Gabe is waking up 2-3 times a night again and he isn't hungry. BUT, he won't go back to sleep without a bottle. He'll drink and ounce and fall asleep. We've tried soothing him in other ways and nothing works. He will not take a paci. We've been trying to get him to take one for months, but it is a lost cause...
Thoughts? Suggestions?
We never go into him unless he cries/calls out for us. If he is just grunting/a little fussy we let him fuss it out and *sometimes* he falls back to sleep.
Re: Waking up at night, can't be soothed without a bottle...
I wonder if it's an age thing? DS is going to be 4 months next week and he's doing the same thing. I'll give him a boob and he sucks for a few minutes and passes back out. But then if I put him back in the crib his eyes pop open like he was never asleep and starts throwing a fit. Last night he wouldn't sleep in his crib - I had to hold him. I tried numerous times rocking him (he'd fall asleep), I'd put him in the crib and his eyes pop open. He had been fed, clean diaper, etc....just wouldn't sleep. I finally gave up at 6 this morning and brought him to bed with me which I'm against, but I needed a couple of hours of sleep.
Hopefully it will get better...
I agree that it could be age. DS2 just went through this too. He's a large baby, 18lbs at almost 4 months and I thought he wasn't getting enough to eat. But, when I'd give him a bottle every two hours he'd take a few sips and fall right back asleep. I called our pedi and asked if I could add cereal to get him through the night. He'd been sleeping 6 hours straight prior so I know he could do it but thought he wasn't staying full. Pedi said no, but to let him fuss back to sleep (NO GO, it took over an hour to get him back to sleep because he woke himself up more by crying). Just when I thought it would never end, we got a good straight 6 hours out of him on Sunday and Monday night. I think he's back to his old ways! WHOO HOO!! So, give it some time, it could be the age thing.
GL!!
Ditto to what everyone else has said in this post. DS will not take a paci, and almost always works himself into a frenzy if I try to let him fuss it out, so I just get up, feed him as quickly as possible and go back to bed. I am going to wait until he's a little older until I try to be more proactive about it, because I really don't feel like he is capable of self-soothing yet.
I should also add that at 4 months (13 weeks adj) he has only slept through the night (5 hours +) a handful of times despite our consistent night routine and bedtime (which we've had since early September). I'd imagine this much harder if you've gotten used to sleeping more, so I'm sorry!
Maybe just give him what he wants (1-2 ounces) for now and see how it plays out. It might last a night or two, or it might last longer. Babies under a year are still trying to figure out cause and effect. He might just be trying to figure out how to get mommy to come visit him when it wakes up. Once he sees that it works, he will a) feel comforted and stop waking up - the more likely scenario, especially if he was already STTN or b.) continue to wake up more frequently - oops!
0-12 months is full of exciting(!) changes that will drive you crazy if you over think it. Just go with the flow and see how it works out. GL!
Yeah, I think that's what we are going to do. His adjusted age is 4 months, so it isn't really something I want to fight him on right now.
Also, every ounce he drinks is 20cals more, so it helps him gain even if he isn't the full bottle.
We'll miss you sweet Debbie Girl (4.21.12) and sweet Cindy Girl (8.9.12)
