# 5 mo old still won't sleep thru night!



## kfowler (Jun 7, 2006)

I am at my wit's end right now with lack of sleep.








: DS, who just turned 5 mo old this past Tuesday, STILL will not sleep thru the night. According to his ped, she says he should be sleeping for at LEAST 4 to 5 hours at a time. On average, I am up every two hours with ds, however, there are several nights where I am up with him as often as every 45 minutes!!!

His ped originally thought the waking might be due to reflux so she prescribed him some Zantac. We gave it to him for two weeks but the only thing it seemed to do was make his gas worse as well as causing him to spit up all the time. Since we stopped the meds, the spitting up has disappeared but he still has problems with gas at night. I'm thinking his constant waking has something to do with the gas as he keeps straining really hard and curling up. He used to do this when he was constipated but since we've started him on prune juice daily, it seems to have cleared up the chronic constipation. However, I'm now wondering if maybe the prune juice isn't causing stomach cramping/gas?

We've tried co-sleeping, putting him in his crib in our bedroom as well as putting his chair in his crib and allowing him to sleep in that (thought maybe propping him up would help) and nothing, he's still up every two hours.

It might not be so bad if he'd take longer naps during the day but he's now down to three naps a day, both of which are never longer than 30 minutes at a time, whereas he used to nap sometime around the middle of the day for about a couple hours. Dh takes ds on the weekends so that I can catch up on missed sleep but I'm getting more and more burnt out with not being able to get any sleep. This morning, I was sooooo tired. Ds was refusing to go back to sleep and was being especially whiney and I actually yelled at him. Of course it scared him and he started crying and I felt like a world class loser, not to mention a horrible mom. I'm just so tired!

Does anyone have any solutions on how to get ds to sleep for at least a four to five hour stretch? (FYI, I'm not big on letting him cry it out as it's just terribly hard for me, to the point of being almost physically painful, to hear him crying and not go to him.)

Any help or suggestions are appreciated! Thanks!

Kfowler


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## Fiddlemom (Oct 22, 2003)

Hey Kfowler,

First of all.....big





















Before I get going, it WILL get better. IT WILL. I promise. You will not be nutsoid from lack of sleep forever. I promise!!!

do you have a copy of the _No Cry Sleep Solution_ by Eliz. Pantley? has some good ideas in there that were very very helpful to us.

I have been to that place of sleep deprivation more times than I care to recall and it was totally hell...for lack of a more exact term. So please, be as gentle with yourself as you possibly can in your very sleep-deprived state. It is awful! It is used as a form of torture it's so bad! if possible recognize for a moment the level of difficulty you're at right now. Undergoing torture and compassionately parenting the coolest kid in the world at the same time. No need to pulverize yourself for yelling. I yelled, broke glasses on the floor, pulled my hair, cried uncontrollably; crazy stuff. I was nuts when it was really bad.

OK, here is what our experience was like. My kids did not sleep 4-5 hour stretches till after age 1. However I wasn't insanely sleep-deprived for that entire time. Mostly just in patches. Around 6 months was my lowest point with the first one....he was in developmental overdrive and getting lots of teeth and it woke him up a LOT. Then it would ease off. The teething went in cycles as did the personal development stuff. But it was hard at that time. I remember.

It was very helpful to toss out the "shoulds" from any "experts" and to focus solely on whether what was happening and think about whether it was working for me. If I could get 3 hours at a stretch that was good. Something about my sleep cycle.

If you are an attached household the kids are closer by & nursing, and they wake up more frequently. Finding ways to get to YOUR sanity zone could be a helpful way to approach this. Sleep experts, unless helpful, can go fly a kite! they are not up with my child in the middle of the night! (hey! a poem!) So, by doing this--I am closer to my goal already! my sanity returns nicely at 3 hour stretches. 5 would be nice, but not necessary to get me back from the brink.

Is he eating anything yet? (not pushing! Just curious) interested in food? My older one was dying to eat when he was 4 1/2 months. Some aren't ready till later than 6 months. It might be something to consider. (he's getting plenty of goodies from your milk, of course, but it might be worth looking at!)

could dh take him in the middle of the night for a day or so during the week just to get you / keep you back from the brink?

big hugs, hang in there. Things are going to get better, I promise, promise, promise. Good luck finding the tools that work for you this week.


