Sleeping Thru the Night.

Try to give him a little bit of cereal before bed time with formula and some fruit mixed in. His belly may not be getting full enough. Also, for some babies it takes longer for then to sleep through the night for some reason. My oldest was 8 months before he slept through the night. My middle slept through the night at 6 weeks and my youngest didn't sleep through the night until he was about 2 and a half yrs. old. I would definitely start giving him some cereal before he goes to bed and see if that helps. If that doesn't work then it will probably be just a matter of time before he sleeps through the night. Unfortunately, for you that means more sleepless nights ahead. It isn't fun when they don't sleep through the night. Good luck!

D.

I am 31 and have been married for almost 12 yrs. My husband and I have 3 boys ages 10,7 and 4.

Perhaps his little tummy isn't staying full all through the night. Try some cereal right before bed. You might even mix it with formula. Perhaps if his little tummy stays full he won't wake up wanting to fill it with water. Good luck, Shannon G.

Just had to put in my two cents, I am 36 and wake up hungry some nights! =-) I haven't tried them, but maybe you could try nighttime diapers (or go to a bigger size) to get the little guy past the wet diaper wake-up. Anyway, we go through phases of sleeping through the night (or not, depending on teething and other stuff...I usually give in and get up with her, seems like it's easier to do that than to listen to crying from a very persistent 14 month old!) It has helped to mix baby food with some cereal and feed her right before I put Natalie to bed. Hope that helps, good luck!

I just couldn't keep quiet any longer. These are BABIES we are talking about. It is our job as moms/parents to provide for them. I, too, think that it is unrealistic to expect a 7 month old to go 11-12 hours without food. Really, think about, you're giving him 12-30 ounces of WATER at night. Try a bottle of formula. Also, Jessica was right, peds don't know our kids like we do.

QUOTE-I disagree that your son is hungry, he's conditioned to being soothed by you and for you to give him water and nothing will happen to him if you don't.UNQUOTE.
Again, he's a baby, isn't he supposed to want to be soothe by you.
Sorry for the soap box, but I really get tired of other people telling moms what they HAVE to do. You don't HAVE to make your babe scream or CIO for hours just to fall asleep. What in the world is so wrong with cuddling? If any of the advice given by everyone seems like it will work for you, great. Give it a try. But, please, you are the mom & you know your son best. Don't be afraid to change what your ped said if you think that he might be wrong.
Oh, and not every babe will take or need a paci. I never gave any to either of mine. I even tried with the 2nd & she refused.
Again, I'm sorry for the soapbox, but you are the mommy. The only thing that you HAVE to do, is love that babe & figure out what works for YOU.

Hi A.!

I don't want to scare you, but my son didn't sleep through the night until he was 15 months old! I followed advice that my babysitter gave me. I watered down his formula to where he was only drinking water. Then I decreased the ounces of water to nothing. He still woke up. He didn't fuss for anything to drink. I would pick him up, hold him, comfort him, and lay him back down when he fell back asleep. I think he just needed extra comfort and to cuddle. To this day (and he's 2), he's a very lovey and cuddly.

I also tried letting him cry it out, and that never worked. He'd get so upset he'd throw up EVERY TIME. I would wait about 2-4 weeks, try again, and he would throw up. I went through that cycle a few times and just gave up. I was sick of cleaning up at 2am.

I'm sure you'll find something that works for you. Even though my son kept waking up, he's a great sleeper now, and I think that's because we followed a strict bedtime routine and kept him on a very consistent schedule. Good luck!

First off, pediatrician's don't always know what is best for YOUR baby. If the poor guy is waking that many times and guzzling that much water he must be hungry. It is unrealistic to expect a 7 month old to sleep 11 hours and not be hungry. My 8 month old still nurses through the night. Also, any advice that says "don't do this, don't do that, don't make eye contact, leave them to cry, ect" is just really poor advice. Every baby is different and has different needs. Plus, you work full time and your little one goes to bed early. He also may be needing a little tlc from mommy that he doesn't get during the day. That being said it would be really terrible to leave him to cry (not that you would, but as other's suggested). I would give him the formula when he wakes and I wouldn't be suprised if he slept awhile longer. Good luck! I know it is tiring, but their time as a baby is fleeting.

