6 month old still not sleeping through night...help!

InLove16

My son was 6 months old on the 19th.  Shouldn't he be sleeping longer stretches than this?!  He usually goes down around 8 and is up again by 12 for a bottle.  Nothing quiets him but a bottle.  6 oz later he's right back to sleep.  Wakes crying couple hours later (paci out or he's laying on it, squished into a corner, etc).  Fix him, pat his back, he's back to sleep.  Up again around 4 for another bottle.  Back to sleep.  Usually wakes somewhere around 6 just restless and fussy but goes back.  Up for good around 8-9.  I'm exhausted!  I refuse to just let him "cry it out" because he might be in pain from being squished inot the corner or laying with on his pacifier.  Plus he really gulps down those bottles so he's got to be hungry...?  Right?  I have no idea.  Please please help me!   

 

 

Heidi Lanigan-Potter

Sounds like he's waking up for a reason, if he was only taking an ounce or two at a time, I would think differently.  Every baby is different, there is no magic age when STTN is "supposed" to happen.  My son is 7 months and still not STTN.  I read the No Cry Sleep Solution, which has helped.  Do you allow him to fall asleep taking the bottle?  That could be a part of why he is waking up because he relies on the bottle/pacifier to get him to sleep.  These are called 'sleep crutches".  My son is that way with nursing and I have been working on making sure he stays awake so that he can put himself to sleep.  We don't do CIO either, but I do let him fuss a bit (once he's fed, changed, etc.) because I think it helps him learn to self soothe. 

InLove16

I should add that he naps from 11-12ish and 3-5ish everyday.  Also is eating 4tbsp of rice cereal or oatmeal a day plus one jar of fruits or veggies (half at lunch, half at dinner).  He has made his way through the veggies with no problems but HATES all the fruit he's tried so far.

InLove16

Nope, he doesn't get any help falling asleep.  I put him down awake but sleepy.  Sometimes he has a paci in his mouth, sometimes he doesn't.  Sometimes he uses his sound soother, sometimes he doesn't.  I have no idea.  I have the No Cry Sleep Solution too but i haven't finished it and have just skimmed most of it.  I guess I should get back on it.  I do let him fuss for a few minutes and only go get him if he's WAILING like he's dying! 

renogaw

DD was STTN (8pm - 6am) from 2.5 months until about 7 months.  Since then, she's woken up for a bottle almost every night.  If he's waking up and eatting a decent amount (and refuses to go back to sleep without it) my guess is that he's hungry and needs the bottles.  Every baby is different, as much as we wish DD would sleep all night through again, she seems to need the extra food so we're just hanging in there.  Eventually they'll sleep the whole night.  Hang in there

byrne15

wow....

my ds goes to sleep at 8pm, up at 11:30/12 for a whole bottle, again at 2/3, 5/6 and then gets up around 8/9pm.  sound familiar?

i haven't found the magic cure and ds is almost 10 months.  i also won't do cio because once i go in there and "fix it" he is right back to sleep.  maybe it's my fault.  i go to work at 7am, so dh and i take turns going in there at night so each of us get 2 of his 4 wakings.

this has been consistant since ds was born...i dont see the end in sight :-(

eowynmn

Mine doesn't sleep either and he's only a day younger than yours. It is what it is.

princess4u81

I have an 8 mth old that doesn't sttn and barely naps during the day!

Chris&Jen

Owen is almost 10 months old and still isn't STTN.  It stinks, but what do you do? 

joecubed

DS STTN for about a week.  Then he started teething.  We now hang out between 3-6 times a night.  As cliche as it is, do your best to enjoy this - it will go by faster than you know, and soon your baby will be sleeping on his own and begging you not to hug him before you drop him off at school.

mm8283

My ds doesn't sttn, and he doesn't have a schedule of regular naps or night time wakings.  I do everything on demand. Right now I would take a better routine schedule if he isn't going to sttn.  Good luck!

funday

we finally sttn now 1/2 the time and ds is one.  As long as he is going right back to sleep after eating, then it's not sooooo bad.  I would try to let him fuss a bit with the squished in the corner waking, but the feeding wake-up holler I would give in to

ylimebride

Mine has been STTN for several months now, but I think part of it must have been that we est a routine from the getgo. After 11pm, DH would get up with him and give him a bottle 2-3 times a night, then put him right back to sleep. At night DS slept in a pnp in the living room. For daytime naps, it was the cradle in our bedroom and I fed him either BF or bottle. So, after a while, I think he associated night time with Daddy feedings from a bottle and being in a different bed/room, and daytime with me, and also, that daytime was for playing and nighttime for sleeping. anyhow, it seemed to work for us....

HeatherAA

STTN? What's that like? My DD used to STTN for like 2 months and stopped! Actually, last night was a good night. DD only woke up once to have her paci put back in. Most nights she's out by 9 and awake by 1 or 2....stays awake for like an hour...playing and rolling around and then goes back to sleep around 2 or 3 and DH and I wake up at 445 to get ready for work...so I'm really exhausted.

olivia_eve

First of all- it's totally normal.  DD just started going longer stretches in the last week or two, but last night she was awake from 11pm to 3am, so I totally understand where you're coming from.

Is it possible that his naps are interfering with his sleep at night?  3-5 is a little on the late side for an afternoon nap.  Ferber's book has lots of good information on the timing of naps and nighttime sleep.  We also don't do CIO, but I just ignored the parts where he talked about crying and it really helped me a lot.

brisbride07

My daughter had the same thing happen. She used to sleep through the night, now its up at 1 for binky, then bottle at 4.I can't get her to eat anymore during the day. So I just have to deal with it for now.  It will eventually end!

teacherjess

Yeah, I hear you. We've tried it all. DD barely naps all day, won't go to bed until about 9:30, and then she fusses for her paci every 2-3 or 3-4 hours. I swear to God if I hear ONE more person tell me their child STTN at 6 weeks I will hurt someone.

Hang in there. I figure it has to happen sometime, right? Teenagers STTN...right?!?!