Night Feedings

wilsontl19191

Am I the only one still dealing with night feedings?  P goes to bed around 630 or 7 and any time between 12am and 5am, he is up screaming!  The only way he calms down is with a bottle (yes, he's still using a bottle).  We have tried to pacify him in other ways, but nothing else works.  Once he has the bottle, he goes right back to sleep until 7ish. He shouldn't "need" a feeding now, right?  Have I created a monster?  Help!

btsrc5

No, he doesn't "need" to eat.  I was having a similar problem with DD wanting to nurse at night.  After talking to pedi, I cut out night feedings.  The first two nights were very hard and long.  But after that, she was fine with no night feedings.

Good luck

ETA: when I cut out all night feedings, I did not CIO.  I went in, picked DD up, comforted her, and then lay her back down.  It took a lot of time, and like I said, it was a really long couple nights... but I did not want to CIO

karinothing

DS is still nursing at night although we are slowly night weaning. I think we are going to go full force next weekend since it will be a 3 day weekend. Right now I have a goal not to go in to the room before midnight. Two more days of that and I am pushing it back to one.

He typically only cries for 10 minutes and then falls back asleep, I just need more strength to do it when he wakes up later.

Ginny0211

My DD usually wakes up around 1 am and I have to nurse her back to sleep. When she wakes up again usually around 4 or 5 she refuses to go back asleep until I bring her into bed with me. Then she comfort nurses her self to sleep and wakes up for good at 7:30. I tried night weaning for multiple nights multiple times and she just won't have it. She wont let me rock her to sleep or anything. So we are going to wait it out a little longer. More and more we are getting surprise nights when she decides to sleep till 5 am with no 1 am waking and then go back down till 7:30 am so that gives me a lot of hope that we're getting there just really slowly.

blu-eyedwife

He very well may still need a night feeding and I think it's ridiculous to suggest otherwise.  DH's parents never eat lunch, according to them, none of us need to eat in the middle of the day.  So based on that logic, then all of us should cut out our midday meals.  Eventually you'll condition your body not to want it.  For that matter, you could probably survive off of 800 calories a day.  Anything more than that is just luxury, so I suggest you only eat what you need to eat.  I'm sure in time you won't be hungry.

Different children have different needs.  They grow at different rates.  Their intake during the day is different.  Their metabolism and activity level requires different amounts of nutrition. LBB still wakes up once at night to eat, and he didn't hit his big growth spurt until 9 months, after most of my friends had cut out their kids night feedings.  At one year, all of their kids had dropped on the growth scales, and LBB keeps going up - which his pediatrician thinks is fantastic since he was always on the smaller side.   I have no doubt that eventually he'll drop that one feeding, just like he dropped all the others when he didn't need it.

wilsontl19191

blu-eyedwife:

He very well may still need a night feeding and I think it's ridiculous to suggest otherwise.  DH's parents never eat lunch, according to them, none of us need to eat in the middle of the day.  So based on that logic, then all of us should cut out our midday meals.  Eventually you'll condition your body not to want it.  For that matter, you could probably survive off of 800 calories a day.  Anything more than that is just luxury, so I suggest you only eat what you need to eat.  I'm sure in time you won't be hungry.

Different children have different needs.  They grow at different rates.  Their intake during the day is different.  Their metabolism and activity level requires different amounts of nutrition. LBB still wakes up once at night to eat, and he didn't hit his big growth spurt until 9 months, after most of my friends had cut out their kids night feedings.  At one year, all of their kids had dropped on the growth scales, and LBB keeps going up - which his pediatrician thinks is fantastic since he was always on the smaller side.   I have no doubt that eventually he'll drop that one feeding, just like he dropped all the others when he didn't need it.

This is my concern.  P is also on the smaller size (20lbs 3oz and 29 inches) and he finishes the ENTIRE bottle each time.  Since he is a little peanut, I don't want to deprive him of calories if he's hungry!  This night feeding started about 3 or 4 weeks ago so it's not something he's needed the entire time.  I'm torn I guess.  ugh!  Thanks for your input ladies.

RoxRing

blu-eyedwife:

He very well may still need a night feeding and I think it's ridiculous to suggest otherwise.  DH's parents never eat lunch, according to them, none of us need to eat in the middle of the day.  So based on that logic, then all of us should cut out our midday meals.  Eventually you'll condition your body not to want it.  For that matter, you could probably survive off of 800 calories a day.  Anything more than that is just luxury, so I suggest you only eat what you need to eat.  I'm sure in time you won't be hungry.

Different children have different needs.  They grow at different rates.  Their intake during the day is different.  Their metabolism and activity level requires different amounts of nutrition. LBB still wakes up once at night to eat, and he didn't hit his big growth spurt until 9 months, after most of my friends had cut out their kids night feedings.  At one year, all of their kids had dropped on the growth scales, and LBB keeps going up - which his pediatrician thinks is fantastic since he was always on the smaller side.   I have no doubt that eventually he'll drop that one feeding, just like he dropped all the others when he didn't need it.

