Does your 6 month old feed during the night?

[Nemmy]

I'm just curious as to how much your 6 month old bub feeds during the night? How many times and how much?

I just got through a phase of DD2 taking two full 210ml bottles of formula a night but not wanting to feed much during the day. My MCHN said bubs didn't really need to be having any bottles during the night and that I needed to cut these bottles back 30mls every couple of nights until I wasn't giving them anymore.

It's been working well and we're down to 30mls once a night and she's back to taking 210ml bottles during the day.

BUT last night when DD2 woke about 3am she was unable to settle and I truly believe this was because she was hungry. After making sure she was warm enough, etc and an hour of her tossing , turning and moaning in the cot I fed her 30mls. She was still unsettled after putting her back to bed so I gave her another 60mls - that seemed to satisfy her and she went back to sleep.

So do others still feed their bubs during the night at 6 months?

[lochiebearsmum]

i still feed my *baby* at night... but he is 3 next week! he likes a bottle about 3 each morning... takes 100 mls and will go back to sleep... it doesnt worry me doing it and it keeps him happy...

[lilBoofD]

My bub is 9 months, and yeap, still feeds most nights.

I think it is pretty normal, and honestly, if I have to feed her for her to go back to sleep, then thats what I will do lol (I have 2 non-sleepers here)

[The sooper nanny]

yep, we still feed overnight and DD eats so much during the day....

I dont get these child health nurses telling you you 'have' to do this and 'have' to do that....
you do what is right for you and your family. Every baby is different, and if shes hungry, what does it matter to the nurse if you feed her? pfffft.... makes me so angry.

Im going to my child health nurse today, the one we had before was damn useless... so lets see what the new ones like..... to me, its seems their sole role is to tell you what youre doing wrong and make you feel like a bad parent in one way or the other...... and Im a midwife so go figure..... sorry you touched a sore point there.

[LilMissnBoo]

I wouldn't listen to your MCHN at all. Go with your instincts.

I was still feeding DD1 during the night until she was 15 months. :)

[The Fox]

my DS eats at 11:30 and up until recently he was feeding several times over night but i dont think it was because he was hungry more so i used to just feed him back to sleep. I stopped doing thats now and my DS just started sleeping through the night again

[TripleTime]

My 3 are 8 months, should be 5 & still have 1-2 night feeds of 100ml+.

Go with your gut, if she wasnt hungry she wouldnt take the feed. YOU know what YOUr bub needs not the MCHN

[kar]

My mchn told me that most babies will still need at least one night feed until around 9 months. F had a night feed until around that age. Bf so no idea re mls but on the odd occassion when dh would give him a bottle would be 100-150 mls

[iMischa]

my boo cut out his middle of the night feed at about 4.5 months, he is 7.5 months now and has 4 x 240ml bottles a day, has his last one at 9-9.30pm and goes to bed, wakes at 8.30 but doesnt want a bottle until 9am

if he woke up for a feed id give him one, but he doesnt wake so i dont.

[wordsalad]

My DD is 7 months and has 2x BF during the night about 11pm and 3am. I think it's probably a bit of a pattern she's into rather than "needing" it, but seems too hard to change it atm when I can just feed and she goes back to sleep :o

[mum2bubba]

Nathan sleeps through the night. His last bottle is at 7pm before he goes to bed. It was the same with the girls too at that age.

[BabelFish]

My DD was sleeping through by 5.5 months but had only ever woken once a night for a feed anyway so I think that was just her.

My DS is 3.5 weeks old and feeds 3-hourly and I expect that he will still most likely need a feed during the night at 6 months.

6 months is very young to not be feeding through the night anymore - many babies (as you can see from this thread) are still having night feeds well into their first year.

I'd ignore your CHN as well. I think cutting down the volume of feeds is ok but not cutting them out altogether if she clearly still needs them - and honestly, if it takes you an hour to try settling her and then she needs a feed anyway, it would be quicker and happier for everyone if you just gave her one to start with! She obviously still needs it - I would go with your gut as others have said.

[MsMummy]

My 16 month old still feeds at least once a night, but only has a quick feed.

When he was six months, I think it was at least twice a night, but again, not huge amounts.

[Hannahsmumma]

Neither of my 2 have had bottles during the night after approx 8 weeks.
I just did a late bottle at approx 10pm (or just before I went to bed) and both would sleep through to anywhere from 5am-7am.
My 8.5 month old sleeps from about 8pm to 7am now.