Hi First time Mommy, first off CONGRATS on your new son.My Daughter is a first time Mommy of a 2 year old Beautiful little Girl.We went through the same thing you are going through.We baught a GLOW WORM,Alanna loves it and it worked when she was just born and has been useing it ever since.It playes soothing music that makes the babies drift off.You can also try to buy a CD called BABY LULLABIES, This also works wanders.
I hope these work for you.and again CONGRATS.
Good luck and God Bless.If you like you can contact me at
____@____.com
hope to hear from you
D. HECKATHORN

Hi there,
I'm a single mommy too and my son is now 10 months old. He didn't sleep through the night until he started crawling..right about 7 1/2 months old. As soon as he started crawling, his food intake doubled and he started sleeping through the night. If he likes cereal, try feeding him cereal in addition to his bedtime bottle (if he gets one) I tried the whole cereal in the bottle thing and it did not work for my son. On a personal note, our kids and us are about the same age and most of my friends have disappeared since my son was born so if you are looking for mommy friends too, email me at ____@____.com
Good luck and hope you get some rest!
J.

A., sleep issues can be so very difficult and everyone has their own take on it. There is an expert for every philosophy so that's something to keep in mind. Here are just a few thoughts for you. First, babies are generally bad sleepers. The whole "sleeping like a baby" phrase is just a crock! Babies have shorter sleep cycles than us and they often wake up as they are coming out of deep sleep into light sleep. Also, they frequently do need to eat during the night, some babies need to eat until they are 18 months old. Do a little sleep research. Try the No Cry Sleep Solution by Elizabeth Pantly or Night time Parenting by Dr. William Sears. Both have good information on baby sleep cycles.

First of all... congrats on your little boy! Sounds to me like your little one might actually be hungry at night and that he keeps waking up, drinks the water, which makes him feel full, and then wakes up a couple hours later because he wasn't satisfied with the water. I certainly would not want you to go against your doctor's advice...he is the professional...however, maybe you need to say something to him/her about it again. Or you could just try giving your boy a bottle of formula and see if he sleeps longer before waking up.
Another thought... do you swaddle your son in a blanket at night? That may help. I swaddled my older boy until he was 11 months old and it helped him sleep and my younger son is being swaddled as well and he seems to sleep longer.
Good luck!

i dont have any advice just to say i feel for you because my son is on the exact same schedule except he stays up til 8pm. but he is up between 6:30 and 7:30 every morning. my son drinks almost a full bottle as well. dr told me to just let him cry himself back to sleep but is very hard because he wakes everyone else up as well and my husband has to be up at 4 am to go to work. good luck

Hi A.,

My son always takes a bottle at night. Maybe the water isn't filling him up? I could be wrong, but maybe that would help.

:)Good luck!
D.

Do you give him cereal in his last bottle? If not that would help because obviously he is hungry. Water will go through his body a lot quicker than formula will and causes the wet diaper problems to increase.
I don't believe in pacifers so you have my highest regard for not having started that dirty habit!!!!
Secondly he is going to bed way to early to sleep through the night. Naturally he is getting up several times and earlier than you would like in the morning. Ask the child care provider to only let him sleep for an hour and a half at nap time and get him up. He will be a little cranky for the first few days, but that can be tolerated. Then when he is wanting to go to sleep at 7 let him, but get him up at 8 and keep him up until 9:30, then a bottle with some ceral mixed in and back to bed by ten or ten thirty. Like I said, he will be a little cranky for the first few days but it will work itself out to more uninterupted sleep for you at night.
Be glad he doesn't like to be wet, it will be much easier to potty train him.
I am 56, my brother is 9 years younger than I am so I enjoyed this when he was little, raised 2 of my own, and am now raising a 10 year old. I have been through this 4 times and finally figured it out with my 2nd child.
P. R

HI A.,

I disagree that your son is hungry, he's conditioned to being soothed by you and for you to give him water and nothing will happen to him if you don't.