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## D_McG (Jun 12, 2006)

Are you nursing? DS is a mess (like that - crying... legs curled up) when I have either dairy or soy. Have you ruled out food allergies like that?


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## PancakeGoddess (Oct 8, 2004)

Your ped is wrong. Five months is way way too young to expect sleeping through the night, IMO.

At that age they are starting to get so curious about the world, possibly teething - night waking is very normal and very common. I know it stinks to be up, but this is not a problem with your baby. It's a matter of deciding how to cope.

Prune juice is probably not a great idea. The AAP recommends breastmilk only until 6 months. You didn't mention if you're nursing, but if so, I suggest that you bring him in your bed with you, or pull his crib up to your bed, and just nurse him back to sleep when he wakes. Will he nurse lying down?

It will probably be a lot less frustrating to mentally accept the waking and expect that it will continue for some time.


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## kfowler (Jun 7, 2006)

To answer everyone's questions...

*Fiddlemom -* No, I haven't read that book but will definately check it out! Thanks!

There are times when ds will sleep up to 3 hours at a stretch but those times are VERY rare right now. However, those times it has happened, I definately felt more rested.

DS has just recently started solids. Right now he gets (sugar-free infant) applesauce at least once a day. He's been having that for about three weeks now so we're probably going to start trying some other foods as well. Some people have said that it might help ds to sleep better at night if we gave him some solids at bedtime. Have tried this and it didn't help at all.

*D_McG* - No, I am not nursing. I really REALLLLY wanted too but, due to latch and supply issues, turned out not to be able to. So, as a result, ds is formula fed. He's currently on Enfamil Lactose Free. The ped had originally thought that the spitting up and bad gas/constipation could be due to lactose intolerance. (I am lactose intolerant.) The spitting up stopped but the gas/constipation stayed pretty much the same. Other than possible lactose intolerance, no mention of food allergies has been made by his ped.

*PancakeGoddess* - As I mentioned above, ds is formula fed due to problems w/ bf'ing. I pumped for the first month, month and a half but after that my supply started to dwindle (despite more frequent pumping as well as working with a lac consultant) and I stopped. Since then it's been only formula.

Ds sleeps either in bed w/ dh and I or in his crib which is only about a foot and a half away from my side of the bed, so he's always right nearby. If he wakes in the middle of the night, I usually try holding him and gently rocking him back to sleep. If that doesn't work, and it usually doesn't, then I give him a bottle which usually does the trick.

The reason I give the prune juice is because it's been the only thing so far to help with ds' constipation problem. It got really bad there for awhile. The poor thing would strain and cry until his face turned purple. In addition to that, I would usually have to help him poop at least once a day just to ease his discomfort somewhat. Since the prune juice however, he's been going on his own a couple times a day now and it's normal consistency. I'm not opposed to another solution. It's just that, so far, the prune juice has been the only thing that's worked.


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## kfowler (Jun 7, 2006)

Oh, forgot to mention...I'm pretty sure ds has started the teething process because he's drooling like crazy and has been chewing everything he can get his hands on, including his own hands! LOL So, that could be part of the reason as to why he's not sleeping through the night. Of course, he's been doing this from day one. It's not something that only recently started. He's NEVER slept more than two hours at a time. (Well, aside from the maybe three or four times he's slept for three hours at a time.)


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## phaeon (Nov 15, 2004)

I have to agree with PancakeGoddess. 5 mos is VERY young to be sleeping thru. I have a 28 month old and an 8 mos old. The older one did not sleep for long stretches consistently until closer to a year. The younger one is sleeping about 5-6 hrs, but not consistently. They've got so much going on at this age that it's no wonder they wake up a lot at night. I agree with PP who said to make the best of it, try to cosleep or sidecar if you're using a crib, and hang in there. It will pass much sooner than you can imagine, particularly if you're not dwelling on it. The, er, "experts" know only about "average" babies. Your baby's special!

Cheers,
jen


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## Fiddlemom (Oct 22, 2003)

kfowler--sorry to make the assumption about nursing! you went through such an ordeal. sorry to be so obtuse!







: I hate it when I do that! OK, back to the discussion at hand.....


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## turtlemama77 (Jul 29, 2005)

If your babe recently started solids, I wonder if that could be causing the nightwaking? Maybe the solids are upsetting his tummy...it's very possible he's not ready for solids. It's recommended to wait until at least six months for solids anyway. What if you cut out the solids and see if that helps?

