Friday, January 11, 2013

Eating, Eating, Eating, All Night Long

Baby Jett nursed every hour and a half last night.  ALL. NIGHT. LONG.

And it wasn't comfort sucking, like suck, suck, suck, back to sleep, oh no, it was full on nursing sessions.  ALL. NIGHT. LONG.

Is he growing?

Is he teething?

WTF?

I'm exhausted and almost ready to throw in the co-sleeping towel.

But what happens if he goes in the crib?  Is he going to wake up every hour and a half to nurse and I have to GET OUT OF BED AND GO NURSE HIM?!

That sounds like a different kind of hell than the one I'm in...I prefer this one to that one.

Every night I vow to put him to sleep in his crib and see what happens.  And every night I lose my resolve and the baby ends up nursing to sleep next to me.

I know I'm part of the problem but I feel helpless to stop it.

I'm been researching sleep training methods like crazy and as soon as I make a decision on something we have a really good night where he gives me 3 hour stretches...and it's back to square one with me thinking we're going to eventually sleep for longer stretches even if he's next to me.

And then we have nights like last night and I'm back reading everything I can find on CIO and PUPD and basically searching for ANY ALTERNATIVE that let's me get some sleep without having to let my baby cry.

In a nutshell, I'm confused as to what's going on here.  Troublesometots.com says that Baby Jett hasn't learned how to fall asleep without me, but that's not true because I've watched him on the baby monitor wake up from a nap and soothe himself back to sleep.  I've also watched him in bed next to me open his eyes look around, move around a bit and then fall back to sleep...without me doing anything.

So why?  Why doesn't he go more than 3 hours without nursing?  Why does he think he needs to feed every hour some nights?  Why guys WHY???

Last night he was on Dom for about an hour and even then he woke up and wanted BOOB, Dom couldn't soothe him, he had to pass him over for me to nurse him because he was STARVING even though he'd fed...you guessed it...90 minutes before.

I'm getting desperate for some sleep.  This is when people resort to CIO isn't it?  Someone help me, how do I get my baby out of the bed without CIO before things get even worse and CIO is the only option???

P.S. While Baby Jett was tiny co-sleeping was awesome and I would still recommend it for the newborn, but once your baby hits about 8 weeks, GET HIM OUT if you eventually want him out because...at 5 months it's not working anymore.  We are co-sleeping failures and I need some sleep!

13 comments:

  1. Possible he need solid food

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  2. My daughter has been going through a very similiar growth spurt/teething sleeping issue. She use to be a fantastic sleeper (this isn't to brag its to show you that its not something you're doing wrong) and would sleep for 8+ hours straight every night (again not bragging I didn't do anything to cause her to do it she just did). However for the past week or so she has been waking up, every hour to 90 minutes and is HUNGRY. After she eats and is obviously full she will pass out for about 30 minutes and then will wake because her teeth hurt (at which point we give her a pacifier...though we always swore we wouldn't give her one ever she LOVES it and it is the only way I'm getting any sleep). She will then go back to sleep for about an hour...then it starts all over again.

    I honestly believe it is just a growth spurt, and coupled with her starting to teeth and so she needs to eat more and also to have the pacifier to help with her teeth.

    We are planning on doing baby led weaning and she is not ready for that to start yet so we're not introducing solids and are just riding out this growth spurt in hopes that she will go back to sleeping longer spurts soon.

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  3. It sounds like a growth spurt, if he is actually eating every time he wakes up. Grayson has done the same thing a few different times, but every two to three hours. Every hour - you poor thing. How long does he go between feedings during the day? Has he started on solids? I don't know what else you can do. I am not a fan of CIO anyways, but especially if he really needs something like food.

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  4. Holy shit, Logan woke up 3 times last night and ate. I told my husband it was like he was a new born again!!! I think it's a growth spurt, also teething, he already has 2 bottom teeth and he has been eating 8oz bottles so it's time for food for us. They are the same age so maybe the same stuff is happening? All of a sudden I couldn't keep up with breastfeeding anymore.

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  5. Everleigh does this (I know totally different cause she's 2 weeks) but it drives me nuts! 4-6 hours of constant feeding like a rabit squirrel every 30 minutes for 40 minutes feedings. 20 minutes both sides. I can barely pass her over to Mark to get up and go pee. During the day is is super chill, but at night she wants to do these marathon feedings. I had to start the co-sleeping because I was going out of my mind. But now I wear the boppy to bed and she lays on top sleeping or feeding as I lay very very still on my back afraid i will suffocate her.

    Okay, this comment was more about me than you. :) But I have no advice, only can commiserate. Let me know how to get her out of the bed when you figure it out. I never intended to co-sleep. I'm totally afraid we'll still be doing this when I go back to work.

    Oh, and I agree with you, if you put him back in the crib, you will just be up up up to go feed him. My friend has an 8 month old and she just told me her son wakes up every few hours to eat too. She said he likes boobs in his face at all times. :)

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  6. Oh NO!! My daughter is definitely one who cannot fall asleep without me...if you son can do that...I may have created a MONSTER!! (At least you can put him down to sleep and you can leave him at night...I cannot...) Sounds like a growth spurt to me. I'm going to a gentle sleep training seminar on Feb. 1 - I'll write about the advice I get and maybe something will work for you?? I forget who the presenter is...but I get an in home consultation so hopefully I will be a sleep expert! (I should be for the amount I'm going to be paying :S)
    For now _I have no advice. You know your baby best and if he is eating, it doesn't sound like he needs sleep training - just a full belly!
    Good luck hun!

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  7. Look up wonder weeks...it could also be a neurological developmental leap.

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  8. Hey Jes, I would also suggest it is time to intro solids/ ramp up solids if u already started them. Lizzie needed solids at 5.5 months since same as you, she suddenly would not sleep, was feeding all night again and I was knackered! More boob during day...as in INCREASE day feeds a little and intro solids especially at dinner. I found a belly full of solids kept her going. The extra feeds at night was the "tell" that they are ready for food (well porridge anyway!) Good luck!

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  9. I hear there is a regression at like 5/6 months ... or a growth spurt ... or some other kind of hell ... I am really not looking forward to it. I have no advice, I hope it ends soon, not getting sleep is like being tortured slowly to death!

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  10. I got nothing. but it sounds like he must be growing! Or maybe he has a cold or something? I've heard they nurse a lot when they are getting sick. Hope it doesn't last. I am sure at some point I will get here too and be reading back to see what you found out the issue was!

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  11. Sounds like a growth spurt to me! Man are those painful for the adults! As for sleep training, we did a modified baby-wise, (I'm not big on the cry it out) but one thing we did almost religously was use the eat-play-sleep pattern (except for middle of the night feedings). So basically, during the day feed him as soon as he wakes up, let him play, and then put him to bed with out nursing. Repeat.

    Also we stopped co-sleeping at 5 weeks and noticed that we didn't react to his every noise/movement once he moved to his own room, I think it helped all 3 of us sleep better.

    Wishing you at least a 3 hour stretch tonight!

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  12. Sounds like normal sleep regression for this age. Is he nursing less during the day so he needs more calories at night?. It won't last forever and you will get through it. I know you are planning to do NOW and I think that is great. Just keep nursing that baby since there is no evidence to support that solids make a baby sleep longer anyway. You're doing a great job and just think how happy and secure Jett is going to feel when his needs are being met quickly instead of being left to CUP.

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