Our dearest five month old Hadassah has, contrary to most of her peers in church, not learned to sleep through the night yet. She has on three or four occasions, but mostly now wakes up twice a night (around 11:30 / 0:00 and 3:00 - 3:30). She used to wake up only once a night, but alas, my breastfeeding wife now has to get up twice a night almost every night.

So question #1: How do we get our daughter to sleep through the night? Some say to let her cry her lungs out for a few nights in a row...is that a good solution? Are there alternatives? At what age can you start letting them cry to teach them you're not coming to get them in the middle of the night?

(BTW, yes, she is warm enough but not too warm, she is fed, her diaper is changed, so none of those factors seem to play a role)

Was also wondering about spoiling our daughter...at what age is it possible to start spoiling her and how do I distinguish between responding to her needs and spoiling her?

Looking forward to your input.

Our dearest five month old Hadassah has, contrary to most of her peers in church, not learned to sleep through the night yet. She has on three or four occasions, but mostly now wakes up twice a night (around 11:30 / 0:00 and 3:00 - 3:30). She used to wake up only once a night, but alas, my breastfeeding wife now has to get up twice a night almost every night. I used to breastfeed.... Have your wife feed your daughter a bit of warm rice cereal with breastmilk in it before bed.... She needs something more solid in her tum tum at night now....



So question #1: How do we get our daughter to sleep through the night? Some say to let her cry her lungs out for a few nights in a row...is that a good solution? Are there alternatives? At what age can you start letting them cry to teach them you're not coming to get them in the middle of the night?
Always thought this was nonsense.... If your daughter at 5 months is crying.... And she is breastfed.... There is a reason she wakes and cries in the middle of the night.... Like I said.... I always found that a little rice cereal or oat cereal with breastmilk before bed helps that.... Just something more solid.... And no it is not a good idea to let a baby that young cry their lungs out if they wake up hungry in the night.... Now if you are having trouble putting the child to bed at 8 months or so.... And every time you lay the child down she cries.... Let her cry a few times.... That is when she needs to know that bedtime is bedtime and she is alright.... But not when they are 5 months and wake up in the night hungry.... It just means she is growing and needs a bit more substantial stuff.... Start her on baby food during the day if you haven't already....

(BTW, yes, she is warm enough but not too warm, she is fed, her diaper is changed, so none of those factors seem to play a role) See above :d


Was also wondering about spoiling our daughter...at what age is it possible to start spoiling her and how do I distinguish between responding to her needs and spoiling her? Look for possible spoilage at around 8 months.... Baby is more cognizant of her surroundings and you at that time.... And it is at that time she starts learning how to run you in circles.... If you are taking care of her needs yet she still cries it is sometimes due to overstimulation.... And she just needs to vent.... Don't worry.... You cannot spoil a child as young as yours.... But make sure you don't cater to everything she wants when she gets older.... Because everything she wants may not be what she needs.... You will know when the time comes....

Welcome to Fatherhood, brother!!! :lol:

From my experience, she'll start sleeping through the night when she's ready...and there's not too much you can do to really hasten it. :P

My son started sleeping through the night at 8 weeks, my daughter however was almost 9 months old before she'd sleep through the night...

I personally wouldn't worry about "spoiling" her at 5 months...as I said, it'll happen when she's ready. ;)

In addition to the above, you could also revisit her nap schedule during the day. If she's taking a late afternoon nap, then it might be wise to wake her up earlier so she'll be tired enough at night to sleep longer. These transitional periods can be a head scratcher but it's always a good idea to find the culprit and address it. It's not like babies can tell us what the issue is other than lying there wailing about it. Being a parent is a bit like being a detective, isn't it? :)

Welcome to parenthood. My son didn't sleep through the night for the fist 15 months of his life... :B

We're giving her rice cereal with warm breastmilk before bed and babyfood as a supplement to breastmilk during the day, but she still wakes up every four hours. Cutting her late afternoon nap short only results in a very cranky baby in the evening who will still only sleep four hours at a time. The positive: she is on a very clear schedule now that she wakes up twice like this at night.

We read on a website that you can start spoiling the baby as early as three months old...but that seems a bit steep as far as I'm concerned. She's very aware of her surroundings right now, but I still feel as though her cry is either an expression of "I'm hungryyyyyyy!!!", "I'm lonelyyyyyyy!!!!" or "I have a dirty diaperrrrrrrrrrrr!!!!". I guess as fresh, new parents, we're just concerned about doing things right and not spoiling our baby...and trying to find ways to extend our sleep at night!! LOL

Thanks for all the advice so far. More is welcome!!