I agree with pps...five months is way too young to expect him to sleep through the night. Hang in there, it does get better!!


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## 4evermom (Feb 3, 2005)

For some reason, I misread your ds' age as 5 yo. I was thinking there must be something wrong with the poor kid because even my 5 yo ds is up to 4-5 hour stretchs! Anyway, just another mama agreeing that that is a high expectation for a babe. I remember a lot of up every hour nights. Sometimes, I'd nap on the couch while dh held the baby in the evenings, or while dh took ds for a walk. I ALWAYS lay down with ds for naps and got whatever sleep that I could during that time. It was grueling and you have my greatest sympathy


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## jocmtl (Nov 13, 2002)

Hi there,

You've gotten so great advice so far, but I just wanted to tell you I know where you're coming from! I'd say sleep deprivation has been my/our greatest challenge with ds. When he was your son's age, his sleep was just awful. I was up at least three times in the night, often for 40 minutes at a time, and he had a really hard time napping during the day. So I was exhausted, to say the least. I felt bleak and hopeless about the sleep thing. I was crazy in love with ds and our little family, but I just couldn' see how the sleep would ever get better.

No Cry Sleep Solution did help some, if only to help us understand more about infant sleep and have healthier expectations. BTW, there's also a ncss support group on Yahoo! which is really great. http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NoCrySleep2/

I do second the pp about 5 months being too early to be expected to sleep through the night. And our little guy had constipation issues, too, although much later, and that upset his sleep. Teething still messes him up.

All I can say is it does get better. There may come a time when you want to implement measures to help your baby get better sleep (learning to fall asleep on his own, nightweaning, etc), but honestly, I know lots of babies who go through this stuff and still wake up a lot. Some babies are just lousy sleepers. What was key for me was getting the naps under control, because then I knew I could rest as well. By six months, he was napping fairly regularly, twice a day. We worked hard to establish routines, keep him active enough to tire him out and find optimal ways to encourage sleep (like in the winter, he loved to fall asleep in his stroller on a long walk; I kept him asleep in the stroller once home in a cool room and slept if I could). And as you'll read in NCSS, sleep begets sleep: a baby that is well-rested in the day will sleep better at night, odd as that sounds.

I could go on and on. For what it's worth, ds is 18 months and still wakes up 2-4 times a night. But the good thing is we have never let him cio, he always goes to sleep peacefully, the wakings at night are much briefer, and I can always count on his nap. So in that sense, it's much, much better.

Hope this helps and good luck to you both!


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## D_McG (Jun 12, 2006)

There is a great post on the kellymom message boards that talks in general about sleep problems. I hope it's OK to post a link? If not let me know and I'll remove it.

http://kellymom.com/smf/index.php?topic=9787.0


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## coobabysmom (Nov 16, 2005)

s I know how hard it can be... I normally just lurk on the Family Bed forum because I don't have sleep answers but I did feel compelled to share my thoughts on this one.

Most babies don't naturally sleep thru the no matter what the peds or other mommy friends may say and certainly mine does not.

Maybe his system is reacting to the formula, prunes, etc...Have you considered taking away his solids and trying a different formula or looking in goat's milk which digests more easily and possibly adding a probiotic to support his gut flora? Solids are not necessary at this age. (There will no mistake when the baby's ready-he'll show you plus he'll be sitting unassisted abd have a developed pincher grab).

Maybe ds needs a different kind of care: Chiropracter or CS therapy?

just my 2 cents...







s


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## boobjuice (Jul 23, 2006)

sorry to hear your little guy is having so much discomfort. my stepson who I have been caring for since he was one went through several brands of formula until we found one that did not constipate him and give him tummy troubles. we were always massaging his tummy to help him. you may want to switch brands, I think Enfamil is the one we had the most trouble with. The applesauce is high in fiber, so should help his BM. also I noticed when my babies were teething, it hurt them more when I layed them down, I guess because all the blood would rush to their teeth. I would recommend that you take nap(s) when your son naps, I know its hard to do, but it is also very important that you get plenty of rest, especially if you are not getting a good night sleep! so start napping! If i imagined i was in his shoes, i would imagine being constipated and gassy, and that my teeth hurt more when i layed down, and even though i'm really crabby, i would like it most when i'm comforted one way or another. You're doing a good job, this will pass quickly.


