Night feeds gone bonkers

[bumpy]

My 9 week old has taken to feeding around every 2 hours from around midnight. Had put it down to a growth spurt but it's now been 3 nights in a row!

The only other new things are I'm teaching him to self settle which although he's fighting isn't going too badly plus he drools lots - mostly around 6pm ish but sometimes in the morning too - to the extent that if I don't put a bib on him his baby gro is soaked within minutes. Lastly he's taken to falling asleep around 7pm ish so have introduced a bath at around 6pm followed by a feed followed by bed - all goes well until midnight. Doesn't seem to make a difference whether I do a dream feed or not.

What's going on.......? :-S

[bumpy]

P.S - I'm NOT using the cry it out method to self settle and when he feeds in the night he's not really awake more lots of snuffling and lip smacking which I tend to catch before he wakes and starts crying.

[candj]

Sounds definitely like he's hungry and going through a growth spurt. You're doing the right thing by trying to settle him into a routine, but during growth spurts everything usually goes out the window for a bit. The drooling sounds as though he anticipating dinner and brekkie! Good luck, you'll get through it.

[Fuschia]

Does sound like a growth spurt...

[sillywoman]

. . .though I might consider allowing him to get to the first cry before picking him up to feed, rather than catching him before he cries? Babies go through light sleep & deep sleep patterns just like us & it might be that for one or two of these snuffly wakings he's in light sleep & might go back into deep sleep if he's left. It's a judgement call really - only you can tell of he's hungry, or you're 'catching' him before you think he'll wake. If he still wakes every 2 hours, then it's a growth spurt & normal 9 week old behaviour - he is still a very little baby, & that's what babies do. It won't last forever.

[ClaireinSE22]

Yes, yes sillywoman. When my bundle was that age I would rescue him from his basket at every snuffle and it took me quite a long time to twig that he could whine, whimper and even cry quite loudly without actually waking up - is it possible that you are causing some of the wakings by reacting too quickly? Having said that, I agree with other posters that 2 hourly waking is UBER NORMAL and I believe I read somewhere on the internet (how do you like that for a well evidenced assertion?)that spurts can last for a week. You certainly won't get much change out of your HV if you go to them at this age.......I think mine just said that I was lucky that my baby didn't need feeding half-hourly.

[sunbob]

A couple of my baby's growth spurts lasted almost a week. At the time I thought why was it going on so long, but when they did end I could really feel my baby feeding/the milk coming out more efficiently.

[Tibbs]

What time are you trying the dream feed, I intruduced a feed for my 3 at 10pm, even if I had to wake them to do it. Then they would sleep through until 6:30am all ready for breakfast. Any waking duing the time in between I found the best bet was just to leave them where they are and sooth them, lots of lovely reasuring sushing noises, stroke their heads and ensure that their nappy is nice and clean. I have never picked them up between 10pm and 06:30 am unless they have been really really crying, this would then be just to settle them so that they are calm and then return them to their cots. It has worked for me but everyone parents differently. I am a strong believer in structuring their feeds to a strick routine, any crying in between feeds is for someting other than hunger. The other thing is as to whether you are breast or bottle feeding, since my twins were 8 weeks old the 10pm feed was switched to a formula feed as I found it to be more filling than anything that I could proide, and no naps after 3:30 otherwise they were just not tired enough. My twins and son were in a routine from 2 weeks and are still in it now at 6 months and my eldest now 3 still goes to be and wakes at the same time at night. I believe that it just helps you to know where you are in the day and it makes it easier to work out if they are coming down with something as at no other time are they cranky. I know that some people do not believe in routine but I believe that babies thrive on it. Everyone is different, and so are all babies but 3 hours between feeds, then 4 when they move onto solids has worked for me.

Good luck and I hope that you little darling sleeps through soon.

[bumpy]

cheers everyone, we'll keep persevering