We tried it all. Nothing worked, and then one morning we woke up to realize the little ankle biter had slept through the night. What a glorious morning. Until then, sleep deprivation is all you have on the horizon.

We're giving her rice cereal with warm breastmilk before bed and babyfood as a supplement to breastmilk during the day, but she still wakes up every four hours. Cutting her late afternoon nap short only results in a very cranky baby in the evening who will still only sleep four hours at a time. The positive: she is on a very clear schedule now that she wakes up twice like this at night.

We read on a website that you can start spoiling the baby as early as three months old...but that seems a bit steep as far as I'm concerned. She's very aware of her surroundings right now, but I still feel as though her cry is either an expression of "I'm hungryyyyyyy!!!", "I'm lonelyyyyyyy!!!!" or "I have a dirty diaperrrrrrrrrrrr!!!!". I guess as fresh, new parents, we're just concerned about doing things right and not spoiling our baby...and trying to find ways to extend our sleep at night!! LOL

Thanks for all the advice so far. More is welcome!!

I don't think babies can be spoiled...something wakes them up..its not like you put them to bed and they are thinking...I am going to wake up as such and such time cause I am lonely..lol. You are correct...babies ONLY cry when they truly need something. A wet diaper will wake them up...hunger....upset stomach, etc. Breast milk runs through their system faster so they do get more hungry faster then formula bed babies. Though my son had food allergies and was allergic to what I ate that went into the beast milk then later when changed to formula he was allergic to the milk in it so he did not sleep well at all. He also would so soak through his diaper I would have to change his crib bedding in the middle of the night too! :rolleyes:

All babies are different and personally I feel strongly its wrong to let them cry it out..that only makes them feel anxious because their needs aren't being meant. That is not a good thing at all and can lead to all sorts of problems later.

I found this: 31 WAYS TO GET YOUR BABY TO GO TO SLEEP AND STAY ASLEEP EASIER (http://www.askdrsears.com/html/7/t070300.asp)

I skimmed through it..seems pretty good and he is also against letting the baby cry it out too. So check this out and see if its helpful.

God bless

My wife got this book I think called Babywise which more or less sets up a pattern so that your little on will sleep through the night reasonably quickly. Part of it I recall was to feed them upon waking from a nap rather than feeding to put them to sleep. This disassociates sleep with feeding. This isn't the only part of it. My wife really recommends the book although there are some people who are very critical of the methods (but I really don't know why). I guess it goes against the feed-on-demand school of thought.

Here's that book: http://www.amazon.com/Becoming-Baby-Wise-Reference-Worldwide/dp/0971453209

That said we had our daughter sleeping through the night by just past 3 months. I think our son was a bit later, but he is a lousier sleeper in general than his sister. Maybe we were fortunate as well as we know plenty of other parents who have similar troubles.

Remember also to sleep when the baby is asleep.... That is the important part for you.... So that you don't end up so sleep deprived the smallest things bother you.... So when she is napping take one with her!

We're giving her rice cereal with warm breastmilk before bed and babyfood as a supplement to breastmilk during the day, but she still wakes up every four hours. Cutting her late afternoon nap short only results in a very cranky baby in the evening who will still only sleep four hours at a time. The positive: she is on a very clear schedule now that she wakes up twice like this at night.

We read on a website that you can start spoiling the baby as early as three months old...but that seems a bit steep as far as I'm concerned. She's very aware of her surroundings right now, but I still feel as though her cry is either an expression of "I'm hungryyyyyyy!!!", "I'm lonelyyyyyyy!!!!" or "I have a dirty diaperrrrrrrrrrrr!!!!". I guess as fresh, new parents, we're just concerned about doing things right and not spoiling our baby...and trying to find ways to extend our sleep at night!! LOL

Thanks for all the advice so far. More is welcome!!

Try gradually replacing the breastmilk feedings with babyfood feedings.... Like feeding baby food and then breastmilk suplemental.... Tis another thing I did....

I have had four babies. It's been some time though as my youngest is 13 and my oldest 23. I breastfed three of the four and each child was different. My one son who was bottle fed was the one that ate every 2-4 hours. He spit up a lot and had to eat all over again to fill his belly. I think he just age too aggressively. My oldest daughter slept through the night the youngest. She was only about 2 months old if I remember correctly. My 15 year old daughter always needed a feeding in the middle of the night until she was over a year old. My youngest son just needed cuddled all the time. It seems he was always in my arms.

My opinion is strong, but I realize kids have been raised all different ways, and most parents are doing right by their children no matter what they choose as long as they are doing it in love. My opinion is this: Loving a child is not spoiling a child. Meeting a child's needs is not spoiling a child. I do not believe we should let our babies "cry it out". I believe that makes them think they can't count on you. People grow into independence when they are indulged in love. I believe independence is taught, not forced.

