5.5 month old up every two hours??

[Schatzi]

Oh boy. My DS is 5.5 months, and lately his sleep is dreadful and I'm just oh so tired. We cosleep, and he's exclusively breastfed.

So. What's the deal? He wakes up every two hours, it's like he's a newborn again. And the worst part is that he won't nurse back to sleep anymore. He'll nurse for a while, then start moving around until he's fully awake and we have to rock him back to sleep. Some nights are worse than others, but this has been going on for about a month now.

Is he teething? Is he still hungry? Any Mamas with some sage advice?

Thanks!!

[slgt]

Four-month sleep regression - it's no fun at all. Hopefully it won't last long - for DD, it started at 4 months and lasted until 6 mos. Lots of developmental stuff going on cognitively & physically...all I can advise is hang in there, and try to get sleep whenever you can!

[chase_mommy]

I haven't any advice other than hang in there momma, your not alone. My DD, almost 7 months now, did the same thing around that age. Dare I say it, she is now starting to sleep better at night and this just started to happen in the past few days. It is so rough and so draining but in time this too will pass.

[CarrieD]

I am having a similar issue with my 6 month old. He used to only wake only 1-2 times per night to nurse and fell right back to sleep. It was awsome!!!! Now he is waking every couple hours or so. At least 4 times per night. My older one always woke several times (like 6-10 times per night) until he was a year and it got a bit better so I have never really experienced a sleep regression before. It makes a lot of sense though. He is definately teething and has started to roll and is close to sitting up. He is not nursing quite as efficiently during the day because he is so interested in what is going on around him and is so distracted. I have been trying to nurse him in quieter places, especially those few hours before bedtime to tank him up. It seems to help sometimes.

[blueridgewoman]

We had this problem a LOT between 6 and...hmm... 10 months or so? It's finally starting to get a bit better (I think- we cosleep, so sometimes, dd wakes up and nurses without me even waking up ) but it certainly isn't what it used to be! I keep hoping it will get better and it is-- but slowly.

[springmum]

Originally Posted by CarrieD

I am having a similar issue with my 6 month old. He used to only wake only 1-2 times per night to nurse and fell right back to sleep. It was awsome!!!! Now he is waking every couple hours or so. At least 4 times per night. My older one always woke several times (like 6-10 times per night) until he was a year and it got a bit better so I have never really experienced a sleep regression before. It makes a lot of sense though. He is definately teething and has started to roll and is close to sitting up. He is not nursing quite as efficiently during the day because he is so interested in what is going on around him and is so distracted. I have been trying to nurse him in quieter places, especially those few hours before bedtime to tank him up. It seems to help sometimes.

This is my almost 5 month old exactly. So distracted during the day that he refuses to even nurse when we're out. I think there's a tooth coming in. He nurses 100% better at night and he's obviously hungry (very actively sucking, doesn't pop off like he does during the day) I even have to change 3 fully soaked dipes at night now, since that's when he's eating the most.
Of the times he has decided it's wake up time at some strange hour - I just keep the lights out, don't talk to him and wait for him to wind down again before we both go back to sleep (co-sleep)
I try to make sure I nap with him at least once during the day, and go to bed when goes down for "the night".

Just know when you see that clock every 2 hrs, there are other moms all around the world up doing the exact same thing. Once he's a teenager you'll be banging on the door to get him up one day!! It will come to an end...

From: one sleepy mama

[ZoeyZoo]

Same this here and dd is 4 months. I think it's trying to process developmental milstones. DD already has a few teeth and isn't showing that more are coming yet but she just figured out how to stand on her hands and knees and can almost crawl. That is when this started for me.

For me the swaddle has been great at calming her down initially. During the night I turn her to her side (she is a stomach sleeper) when she tries to practice her crarling. I also keep the light out and don't talk - try to make it as boring as possible.

FWIW I went through something similar when she figured out how to flip over.

[ChetMC]

4.5 Months & Going through the same thing

DS is nursing every two to three hours at night. He doesn't nurse long, maybe for five minutes, but he used sleep eight hours straight.

Partly, I think he's reverse cycling. On Saturday he went 6 hours during the day without eating. Our other kids did this, but it was always when they were older and starting to crawl and explore.

He's had colds. I think the congestion is impacting his sleep.

He's getting more teeth, that can't help matters.

Two months was always the golden age of sleep for our other kids, but they didn't go downhill as fast or as far as DS has.

[dogmom327]

We had a similar problem with DS at around that age. From month 2 to 3, he actually slept 4-6 hours at night...it was great! By month 4 we were back to him sleeping only 1-2 hours at a stretch.