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## Treasuremapper (Jul 4, 2004)

Five months old? I definitely would not expect sleeping through the night at that age. Seriously, that's like three years too young to even think of such a thing, in my experience. Someone is feeding you a line.

I have no idea how to do it without nursing, that would be really hard. Would a pacifier help, or is that a no-no when a baby is already formula fed? I would be tempted to find out about relactating, just because nursing makes everything so easy by comparison to not nursing. But if that's not an option (and I have to admit total ignorance on relactation beyond hearing the word) I wonder if having a pacifier would work, or even just letting the baby "nurse" without milk to help with sleep?

I think cosleeping would make things much, much easier, too, so long as the basic safety precautions are met. I don't think sleeping in the chair sounds safe to me.

Good luck. I would really give up on the fantasy of sleeping through the night, and just surrender to the idea that sleeping through the night almost never happens in real life at five months.


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## stanswife (Jul 30, 2006)

I'm commiserating with you here! My nearly 6 mo. old is going through a rough patch sleep-wise. Teething, I'm sure. However, I wanted to suggest a couple of things that helped us early on with him. He was very much like your DC during the first few months, but when we started him on probiotics it helped tremendously. Cleared up his intestinal discomfort entirely. Also, we had good luck with gripe water, fwiw. Another thing we tried when we were in the thick of his pain was craniosacral therapy, which a PP already recommended. Right after he had treatment there, a chiropractor cleared his valves or something like that, but he filled several diapers immediately and has been fine since. All three in conjunction really REALLY helped us.

And your pediatrician is WRONG. No one can say with certainty what any child SHOULD be doing. They are all unique and right on track where ever they are.


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## BusyBee (Aug 6, 2004)

I don't expect my kids to sleep throught the night consistently until they are FOUR YEARS OLD. I've been where you are at though with my first child (a very colicky high-needs baby) and if someone had just told me that some babies sleep through the night but in reality most won't, it would have saved me a lot of worry and guilt and if my husband had understood this more perhaps he would have been more flexible and supportive during this time. Of course check out possible medical concerns, but really it is far to young to even think about sleeping through the night. Soon you will have teething and then there will be separation anxiety, then exictement over being able to walk... All these things affect sleep. Temperment also is manifested in the baby's sleep needs. My daughter is an "easy" child and goes along with most anything, it is no surprise then that she wakes up the least at night. What helped me get the most sleep was just going with the flow... "OH. here we are again reaching a developmental milestone or cognitive shift and lots of night waking for the next month or two...". It seems that the babies go through times when they will sleep and so you think they should from that point on, but there will be plenty more times when they won't sleep through the night. I "still" wake up at night. I just know what I need (like going to the bathroom, or change position) and have the ability to fix the situation and then go back to sleep. As parents we help our children learn these pretty amazing skills. One of my children just gets thirsty a lot at night. She is old enough to tell me this and can get a drink of water if needed. It is hard knowing what is going on for a little baby who can only cry.

This too shall pass


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## lactivist (Jun 14, 2005)

It can be so rough when they aren't sleeping. It can definitely be personality based. My 17 month old has only slept a 4 hour+ stretch about 3 times in his whole life. We are nursing and cosleeping and that doesn't afford me anymore sleep. For most of his first year he never slept longer than 40 minutes ever. He is now starting to sleep reguarly for about 2-3 hours at a time. My first daughter was very similar and my second child slept through the night the night he was born. I parented them all very similarly but two weren't sleepers and one was a great sleeper. I take naps when I can, get dh to get up with him on the weekends so I can sleep in and just don't plan a lot when things are really bad. It does get better. 5 months is so very young and they really need us especially at night. It is always good to investigate and try to find solutions but sometimes it is just their personality and not much can be done.








Wendi


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## kfowler (Jun 7, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Fiddlemom*
kfowler--sorry to make the assumption about nursing! you went through such an ordeal. sorry to be so obtuse!







: I hate it when I do that! OK, back to the discussion at hand.....

No worries Fiddlemom! With so many people posting here, it can be hard sometimes to keep everyone's stories straight!


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## ndunn (Mar 22, 2006)

Ok first, I feel your pain! I am a total zombie, my daughter was 5 months old on Monday, one day before your babe. I nurse her every HOUR at night sometimes. The other night she woke up at 4am and wouldn't go back down until 6am, wanted to sit up and play and scratch her nails on the surfaces around her to hear the noise. Funny right? NO!














