Another night time question

jsaffer01 · July 2014

So when do you stop in the MOTN feedings? For 2 nights in a row, LO has woken up around 3-3:30am and then 10-15mins he falls back to sleep until 5:30-6:30ish. He has gone to bed between 9:30-10pm and when he wakes up in the MOTN he isn't crying or anything. He just flails his arms and does his little noises and then he passes out. I just watch him on the monitor waiting for him to open his eyes and start crying so I know to go make a bottle. Because those have always been his cues. But these past 2nights he wouldn't open his eyes and he doesn't cry. So I just let him sleep and I go back to sleep myself. Is this okay? Or should I be getting up to feed him, even though he's not showing me his usual cues?

Thanks!

hbird0723 · July 2014

This is a good question! I will be watching for answers

sorry I'm no help though. I've been letting her grunt and move and stuff too as long as she isn't crying for me I assume she is still sleeping. I have accidentally woke her up because she was grunting and smacking her lips so I thought she wanted to eat and that did not go so well. Lots of screaming! But I feel bad when she's smacking her lips and I don't respond. I figured if she was really hungry she'd cry out right? Although sometimes when I feed her before she cries out she falls asleep faster because she hasn't completely woken herself up from crying.
Like I said sorry I'm no help help but curious to see what others say

jsaffer01 · July 2014

I'm just glad I'm not alone here. There was one night I noticed him stirring so I got right up and made him a bottle, well I go into his room and he's sound asleep. So the bottle went into the fridge. So now I wait for cries and he usually does. But not these past couple of nights

MsGMChick · July 2014

I'm not sure what the "right" answer is but when DD stirs about 3am, I don't feed her unless she cries (which she doesn't do). I figure I wake up sometimes in the night without needing to eat, and so will she. She's learning to put herself back to sleep from a startle or sleep cycle change and that's a good skill. She's been sleeping from 9p-630a for a few weeks now and gets her nutritional needs during the day (~30oz) so her Dr and I haven't been worried about her.

banks81 · July 2014

I also stopped feeding DD in MOTN. I can tell when she is stirring that she's not really awake. She will sometimes make noise, but it isn't crying. Take this as a blessing - you are getting your sleep back!

jsaffer01 · July 2014

@jenna3878‌ LO also stirs when he wakes up in morning. I usually let him lay there for bit and wake up a little more before going in there. I know I like to lay in bed before getting up for the day. But I don't let him stir too long, because MH comes home from work around the time LO is doing this and I don't want his grunts and noises to keep MH up from going to sleep.

QOTR · July 2014

Everything I read in the beginning about on demand BFing said to watch for hunger cues and start to feed before he cries. That crying was a sign of extreme hunger. So I would swoop in at the first sign of him stirring. I've started to realize though, that sometimes his stirring & grunting is just him working to pass gas or have a bowel movement (or sometimes maybe he's trying to bust out of his swaddle. It's hard to decipher the grunts!). If I leave him alone, he often sleeps for another hour or more. I've started letting him hang out until I know he really wants to eat.

So this makes me wonder, is the recommendation to not let them get to the crying stage before eating just for when they are very young? I think I'll ask my pedi about that.

jenb_99 · July 2014

I feed my babies when they fully wake and give real hunger cues. A truly hungry [normal, healthy] baby [under typical circumstances] will continue to tell you s/he's hungry and won't just go back to sleep.

apinkpelican · July 2014

Personally I'd let LO sleep if he is gaining well and healthy. Sounds like you are going to be getting more sleep! I think he'd be hollerin at you if he was starving.
This morning my LO stirred around 5am as she usually does. She's in own room so I just watched on monitor. She let out 2 little cries then went back to sleep till 7:15. We just moved her into her own room but had she been in our room still I would have scooped her up to feed her (at least on a work night since DH is back to work). The Baby Whisperer says that responding to these 'fusses' teaches them the habit of waking up at 5am (or whenever). As long as she's not really crying I should leave her and set the new habit of 7am which makes for a much happier mommy and baby to get those extra 2 hrs of sleep. Hoping this sticks and the reason she was getting up every day at 5 was because I was responding too early.

britab · July 2014

My doctor said babies are noisy and if they need to eat they can always cry. DD will stir and be smacking her lips and try to eat her swaddle and I'll fed her. Sometimes she just fusses a little and I'll rock her rnp and she'll go back to sleep.

jsaffer01 · July 2014

This what I figured, he will cry if he is starving. I mean he cries at me during the day to let me know it's feeding time. And was 3:30-4 that we were feeding him, if he's not really ready to eat then and can go back to sleep for 2 more hrs I'll take it!!!

gutsysneakers · July 2014

If LO continues to sleep, do those of you who BF get up and pump?

MrsT2008 · July 2014

jenb_99 said:

I feed my babies when they fully wake and give real hunger cues. A truly hungry [normal, healthy] baby [under typical circumstances] will continue to tell you s/he's hungry and won't just go back to sleep.

This. DD won't go back to sleep if she's hungry and her eyes are wide open. I nurse her and she goes down around 6/630 and wakes around 2am and then again around 5 or 6.

And no, I don't pump overnight, there is no point unless you want to have to continue doing that because your body needs to and will adjust to fewer/no feedings overnight.

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