[junipervt]

my dd did this (waking & eating every 2hrs) for 2 weeks. then we went for a vax dr's visit & I weighed & measured her. she had gained a whole pound & grown 1 1/4 in in less than 4 weeks. so maybe your little one is just having a growth spurt

[MountainMamaGC]

I think its normal. My dd started doing this a couple weeks and and just went back to normal a couple nights ago. They are supposed to have a growth spurt around 6 months.

[ltk]

thanks for reminding me! i am living it, feeling it! i need patience.... no such thing as napping here!

[Mary-Beth]

Wish I had a solution to offer...
going through this with my 4.5 month old now.

He was a good sleeper...such a good sleeper and then he turned 4 months. Now waking every 2 hours and sometimes even more...nursing but then babbling, kicking, and being jolly for 30-40 minutes and then wanting to sleep again. And like many others, I have tow other kids and so I do not have the opportunity to nap during the day.

I try not to offer nursing first since this just seems to wake him...I try a gentle rub, and a little rocking and sometimes I have success with this...but not usually.

[BlissyMama7]

I too could have written this post. DS is 5 months and three weeks and I swear last night I feel as though he woke up about a dozen times. I finally got some real sleep from around 4 a.m. until 7:45 a.m. And lately during the day he has been napping only for about 1/2 hour. If I lay with him and nurse him he will go for about an hour and 1/2. I'm guessing it may be a growth spurt, night restlessness or just developmental milestones. Hang in there

[sparkly]

we've been in this since he was 5 months, and, 6 weeks later, it's subsiding somewhat. I still nurse him several times a night, mostly between 2 and 6 a.m. Plus, he's been peeing gallons at night lately--I double up prefolds, and he still soaks them a few times a night.

He's still not a great sleeper (maybe 2 hrs of naps during the day, and 9-10 hrs a night, but not all at once, of course), but things are getting better--or maybe I've just lost it and am adapting to being sleep deprived! Also, you probably already do this, but I just lie on my side to nurse (and we cosleep), so I can still be half asleep.

I don't think it's the teething as much as the desire to practice new skills at all hours. My husband put it this way: if we had just learned to fly practically over night, wouldn't we all be waking up in the night to practice our cool new skill?

Partial solution: I've been trying to put him to bed very early--easier now that it's getting dark earlier. I've gotten it to about 7:45 or 8, which is miraculous considering how things have been going. I'm still letting his nap schedule fluctuate based on when he wants to rest, but try to keep it within a certain range, so that he's not napping anywhere near bed time. Also, I try not to schedule more than one grown up activity per day (like running errands, or attending a LLL meeting), which works for me since I don't have other kids yet. This makes him more relaxed, and gives more time for crawling around during the day, which helps with bed time and more solid sleep. We also go for a walk in the evening with our sling, which helps calm him and often puts him to sleep.

I got "The No Cry Sleep Solution" at the library--but accidentally got the toddler version, not the baby version. Still, it's helpful. It's a decent balance between being very attached to your baby yet also having a little bit of time for yourself. I've also read things by the Searses, and I agree with them most of the time, but goodness, that Mrs. Sears must have had really easy babies, or else been made of superhuman stuff.

[springmum]

Originally Posted by sparkly

Partial solution: I've been trying to put him to bed very early--easier now that it's getting dark earlier. I've gotten it to about 7:45 or 8, which is miraculous considering how things have been going. I'm still letting his nap schedule fluctuate based on when he wants to rest, but try to keep it within a certain range, so that he's not napping anywhere near bed time. Also, I try not to schedule more than one grown up activity per day (like running errands, or attending a LLL meeting), which works for me since I don't have other kids yet. This makes him more relaxed, and gives more time for crawling around during the day, which helps with bed time and more solid sleep. We also go for a walk in the evening with our sling, which helps calm him and often puts him to sleep..

Sounds exactly like what we're doing! I agree it helps just a little bit...

[Molck]

I came here to write this exact post (though DS is 4.5 months), so no advice, but . Our guy's pretty good (though less so lately) about falling asleep around 7:30 then sleeping until 9...or 11...or (yesterday)1! Then up every hour until 4 when he's up for the day :yawning:. Sucks. I'm so exhausted. And his naps are mostly in the Ergo with me walking, so I can't exactly do the whole "sleep when the baby sleeps" think.

I'm going to try going to bed when he does tonight. . Don't know if it'll help, but at least I'll feel like I'm doing something. Hugs to you all.