:

Its been gradually getting worse since about 3.5 months. Up until then she'd sleep like 10 hours, wake up and nurse, and then sleep another 3. I noticed that the nightwaking started with the drool and they increase simutaneously.

I'm going to my naturopath this week to ask if I can give her Hylands Calms Forte, so I'll let you know what he says.

A big change for me was when I just started accepting it. I no longer resent it because I just expect it, and I love her so much, so I just do it.
That being siad, I know I can't go on like this forever, because I feel my body getting REALLY run down. And its taking its toll on DH who bounced her back to sleep last night SIX times in addition to all my nursing. It's gotten so bad that she leaks out of the 3 layered cloth diaper that usually has always held her through even a bad night because so much nursing=alot of pee!

I agree with the PP's though that 5 months is way to early to expect a baby to sleep through the night, and usually ped's say silly stuff like that. Only you can really know your baby and what is right for him/her. That "advice" is only an approximation.

Anyway, I'm going to let you know if I find anything that works, and you should do the same, because I'm so tired ........







:


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## laohaire (Nov 2, 2005)

Are you feeding him anything with a lot of iron in it? Like formula with extra iron, or cereal, etc.? If so, perhaps stop that, and also stop with the prune juice. Fortified iron is not really like the iron in natural foods (like breastmilk, meat, spinach, etc.) and it's very constipating. Perhaps your little one is having trouble digesting it.

I also agree with the others that 5 months is nowhere near the age to sleep through the night. My one year old has never gone more than 3.5 hours - and that only happened maybe 3 times (usually every 2 hours she wants to eat, though usually she doesn't wake up for that).


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## mountainsun (Jan 11, 2005)

Quote:

I also agree with the others that 5 months is nowhere near the age to sleep through the night
yeah that. This too shall pass, mama. 5 mos is Very young to expect this.


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## Treasuremapper (Jul 4, 2004)

btw, my 48 year old husband still doesn't sleep through the night, so he is pretty understanding about our kids' nightwakings.

Good luck -- remember some of the basic techniques for reflux and nightwakings may help. Reflux -- elevate bed. Nightwakings: soft sleepsack and cuddly pajamas (footed or with socks) and cold air in the room, gentle on tummy feeding before bed, white noise machine, etc. These will not make a baby sleep through the night, but they will dramatically reduce the number of wakings. Any little bit helps.


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## Tonia80 (Jun 10, 2006)

I totalluy agree you ned to not worry so much about it as my kid snever slept more than 3 hours at a stretch at 5 months old! My youngest has turned out to be my best sleeper and he was nearly 1 before he slept 5 hours straight! My three year old still wakes every 4 or 5 hours. Every person is different. Look at adults, some of us are night owls and others insomniacs...why should babies fit into a specific mold?
Though i DO understand your frusturation especially as I also struggled with nursing my firstborn due to hsi prematurity and having to supplement with bottles was soooo much more work! having to be physically UP was so hard in comparison to simply rolling over and nursing him back to sleep. I would say try co sleeping and keep a couple bottles right by your bed either in a cooler if he likes them cold or have the formula pre measured in the bottles with a thermos of warm milk to add when he wakes up so at least you have less to do and can maybe sleep more? Oh, and I KNOW the opinions on Nestle here...trust me I hold the same opinions!!! BUT the only formula that really helped with my sons severe spit up and gas issues as an infant was Nestles Carnation with comfort protiens, Worth a shot maybe?
I hope you can get teh sleep you need! But really, do not take to heart what your doc says, every baby is diferent!!!!


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## sparklefairy (May 21, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *kfowler*
He's currently on Enfamil Lactose Free. The ped had originally thought that the spitting up and bad gas/constipation could be due to lactose intolerance. (I am lactose intolerant.) The spitting up stopped but the gas/constipation stayed pretty much the same. Other than possible lactose intolerance, no mention of food allergies has been made by his ped.


Lactose Intolerance is the inability to digest milk sugar, which is unlikely and rare in an infant. (Human milk is chock-full of lactose.) As we mature, we lose the ability to digest lactose because we are developmentally past the need for human milk. An infant is more likely to be reacting to the cow milk protein.


