When do babies start sleeping through the night? I have vague memories of going back to work at six weeks postpartum with Gracie and still having to wake up twice or three times a night with her at that point, but I am *hoping* that my memory is cloudy and she was sleeping through the night by then. Pretty sure that's not the case, though...
So Harrison is on a three to four-hour eating schedule, and unfortunately he keeps that schedule both day and night. I took Harry in to the pediatrician on Wednesday for his three-week checkup and his doctor was amazed at his progress...this is the kid who refused to eat when he was a couple of days old, but who is now eagerly eating four (sometimes even five) ounces at a clip and has gained darn near two pounds since birth. Yes, this is a very good thing...Harrison is now on pace with babies his age that were born at term and he's making a near-vertical climb up the growth curb. But damn, this is exhausting.
Gotta jet...Gracie is telling me that I have had enough "computer time" for today...
Surprising no one
9 years ago
4 comments:
I hate to tell you but without active intervention my babies have NEVER learned to sleep through the night on their own. LWWB seems to have had a lot of success w/ their first in cutting back on night feedings on her own timetable, not sure about the 2nd baby tho. And I've HEARD about these infants who start sleeping thru without marathon cry-it-out sessions; I just haven't had one.
W/ both of mine, they might have gotten down to one night waking by around 8 mos or so, but then they hit the famous "8-month sleep regression" and started waking 2x a night or more again. I honestly don't think I have slept 8 straight hours for the past five years, but I feel pretty good; I'm just used to it and go to bed earlier or sleep late if I need to.
W/ Nutmeg, we felt like we had to do whatever she needed, when she needed it, and I don't think I started working on night weaning until she was 18 mos. I didn't want to let her cry but in the end that was the only thing that worked. W/ Pebbles, I actively decided to start ignoring the first night wakeup and she pretty quickly learned not to wake up at that time. Then a few months later I started ignoring the second wakeup as well. Even now I'd say she often wakes up in the night with just one cry or so; sometimes I just let her go back to sleep but often I am walking across the hall just to check her and tuck her in in the middle of the night. Of course I have to go to the bathroom anyway so I figure what the hell.
On a more encouraging note, I think the nighttime feeds get a lot shorter and easier as they age. I'm sure I slept through a lot of them after half-waking to get the process started. I know I had it much easier since the milk was ready in my boob, but once you've stopped pumping at night, you should probably be able to keep the bottle by the bedside to minimize the disruption. Ask your pediatrician if it really needs to be refrigerated; I seem to remember them telling me something about fresh breastmilk being able to sit out for a few hours. If you can get him to drink it w/out having it warmed that would be nice.
who am i kidding--i haven't slept through the night since grace was born, so it's been close to 5 years for me, too.
Oh, sweetie. Keep truckin'. I hear they eventually get it together and start sleeping LONGER than you. That will be so awesome.
JEB slept through the night at 11 weeks (10:30-6:30) and at 5 months we drop the 10:30 feed and slept 7 to 6:30. ARB didnt' sleep through the night until 14 or 15 weeks (10:30-6:30) and we drop the 10:30 feed at 6 month. cross my fingers that it will continue but with ARB being so sick and not eating or drinking much and vomiting, it might end :-( but it will continue. I think if you pump when H is up than it should do it so when he sleeps longer at night, don't wake up every 3 hours, just pump when he wakes up...
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