for my daughter because she would never sleep for more than 3 hours at a time. Ferber is the original cry it out guy. Letting your baby cry for long periods of time doesn't teach him anything. He needs reassurance that you're going to be there for him especially now that he's going through this unsettling time. If you read Ferber's book (even just the one chapter on cry it out), you'll get a compassionate program to help you both get some sleep. Hang in there!
My son didn't sleep through the night until closer to 12 months. Every child is different. I thought I was doing something wrong but after I made a post I learned a lot of children don't sleep through the night for a while and need the extra food.
I cannot find any advice except for crying it out but I do have advice on how to tune out the noise in your daughter's room.
Place a box fan in her room and face it away from her. Put it on high when she goes to sleep. This will tune out any noise in the house.
I know it is hard but there is a growth spurt around this time and I just nursed mine whenever they were hungry. It kept everybody sleeping peacefully except me and I got to where I could do it and go right back and then would nap during the day when I could.
I did this for at least 18 months to 2 yrs with my last one.
It is a short time in the grand picture and it passes fast.
Bless your family
My oldest (a boy) didn't start sleeping through the night consistently until he was 19 months old. (That's when I refused to let him nurse at night anymore when I began weaning him.) We did the family bed with him, and we all still seemed to get enough sleep, so I was okay with being a human pacifier for awhile. :)
Have you tried cereal, a warm bath before bed along with some soft music. He sounds like he is really tired, along with you.
Do you live near power lines, have a clock near his bed, electrical socket, fish tank, phone, anything near him when he sleeps? If so remove it and check into getting a multi polar magnet for him. It has worked wonders on my boys.
perhaps its an ear infection or tummy troubles , teething. if he is not taking the bottle thats a sign of something being off and if he isnt sleeping like he use to. i would take him to the pedi just to be sure. also my son did not sleep threw till he was one year old and our pedi told us he no longer needed the nightly feedings. at 7 months it seems like he wanted a bottle twice or three times a night ...i dont remember. if you let him cry it out i wouldnt let him go for more than twenty mins. we would tell eachother if he is still crying in 15 min we will go get him he was usually out by 10 again this was when he was 1 yr.
I have the same problem with my 7 month old daughter. She wakes up at least 2 times a night and maybe takes 1-2 naps a day. If you get any suggestions please let me know.
Thanks!
It's possible, but not likely, that he's going through growth spurt and is hungry - but this would only last a few days. So, I would say he is just wanting comfort. As long as you are willing to give it to him, he will continue to ask for it.
Try swaddling him tightly, if you're not already. Try music. Don't feed him. But, in the long run, a few nights of crying it out will give you many nights of peace in the future.
When I wanted my daughter to stop nursing to sleep and waking up in the middle of the night to nurse, I put her in her bed drowsy, but awake, and let her cry, but I did not leave the room. That way I knew she wouldn't be scared and along crying. Just keep your hand on him until he stops and falls asleep. This will take a long time the first night, but don't give in. It will get better each night. It only took two nights for us, but she was almost 2 at the time. She automatically stopped waking to nurse until closer to 5 a.m., which worked for me. Good luck!!