We still typically feed E in the middle of the night.  However, he is underweight and not on the charts because he's just under 18lbs.  I'm not worried about his weight, however, if he's hungry in the middle of the night, I will feed him.  We've never done CIO and he reaches for the bottle when he wants it.  He's doing much better with his sleep otherwise, so I'm not complaining.  I'm glad I'm not the only one that doesn't think it's necessary to drop it.

Elsa1984

I would still feed LO. Like PP said, every kid is different. Gator will wake and only go down if we feed her again. Sometimes she will drink 2 ounces and sometimes she will down a whole bottle. I can usually judge if she will wake by her before bed bottle, sometimes she won't drink it all, and I know she will probably wake up. I have no problem getting up as I feel she wouldn't be crying if she didn't need something. I have a friend that cut out her baby's night feedings at 3mo and said I was crazy for me not doing it to Gator. Well Gator is an awesome sleeper and and only wakes if she is hungry or her teeth hurt and she needs Tylenol. And my friends daughter is now 10mo old and an awful sleeper. It's nightly she is listening to her daughter wake up multiple times and screaming because she is hungry but mom says "it's just habit, she doesn't need middle of the night feedings." So instead of feeding her and possibly getting more sleep, she wakes up three times and night.

karinothing

blu-eyedwife:

He very well may still need a night feeding and I think it's ridiculous to suggest otherwise.  DH's parents never eat lunch, according to them, none of us need to eat in the middle of the day.  So based on that logic, then all of us should cut out our midday meals.  Eventually you'll condition your body not to want it.  For that matter, you could probably survive off of 800 calories a day.  Anything more than that is just luxury, so I suggest you only eat what you need to eat.  I'm sure in time you won't be hungry.

Different children have different needs.  They grow at different rates.  Their intake during the day is different.  Their metabolism and activity level requires different amounts of nutrition. LBB still wakes up once at night to eat, and he didn't hit his big growth spurt until 9 months, after most of my friends had cut out their kids night feedings.  At one year, all of their kids had dropped on the growth scales, and LBB keeps going up - which his pediatrician thinks is fantastic since he was always on the smaller side.   I have no doubt that eventually he'll drop that one feeding, just like he dropped all the others when he didn't need it.

I think this is a good point too. I know DS doesn't nurse that much in the day anymore so he may need to nurse at night still, which I guess is why we are doing our very very slow form of night weaning lol. I just know he doesn't need to eat 4 hours after he goes to bed since he can go longer than that during the day lol.

 DS is also very little. I MAY Have just put him in a 3-6 month sweater this morning, so I am not overly concerned about cutting out night feedings other than that stupid early one. humph.

ginamcp

blu-eyedwife:

He very well may still need a night feeding and I think it's ridiculous to suggest otherwise.  DH's parents never eat lunch, according to them, none of us need to eat in the middle of the day.  So based on that logic, then all of us should cut out our midday meals.  Eventually you'll condition your body not to want it.  For that matter, you could probably survive off of 800 calories a day.  Anything more than that is just luxury, so I suggest you only eat what you need to eat.  I'm sure in time you won't be hungry.

Different children have different needs.  They grow at different rates.  Their intake during the day is different.  Their metabolism and activity level requires different amounts of nutrition. LBB still wakes up once at night to eat, and he didn't hit his big growth spurt until 9 months, after most of my friends had cut out their kids night feedings.  At one year, all of their kids had dropped on the growth scales, and LBB keeps going up - which his pediatrician thinks is fantastic since he was always on the smaller side.   I have no doubt that eventually he'll drop that one feeding, just like he dropped all the others when he didn't need it.

Ditto this.  I still nurse C right before bed and typically at least once during the night.  When I feed her at night she eats and doesn't just comfort nurse.  Dinner is hit or miss most nights and I know that she is still hungry so I feed her.  If I felt like it was just a habit or she was just nursing for comfort I would wean her, but I know that she is actually hungry. 

cantalopes24

wilsontl19191:

blu-eyedwife:

He very well may still need a night feeding and I think it's ridiculous to suggest otherwise.  DH's parents never eat lunch, according to them, none of us need to eat in the middle of the day.  So based on that logic, then all of us should cut out our midday meals.  Eventually you'll condition your body not to want it.  For that matter, you could probably survive off of 800 calories a day.  Anything more than that is just luxury, so I suggest you only eat what you need to eat.  I'm sure in time you won't be hungry.

Different children have different needs.  They grow at different rates.  Their intake during the day is different.  Their metabolism and activity level requires different amounts of nutrition. LBB still wakes up once at night to eat, and he didn't hit his big growth spurt until 9 months, after most of my friends had cut out their kids night feedings.  At one year, all of their kids had dropped on the growth scales, and LBB keeps going up - which his pediatrician thinks is fantastic since he was always on the smaller side.   I have no doubt that eventually he'll drop that one feeding, just like he dropped all the others when he didn't need it.

This is my concern.  P is also on the smaller size (20lbs 3oz and 29 inches) and he finishes the ENTIRE bottle each time.  Since he is a little peanut, I don't want to deprive him of calories if he's hungry!  This night feeding started about 3 or 4 weeks ago so it's not something he's needed the entire time.  I'm torn I guess.  ugh!  Thanks for your input ladies.

He could be getting ready to hit a growth spurt and will drop the night feeding again. If it's not something he's always done than I would definitely think it wasn't a habit.