At five months, there could be so many different things causing your baby to wake every four hours. Perhaps she is going through a growth spurt and needs the extra nursing. Perhaps she has a belly ache from gas. Perhaps there is an occurance in the house waking her at that time of night each night. (i.e. My peke-pom sleeps with my husband and I, until about 4 in the morning when he jumps down to sleep in the floor. We live in a neighorhood, so we hear the traffic coming and going. We hear our immediate neighbors starting their vehicles. We even hear one neighbor go in and out of his house because he uses a side door on the side of his house next to my bedroom. Sometimes noises we have become used to are what wakes the babies.) Perhaps, she is simply not ready to sleep through the night.

My suggestion is patience. The time will go by quickly. Each month is so different during the first year.

Hi Pilgrim - don't know if someone else mentioned this, but it is better to rather give her water instead of milk if she wakes up during the night. She will get used to not being fed and should later sleep through the night (this is if you can get her to accept drinking water from a bottle - some breastfed babies don't want bottles.).

It works for some babies, and is worth a try.

God bless.

Super advice from All!

Takes me back to my 3 kids being babies and how each of them were so different.

One thing though, don't forget to burp baby, even if she falls asleep and you don't want to wake her. She still needs to burp and then she will go back to sleep.

Oh yeah, my oldest is almost 17 now and I haven't slept a full night in almost 17 years, so get used to it! Just kidding!

Hope you find rest and solutions to help you sleep through the night!

Blessings to All,
Love Fountain

Thanks everybody for your helpful responses. Having a daughter at all is such a tremendous gift from God that not sleeping through the night is not the end of the world (says the husband who doesn't need to get up to breast feed at all...).

One advice I read back then (and I don't know how applicable that actually is to a 5-month-old) is if this continues to be a problem, don't turn nighttime feedings into cuddle/play time. Stick to the feeding (lovingly of course) and tuck the baby back in once burped and changed and all that good stuff. That way they don't get the cue "hey, it's time to play" but they eventually learn "ok it's just eating time and then I'm going back night night."

For what it's worth ...

Thanks everybody for your helpful responses. Having a daughter at all is such a tremendous gift from God that not sleeping through the night is not the end of the world (says the husband who doesn't need to get up to breast feed at all...).

You know she could express some of her milk into a bottle and get the baby used to taking it from a bottle...then dad could share in some of the night time feedings...;) hint, hint.

I saw someone suggesting water.... It is always a good idea to introduce baby to water.... Try putting a tiny bit of sugar in it and make it warm.... There are bottles out there that are supposed to be almost like the breast.... But NEVER leave a bottle propped up in babys bed and allow her to drink herself!!!! Baby can choke.... But I bet you already knew that :wink:

You know she could express some of her milk into a bottle and get the baby used to taking it from a bottle...then dad could share in some of the night time feedings...;) hint, hint.

Depends on the baby.My son must have been able to smell or somehow sense his mom in the house. Even if he was completely unaware that she was home, he knew and you couldn't have beat that kid hard enough to make him take a bottle. Mom home = breastfed. No other means was acceptable, even with pumped breast milk.

I work at a childcare in the infant room. To say babies don't get spoiled, well, I can say that it can happen. But its mostly when it comes to being held. We ahve some who are held all the time and when they come to daycare, they can't be held all the time due to us having 15 other babies to take care of. so its a shock but htey do learn and adjust to the new situation. We had one who didn't sleep at night and didn't take many naps either during teh day. He'd scream literally when we rocked him or layed him down. We had a baby about a year old who'd scream when being rocked. he wasn't fun to get to sleep, but we had to sit through the fits when rocking him to sleep. a person walking in the room when we are rocking them would think they are being tortured by thier screaming, but its the only way and they do eventually clonk out. We have a few babies who pretty much cry themselves to sleep, and thats the only way they will take a nap. It may depend on the baby. Most of the babies we let cry themselves to sleep are older ones, who are almost a year, but every once and a while, we get a younger one where thats the only way for them. Every baby is different, some start sleeping through the night sooner and some may wait until a year to do it. At least her's is on set times, not just randomly.

We have one mom who's son didnt' sleep much and she ended up only getting 2 hours of sleep, her husband is a truck driver so he wasn't home then, and she has to work too so when she dropped him off, she looked so tired. Adn we looked out the window, she was sitting in her car with her head back against the headrest- sleeping. We felt so bad for her.:( But I think he is getting better now at sleeping.

Is she bundled up or swaddled or just has blankets over her?