At what time do you nap him?
My son is 10 months, I nap him once around 9 or 10 - depending on when he woke up 6 or 7am - the next nap is at 2 or 3, that way he sleep until 4 or 5 and can stay awake until 8:30, last night the schedules were all messed up because we were running all day and he went to bed at 8pm sharp and he was up at 5 am, I knew he wasn't hungry so I laid him back down and he slept until 6:30, I brought him to bed with me, fed him and he fell back asleep so there - he had woke up too early....

So that's one - the time he sleeps - I would under no circumstances cut out one nap at 7 months nor feed him in the night or you'll be stuck doing that for a long time again and his body doesn't need it.

I feed my son - did the same with my daughter - around 5, bottle around 5 or 6 - depending on schedules, you know how that can vary some - then I "cluster" feed him again, normally he wouldn't be hungry after 2 or 3 hrs bc I also give him solids around 5 - that also helps him go from 8;30 to normally 7 to 7:30, which makes a huge difference to me, 6 is way too early cos I also have a 21 month old to wake up to.

In the middle of the night, I can tell you that at his age, he can handle some crying.

With my dd I went in everytime she cried - 1st child - gave her water, paci, held her, you name it. At 21 months she still expects me to go in and lay her back down and we can sometimes let her cry and she stops for a while but we also have our son sleeping next to her and we don't want her to wake him. You know the internal clock then kicks in.

So, with our son we did NOT go back in, at 7 months we let him cry at night so he'd learn to self-sooth, we laid him down awake and went through the torture for a few days.
he sleep SOUNDLY, we never went back in except at first, just to reassure him and give him a paci or what not.

Now you don't hear a sound from him unless he's sick from 8:30 on.

Sorry to ramble, write me privately if you want me to tell you some techniques we used, I know the CIO is painful but it does teach them to self sooth. It worked with my dd at 8 months, it took him a couple of weeks, she was a bit older so she only CIO for 4 days, no lie ;) But then again, I think girls learn quicker hehehe

Buy and read Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child by Dr. Marc Weissbluth. Dr. Weissbluth is a Chicago pediatrician who specializes in infant/child sleep issues with over 30 years of research in the field.

I had trouble with my son doing that too. I cut out one nap and made sure his nap time was before 1:00pm. That's what the doctor had me try and it worked. To warn you though, my son was never a big sleeper. He does sleep through the night, but at 2 1/2, he quit naps completely. He goes to bed at 8:00pm and is up by 6:30 am. Good Luck. I promise it gets better.

I know how frustrating this can be, I've been through it twice now. This was what I did because it SEEMED the right thing to do for my kids. I would nurse or bottle feed them right before bed and if they woke up in the night I'd rock them back to sleep, no food at all. Once they hit 9 months, I let them cry it out, knowing they were ok. It didn't take them long to figure out that crying would get them nowhere and they learned to soothe themselves. Now, at 4 and almost 16 months, they sleep through the night, from about 8:30 or 9 to about 7:30 or 8 the next day. I left a sippy cup of water with my daughter when she was a baby. but JUST WATER, in case she got thirsty, and to this day I still leave a cup of water in her room at night. MY son, on the other hand likes to toss the cup around so he doesn't get his sippy at night. Good luck.

Hey A., hmmm the water thing is new to me, i've never heard that but my "baby" is now 5. I'm just curious though if he is drinking 4-6 oz of water 3 times a night maybe if you gave him formula it would eliminate the other two bottles? as for waking up wet and needing changed, you could always try waking him up at say 930,(in case he decides to stay awake) giving him a bottle , changing him, and then letting him go back to bed, it might buy you a couple more hourse since your scheduals would be more cooordinated. but he's only 7 months old and even if he's getting up at 6am expecting him at this age to sleep 11 plus hours and not eat or get changed is unrealistic, the term sleep through the night really means that they sleep for an 8 or so hour stretch, which would mean he wakes up at 3. best of luck, and remember this to shall pass, you'll get to sleep again.

You already got some great advise on this issue. The only other thing I thought about was that maybe his throat gets dry at night. You could try running a little humidifier on low during the night and see if that would help him.