[simba6]

My ds 6mths, was sleeping through till 6am, but in the last week, he goes to bed at 8pm, wakes anywhere between 11 and 2am- he has 240mls, then again anywhere between 3 and 6am - i cut this back to 180 mls,then wakes at 8am, i am really hopeing it's a phase :hair:

[EDIOH]

My dd goes through period where she will sleep thru and other nights she will wake once for a bf.

I was also told to not feed her during the night, but i ignored it, cause i could tell she was hungry.

[Blonde Assassin]

DS is 6.5 months & he hasn't needed a bottle in the middle of the night since he was about 7 weeks old. We have always given him a late feed at around 10pm though - not sure if its what we're meant to be doing, but he's in a routine now so I'm not prepared to change it!

[Nomsie]

I'm a big fan of do whatever works. When the boys hit 6 months I had a MCHN tell me to stop their night feeds asap, they didn't need it. I agonised over it for weeks, trying to stop it and all I was doing was loosing sleep. I took them to a day stay unit to work on sleep, and all that did was wind everyone up with all their bad CC advice.
When I went back to my regular MCHN at 8 months and told her what had been going on, she was horrified, and told me if they are waking at night and won't settle for anything else but a feed the of course they are hungry! :doh:

I still feed the boys at least twice a night now at 15.5 months. Last night B woke 5 times for a feed. (Of course, I know he's not THAT hungry that he needs to wake 5 times, but it's the easiest and most natural way to get him back to sleep- he is relaxed, I don't wake up fully... and I know there will come a day when they won't need a feed during the night any more. Might not be any time soon, but heaven help us all if this child gets to 21 and is still waking up for a night feed! ;) :laughing:)

[MumtoD]

Our 9.5 month old son hasnt had a bottle during the night since he was 12 weeks old.

[Boobycino]

Jasper certainly was feeding at night at 6 months!!!!

I hear this thing about bubbas not supposed to feed after 6 months, but I know SOOOO many bubbas that feed at night - maybe just the once, unlike Jasper feeding constantly - up until maybe 9-10 months seems like the 'normal' age to drop the night feeds, just from talking to other mummas.

At Tresillian there were 3 8-9 month olds and the nurses were still 'letting' them be fed at night, so I think up until 12 months feeding at night is reasonable.

Its not desirable, but its reasonable.

I'd go with whatever works for you and your bub. If its not working, work on how to change it. But I wouldn't worry too much about what other people are doing with their babies, because every baby is completely different, even siblings were are raised in the exact same way have different needs, so its down to the individual babies needs for comfort and for food. I think 12 hours is a LONG time to go without any food or liquid, I dont think I could do it :no: I'm super proud though, Jasper does 10.5 hours at night now! WOOOOOO!!

[Boobycino]

I'm a big fan of do whatever works. When the boys hit 6 months I had a MCHN tell me to stop their night feeds asap, they didn't need it. I agonised over it for weeks, trying to stop it and all I was doing was loosing sleep. I took them to a day stay unit to work on sleep, and all that did was wind everyone up with all their bad CC advice.
When I went back to my regular MCHN at 8 months and told her what had been going on, she was horrified, and told me if they are waking at night and won't settle for anything else but a feed the of course they are hungry! :doh:



:laughing: silly girl. they not always terribly bright, are they?

[susieq1969]

I WISH that my DS slept thru without a feed :laughing:

No chance, he's slept thru about 3 times in his life.

He is now 7.5 months and he normally wakes up for at least 1 feed overnight (he's BF).

I'll keep doing it until he doesn't want it anymore.

Just go with your gut, you know what's best for your bub! :yes:

[Nemmy]

Thanks everyone for your reply, has really made me feel better.

Since posting bubs has still been waking during the night (once or twice) but not always for a feed. While I'd love for bubs to just sleep through the night, I know this isn't always going to be the case.

I've made myself a rule that if she's still grumbling after half an hour and I've made sure there is nothing else wrong (ie she's warm enough, etc) then I give her a feed. Not a huge one (as I don't want it to affect her day time feeds like it was a few weeks back) but just enough to get her through until morning.

It seems to be working :yelclap:

Thanks again everyone, appreciate your advice and support!