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## StrawberryFields (Apr 6, 2005)

I agree with PPs that 5 months is much, much to young to expect sleeping through the night. My 9 mo. ds still wakes twice a night to eat and when he is teething wakes as often as every 30-45 minutes for comfort.

I don't have any solutions to help your babe sleep longer but maybe co-sleeping would help you get some more rest--that's what works for us









ETA: Do you use a pacifier? I think my ds was about 5 months when he started taking a pacifier and that helped him/us immensely in the sleep department


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## kfowler (Jun 7, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *laohaire*
Are you feeding him anything with a lot of iron in it? Like formula with extra iron, or cereal, etc.? If so, perhaps stop that, and also stop with the prune juice. Fortified iron is not really like the iron in natural foods (like breastmilk, meat, spinach, etc.) and it's very constipating. Perhaps your little one is having trouble digesting it.

No, no added iron other than the normal amounts that are in all formulas. None in anything else either. That was why we stopped with the original formula because it had too much iron and we thought that might be the cause of his constipation problems.


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## kfowler (Jun 7, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *inezyv*
btw, my 48 year old husband still doesn't sleep through the night, so he is pretty understanding about our kids' nightwakings.

Good luck -- remember some of the basic techniques for reflux and nightwakings may help. Reflux -- elevate bed. Nightwakings: soft sleepsack and cuddly pajamas (footed or with socks) and cold air in the room, gentle on tummy feeding before bed, white noise machine, etc. These will not make a baby sleep through the night, but they will dramatically reduce the number of wakings. Any little bit helps.

He sleeps elevated. Currently he seems to do best when we have him sleeping in his little vibrating, rocking chair. It's made for infants and has a little lap belt to prevent him from sliding out of it. We put him in his chair and then put that in the crib (this is mostly to prevent the dog from being able to get at him). He seems to do fairly well sleeping that way. We had originally elevated one end of his mattress but he kept waking up because he'd slide down and his legs would be all smooshed at the bottom. LOL We also have a fan running year round at night (dh and I like the background noise to help us sleep as well) so that's covered too, as is the sleepsack. Still usually won't sleep longer than an hour or two at a stretch.


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## kfowler (Jun 7, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Tonia80*
Oh, and I KNOW the opinions on Nestle here...trust me I hold the same opinions!!! BUT the only formula that really helped with my sons severe spit up and gas issues as an infant was Nestles Carnation with comfort protiens, Worth a shot maybe?
I hope you can get teh sleep you need! But really, do not take to heart what your doc says, every baby is diferent!!!!

Did the Nestle before and it actually made his constipation WORSE rather than better. So far the best seems to be the Enfamil Lactose free, though that isn't saying much because he's still having problems.


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## kfowler (Jun 7, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *StrawberryFields*









I agree with PPs that 5 months is much, much to young to expect sleeping through the night. My 9 mo. ds still wakes twice a night to eat and when he is teething wakes as often as every 30-45 minutes for comfort.

I don't have any solutions to help your babe sleep longer but maybe co-sleeping would help you get some more rest--that's what works for us









ETA: Do you use a pacifier? I think my ds was about 5 months when he started taking a pacifier and that helped him/us immensely in the sleep department









We do the co-sleeping after dh gets up and I haven't really noticed much of a change in how well ds sleeps in my bed vs. in his crib. (Just in case anyone's wondering, I don't do co-sleeping at night because dh has a condition that causes the muscles in his arms and legs to spasm periodically while he sleeps, causing his arms and legs to jerk. To prevent myself from being kicked, I sleep with a body pillow between us.)

As for the paci, yes I do use a pacifier. He uses it only long enough to fall asleep usually. Have been having some problems with it though now that he's starting the teething phase. He wants to CHEW the paci rather than suck it which generally causes it to fall out of his mouth. And since he hasn't quite figured that out yet enough to know to pick it back up and put it back it, once it falls out, he usually starts crying so it's not much of a help at the moment.


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## kfowler (Jun 7, 2006)

Thanks all for your suggestions! I spoke with dh about what had been recommended here and we've decided to give the probiotics and gripe water a try to see how that works. If we don't see any change, then we're going to look into seeking out some craniosacral or chiropractic therapy for ds to see if that helps. Thanks again for all your suggestions!

kfowler


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## AnnesMoM (Jun 19, 2005)

I agree with the pp's that 5 months is WAY to early to expect a child to sleep through the night. My dd didn't sleep more than a 2 hour stretch at a time until she was 18 months (not saying that's every kid, but it was normal for her). All children are different. I think that a baby who actually sleeps through the night at 5 months is pretty rare. Does your ped actually have kids?


