Breastfed Baby / Sleeping Through?

[TwoZeds]

Hi, my DD is now 4 months old, and exclusively breastfed. I can't get her to sleep past 4am, even after settling and resettling. Is anyone else going through this? Quite possibly I have been completely spoilt as my DS slept through from 9 weeks, however he had a bottle of formula every night at 10pm from a very early age. Lovely Zali is having no bar of it!

I thought possibly she is hungry, as I have started a new eating plan/exercise regime, however her pattern has not changed since she was born, and I am thinking this is just a habit for her...

Has anyone else gone through this, and did you start feeding rice cereal before the recommended 6 months?????

:confused:

[Foxymoron]

It's completely normal for her to need to wake up for a feed or just for comfort and a cuddle at such a young age. Babes under 6 months shouldn't be introduced to solids, and I wouldn't assume that she is waking up because she isn't getting enough food to keep her asleep. It sounds like this is just her normal pattern, and like everything it will change over time as she is ready :D Out of my 3 babes so far I've had a mixed bag as far as sleep patterns go, as long as they are growing and happy it's fine.

[aardvark]

Babies are all different.

Mine were both exclusively breastfed until 6 months.

DD#1 started sleeping through at about 14 weeks, but DD#2 was getting 6 hours in a stretch from night 1.

I wouldn't be starting solids earlier or complementary feeding on account of night waking. If you are getting sufficient wet nappies during the day, and baby is thriving, I'd just go with the flow.

[zenifa]

My DD has been exclusive breastfeed for five months and this week we started her on solids - she has been showing interest for some time and has excellent head/neck control and sits well,and no tongue thrust.
It may only be coincidence, but since we started solids she is sleeping through.
For the first 3 months she got up 1 or 2 times per night for a feed, and in the last two months its been once a night or an occasional 6hr or so sleep through. As we've just started, breastmilk is her main food (5 feeds per day) and she is only having a little rice cereal twice per day.
Every baby is different and its a personal choice regarding comp feeding and starting solids early. I decided to not comp feed as I didn't want my supply to drop and with the solids, its early days, so she's still feeding well from the breast.
good luck Z :)

[chloe1]

Hi, my little man is 4 months old too and still doesnt sleep through. He is exclusively breastfed and gets up 2-3 times a night. Last night was at 11pm, 1am, 4am and 7am. Im exhausted and am also wondering if there are any ways to change his waking periods. Should he be sleeping through by now??

[TwoZeds]

Hi there, you poor thing, you must be exhausted!! I gave Zali some Rice Cereal and she gladly accepted, actually has been really really excited about it. Instead of waking at 2am as per usual (after 10pm), she's been waking at about 5/5.30am. Not sure how you feel about that...but it seems to have worked for me....???

[chloe1]

Hi i will try and give the rice cereal. With my first chld i started at this time but have been holding off as doc says recommended age now is 6 months. Hopefully Daniel gladly accepts and sleeps a bit more. He got immunised today so i might wait until tommorow.
Thanks:)

[Lisawa]

My DS is 3 months old and has been a pretty good sleeper, although no pattern yet, he started to sleep thru from 7pm - 5am then he went from 7-1-4-6... then he is back to 7pm-1am-5am I think he has just been going thru the 3month growth spurt so I am hoping he will just stick with 1 feed a night and sleep in till 6am... I like one feed a night as its good for my supply and then I dont have to get up and express.

My DD was formula fed and slept thru from 9 weeks old.

I personally want to wait till 5/6 months before offering solids. Although if I had a really good supply I would give a formula fed before bed, but I dont so I need to keep ds on the boob as often as possible.

[shaz77]

My DS is 4 1/2 months old and has just started a little rice cereal in the past week. He has been sleeping through from about 10 weeks, and now will sleep 10-12 hours per night most of the time (except in the extreme heat we've had lately). I found that he would wake every three hours and I was exhausted so I just stopped feeding him overnight. I would resettle him and go back to bed, and if he woke me again then I would feed him. After about a week he stopped waking. I know it may not work for everyone, but it did for me:)

[TwoZeds]

I was the same with my 3yo. He rejected food until he was about 6 months, and it was a complete struggle to get him to eat - a big challenge! Just in the past 6 months has he become easy to feed...needs to be "big and strong".

Anywho...I would love to give Zali a bottle at her 10pm feed, but every time I put a bottle in her mouth she looks at me like "What the hell is that thing?!!!!".

SO...I continue to breastfeed and get up every night with her. Hey, it could be worse huh?

[Miaow]

EJ usually wakes at 4- 4.30 for a feed sometimes earlier (and 4.30 also lol) depending on what times shes gone to bed usually about 10.30 she sometimes will go back to sleep until 6 after the feed.

Sometimes she really wants to play and you cant get her back to sleep until shes had a 1/2 hour play (fun at 4.30 LOL)

[chloe1]

Daniel wasnt intrested in the rice cereal. He's still waking 2-3 times o/n. Tried to give him a bottle but he wouldnt touch it. So guess i have to put up with it for now. I keep saying ill try and resettle rather than feed him but its a viscious circle as im so tired it's quicker to feed.