My daughter woke up evey 4 hours until 6 months. (She is now 8 1/2months). The pedi told me she didn't need to eat, its what she was used to. I am not big on the cry it out method, but one night my husband and I decided to try it. She cried for about 40 minutes, yes it was heartbreaking. The next night she only cried for 10 min. The first night I went in after 20 minutes and rubbed her back and let her know I was there. She has slept through the night ever since. I would stop giving her water too. The only time Mikala wakes up now is when she is sick and she has been teething. Best of luck. I know it is hard.

M. In medina

Oh my, I would dbl check with another doctor. He is most likely waking because he is HUNGRY! Their whole body, nervous system, bone structure, organs are still forming. And constantly need nurishment. I love that you follow your Doctors suggestions, but I so beleive that if you feed him 8oz with cereal in his bottle the first time he wakes up at night or add some of that drinkable yogert in the formula (check with doc) you will most likely have a sleeping full baby and a Mom who gets a full night sleep.

I admire your courage! Best of everything to you.

I used the No Cry Sleep System for Toddlers and Preschoolers by Elizabeth Pantly. There is on for babies too but I didn't have time to read when my twins were babies so I didn't get that one. I think you would be okay just going to the Toddler and Preschoolers one. It has a problem solving method of determining how to best make you child sleep thru the night. It give how much sleep a child needs by age and a sleep log to help you determine how much sleep your child is getting and when that sleep is happening. I really liked it because it helped without doing the "Cry it out until you pass out thing" It has a whole chapter on waking too early and what you can do about that. I don't think the naps are your problem. He sould be taking 2 naps and getting 2-3 hours of sleep during the day. I don't think waking too early is you problem (but when your naps are happening will infulence your bed time). I think waking up so many times is your biggest problem. If you guys could sleep for more hours in a row both of you would do better and you might be okay with the earlier wake up time. You may have to start to adjust you bedtime to take care of you sleep(I don't know about anyone else but I haven't gotten to sleep in since I've been a mom unless the kids aren't with me).
I do agree it sounds like he is hungry. He can't drink that much water and not get wet at night. You may be causing at least one of the wakings by giving the water. If your baby is not overweight why not feed him the formula? If you want to bread the habit of falling asleep with a bottle, then feed him about a half hour before he goes to bed. Make a play time or reading time or something in his schedule after the bottle so he doesn't associate bed and bottle.

I struggled with bedtime for a long time. When I finally figured out their room got too hot about 3:00AM I was so happy. I started to put on the ceiling fan at night and I was finally able to sleep for more then 5 hours in a row. I became a much better mom when I was getting solid sleep!

Good Luck.... I know how hard this sleep thing can be!

D.

Hi A.,

First off, I just have a question, is he teething? When my son was teething he would wake up in the middle of the night again. When I suspect my son is teething I'll give him some Motrin in case he's botherd with teething pain - especially if he's real fussy with no reason for it, he can't tell you when it hurts! That's just a thought I had. Not sure about the water thing, have you asked your pediatrician about the amount he's drinking at night? I wish you luck, because I know it's not fun to be sleep deprived!

The boy is hungry, that is why he is waking up at night. First thing you need to learn as a mother is to use your best judgement. Many new parents listen to every single word their doctors says but sometimes you just have to do what you feel is best. If he is waking up that many times and drinking that much water, he needs some formula. Or even a little cereal added into his formula. I have four kids; 2, 8, 10 and 12 and I gave each of them formula with cereal at night and it didn't hurt them and they slept through the night. Good Luck.

I don't have any words of wisdom for you, but just know you're not alone.

My son will be 9 months next week and he's up 2-3 times per night. I have tried not nursing him, since he should be able to go all night without eating, but sometimes he is relentless and I do.

Luckily, I'm a SAHM, so I can sleep in till he gets up, so my heart goes out to you having to go to a job every day on top of the sleeping issues.

It's bound to get better. Hang in there!!

I think your baby is hungry and he is still so young, he needs a bed time feeding still and I would also feed him during the night still. My son did not sleep through the night until about 8 or 9 months and every time he woke up I would nurse him. Your baby is hungry and he is still growing very much and he needs his formula. I would consult with another peditrician, he just seems weird to me that it was suggested not feed him at night anymore. My son is now 20 mos old and we still give him a bottle of milk at bedtime. He too goes to bed at 7 and sleeps until 7 or 730. Good luck and seriously consider getting a second opinion about what your doctor said.