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## PancakeGoddess (Oct 8, 2004)

Cranial sacral did an amazing thing for my newborn, fwiw. I was pretty skeptical, too.

Also, I really feel for mamas who have to give bottles at night. Is there any way of warming bottles without having to haul it out of bed every time? A mini-fridge and mini-microwave, lol? I'm clueless - I just know I'd do what it took to avoid all that getting up. Lazy mama







:


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## Treasuremapper (Jul 4, 2004)

If my five month old baby slept through the night I would be scared something had happened to it during the night! I'm a little overanxious, but that would be so rare that it would freak me out.


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## kfowler (Jun 7, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *PancakeGoddess*
Cranial sacral did an amazing thing for my newborn, fwiw. I was pretty skeptical, too.

Also, I really feel for mamas who have to give bottles at night. Is there any way of warming bottles without having to haul it out of bed every time? A mini-fridge and mini-microwave, lol? I'm clueless - I just know I'd do what it took to avoid all that getting up. Lazy mama







:

They actually have these contraptions that keep a bottle cold until you need it and then it warms it to the proper temperature too. Problem is, ds will sometimes need more than one bottle (the ones we have only hold 4 ounces which sometimes he'll drink and other times he wants a couple more ounces) and he always wakes up to feed more than one time a night. SOOO...unless we bought several of these things - and if I'm not mistaken, while not super pricey, they ain't exactly cheap either - we'd still be up a few times a night.


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## kfowler (Jun 7, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *inezyv*
If my five month old baby slept through the night I would be scared something had happened to it during the night! I'm a little overanxious, but that would be so rare that it would freak me out.

LOL inezyv! Actually, if ds suddenly slept more than four hours at a time, I'd probably freak out and think something had happened to him as well. Like you, I tend to be a bit overanxious.


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## StrawberryFields (Apr 6, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *kfowler*
We do the co-sleeping after dh gets up and I haven't really noticed much of a change in how well ds sleeps in my bed vs. in his crib.

Ds has never slept anywhere but our bed so I have nothing to base this on but I don't think co-sleeping really changes how he sleeps, or helps him sleep better--but it does help ME get more rest because instead of dragging my butt out of bed and sitting up, I am laying down in bed with him, kwim? So I guess that is what I meant about co-sleeping helping you get more rest. Maybe not sleep, but at least you are laying down!!


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## Chronic Chrissy (Sep 4, 2006)

I wote this for someone else but the concept is the same. My 7 week old will sleep through the night except for a 5am feeding. I really didn't have to fight with her to do it either except for that 9pm fussyness which we're past thanks to the QUICK FIX

http://www.babysleepsystem.com/ Check this site out. It will give you a 5minute recording from inside the womb that is at least worth giving a try. sometimes it worked for Kiana and sometimes it didn't.

THE PROBLEM
Your baby is overstimulated and over tired.

QUICK FIX
My midwife taught me to swaddle her, hold her on her side, and RESTRAIN her arms with your hands. Then rock back and forth, not front to back. She will get mad at you and protest, and you will want to give up believe me, but stick it out for 5 minutes, if you see she's almost there keep going it will work, if you can't take it it's ok. I've tried this on every hard case I've come up against and it worked EVERY time. Just think of it as she's tired and has to sleep. Then make sure she is right asleep before putting her down, about 10 minutes of sleeping in your arms. If she is in a light sleep she will slowly wake up and be screaming in 10minutes, but if she is in a deep sleep then she should get in a full nap.

LONG TERM FIX
You have to develope healthey sleeping habits. This does not include CIO in any way. Since the problem is her being overtired you have to watch for signs so that you can put her down before it is too late, and they go from tired to over tired so quick. Don't wait for heavy eyes. Know your childs routine and half an hour before you expect a nap watch for signs that she's ready. She will slow down, become more relaxed, content just to sit and watch quietly. THIS IS THE TIME. Take her and lay her down. Make sure she has something to look at to keep busy without overstimulating just incase it takes a little while to relax into sleep. And keep her warm with out over heating. Because she wants to sit try in a bouncy chair our a babysitter pillow, so she can sit up but be supported and relax into it. If it doesn't work it is OK. just practise, remember you're trying to develope healthy sleeping habits.

Also you can try giving her a bottle a little bit warmer than normal since it is hard to warm up breastmilk while it's still inside.

SLEEP THROUGH NIGHT
First know what normal sleeping sounds are, and what waking sounds are. Many people have it backwards and wait to see if the child will fall back asleep, then they get their child back to sleep and put them down too soon because the want sleep themselves. The trick is to act promtly, because the more they wake up the longer it takes to go back to sleep. So when you know she is waking go get her and put her back to sleep. Once your have her back to sleep keep going, wait 10 or 15 minutes to make sure she is out, if she is a light sleeper wait longer. Continue this every night and she will develope a sleep pattern.

#1 ADVICE
When you bring home your newborn start early and keep the house constantly loud and busy so that she teaches herself to sleep through it.
I can change diapers and whole outfits while she sleeps and she doesn't even flinch.

GOOD LUCK
any questions just ask


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## AnnesMoM (Jun 19, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Chronic Chrissy*
Also you can try giving her a bottle a little bit warmer than normal since it is hard to warm up breastmilk while it's still inside.









Sorry, that cracked me up...I guess you could put a heating pad on your boob...


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## Scarlet's Mom (Aug 3, 2006)

I have been intrigued by Weston Price's theories on nutrition. He has a recipe for a homemade formula. Check it out and read more about him. http://www.westonaprice.org/children/recipes.html
It could help with the gas.

My dd will be 10 m tomorrow. The first few months of her life she napped for about 15-30 minutes. I was frustrated, feeling like I spent half my day getting her down. Then I discovered that her sleep pattern is to wake up after a short while for a second nurse, then she sleeps for 1-2 hours. I have no idea if it would help to feed your ds right as he is waking up and see if he goes back down but it's worth a shot.


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## goodcents (Dec 19, 2002)

a. does you ped have kids?

and

b. is he/she giving those kids some sort of sedative.

my son just turned 17 months and he just barely goes down for 2 rounds of 4 hours each. he still night wakes, although he doesn't nurse all night long anymore

its hard, but it won't last forever. i hope you get some rest soon!


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## kfowler (Jun 7, 2006)

An update...

Dh picked up some gripe water friday evening on his way home from work and we gave it a try. DS has been WONDERFUL! It's like we have him on baby prozac or something. He still has his fussy moments but for the past two nights, he's been up every four hours instead of every 40 minutes to two hours. (Of course, now that it's back to being MY night to take care of him, you watch, he'll be back up every two hours or so. LOL) Let's hope it keeps up!

kfowler


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## NiteNicole (May 19, 2003)

I assume that by "sleeping through" she means she'd like at least a five hour stretch, not from seven to seven. And I don't think that's at all unusual at five months. My DD often slept five and seven hour stretchs (as an obsessive log keeper, I can tell you which nights), and usually woke no more than once or twice for a bottle and my many of my friends kids were doing actual all-nighters (which is not to say that lots of night wakings is ABnormal for five months old, but it's not nearly unheard of for them to sleep in longer than one and two hour stretches). Ahhhh, life before teething. If only it could last.

Please reconsider on the reflux. Zantac is not the only med and my daughter had a LOT of problems with it. Also, due to reflux and taking in (and keeping down) so little she was ALWAYS constipated untill about 12 weeks (when we started getting a grip on the meds). Diluted apple juice helps (like 1 oz apple juice to 3 oz boiled water, twice a day TOPS). I didn't want her having sugar that young but when you have a wee one SCREAMING when trying to have a movement, you have to try SOMETHING. I would think prune juice would cause gas? Tell your ped you want to see a pediatric gastroenterologist. Prevacid and Maalox were the wonder drugs for my DD. I really resisted meds for a while but she needed relief and I'm glad we finally found what works.

As for sleeping - no idea. When we got the refulx under control, her sleeping improved (as did mine) by so much. Of course, the teething set in not long after and it all went to pot but it was nice while it lasted! Once she started teething she was eventually down to sleeping in 40 and 20 minute bursts. It was horrible. Back when she woke only once or twice a night I THOUGHT I knew the misery and downright depression of sleep deprevation but I had no clue how bad it could really be. I'm wishing you guys lots of relief and SOON.


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