You might want to try and cluster feed the last couple of hours before he goes to bed. Give him a bottle every hour and maybe add a little rice cereal to his bottle. Also, he might be conditioned to need you to fall asleep. If that is ok with you then you can go as usual. If you'd like to see if he will learn to soothe himself after not to long you can try that too. It is what you feel comfortable doing.

Hi A.,

I feel your pain. My 7 month old is doing the same thing right now and I'm about to pull my hair out. Sounds a bit like my little guy, crying for his mommy. Mine will stand up in his crib and bang his head against the bars and scream until I come in.
Couple of things.... 1st, have you tried different kinds of pacifiers? My son is a booger about it. I tried about every brand out there before I arrived at this conclusion. He will only take Mam's and it HAS to be latex. I've tried to slip him a silicone and there is NO having that!!

2nd, what stage of solids is your baby on (2s or 3s)? I found he settles a bit better now that I've bumped him up to 3s. It is more food. Sounds like he is still hungry, and that would fill him up a little more. Might help... who knows. Also, I'd be sure he has a substantial bottle before bed, I don't remember if you said you cut that one out or not.

Finally, I've tried the book mentioned in an earlier post. It wasn't particularly for me. It is the leave them to cry method. Don't know what your style is, but it killed me. I went through an entire week crying my eyes out listening to him scream until he passed out. I finally quit. One book that is a bit less severe and also offers lots of other good parenting advice is the Supernanny series. Specifically, ASK SUPERNANNY : WHAT EVERY PARENT WANTS TO KNOW. There is an entire chapter dedicated to bedtime issues. I found a solution I was more comfortable with on page 90-91. She recommends putting your baby to bed sleepy. Letting him cry for a few minutes. Go back in, DO NOT make eye contact ( stare at the bridge of the nose) rub the tummy. Do not talk, but make a shhhhh sound to calm him. Once he is quiet, leave the room. If the crying continues, double the time from the last time you go in. For instance if you waited 5 minutes last time, do 10 this time and 20 the next,and so on. We have our good days and bad days, but it seems a bit easier on both of us using this method. Just another option to throw out there. Good luck, and know that you are not alone in you need to sleep distress. Best wishes and sweet dreams!!

I got lucky, my son will sleep 12hr a night and then I still have to wake him up in the morning. (or more like early afternoon) Anyway he usually gets up at 11am and has a 2hr nap around 2:30. Usually an hour before bedtime I warm up some milk and give it to him. That seems to fill his belly and wind him down and it holds him through the night. What time does he eat dinner? Maybe a later dinner and milk will hold him through. I don't think he needs that much nap time. I know small children need a nap or otherwise they are less then fun to deal with but I think your allowing him to get too much sleep during the day.

Sounds like he's hungry!!! Make sure he either gets a good snack or a very full bottle with rice cereal in it before bed. To me..giving him water that many times a night is only going to make him have more wet diapers and if that's waking him as well, it doesn't make alot of sense to keep giving him water. Also, I guess I don't understand why you don't give him a formula bottle anymore at night. Maybe he still needs one and that's all it would take to help him sleep through the night. I've known plenty of kids that have done that.

my personal opinion is that the 2 to 3 hour nap in the afternoon has to go, or at least make it much shorter, maybe 1 hour and wake him up. Watch what time you feed him supper, the later the better, his tummy will be full and he will be more prone to sleep longer or at least thru the night. He might be crouchy at first but it will get better and his little body will adjust to the new sleep times.

My son would wake up every 3 hours during the night so I fed him. He would eat and then go right back to sleep. I figured he was growing and needed to eat so why deprive him of food at such a young age. Drinking that much water would create more wet diapers so I could see him waking up more.
Did you try mixing some cereal and formula together. I would put it in a bowl and try to spoon feed him if hes ready. Then if hes still hungry, give him just formula in a bottle.
I don't believe that doctors have all the answers because every child is different. You need to find a method that works best for you. I know its hard but your young and you will get through this.

Either put 2 tsp. of cereal in his last formula bottle or give him a snack of cereal before his bedtime.