I hate to complain, because I was sooo lucky with this baby - starting at 2 weeks, he slept from 12 am to 6:30 am at a stretch (went to sleep at 9pm and went back to sleep at 6:30 and slept until 9). IT was perfect for me, because we sleep from 12am until 8, so I only had to get up once in the "middle of the night".
Last week, he started waking up between 7 am and 8 am, I thought I was home free!
Then aftwer 4 beautiful days, he has started waking up any time between 3:30am and 6:15 am, with the majority of waking up being between 3:30 and 4:30am. THen he wakes up AGAIN around 7 am, so I am only getting a few hours of sleep.
He will be 4 months old this friday. During the day, we have no schedule, sometimes he takes one 3-hour nap, sometimes 2-3 45 minute naps. DOn't know if he isn't getting enough sleep (sleep begets sleep), or if he is getting too much time during naps.
He is also drooling a lot for the past 3 weeks, and chewing on anything he can get in his mouth, but I don't feel any teeth whatsoever.
Help!
There is a good possibility he is teething. YOu don't and probably won't feel teeth for awhile, especially if it is his first set. ALso, he is only 4 months old, I relaly don't think his waking up 1-2 times is a big deal, he's a bbay and that is normally what they do. I would suggest getting him on some kind of a schedule, even if it is a consistent lunchtime and bedtime each day, some schedule is better than nothing
Try setting up a eat/play/sleep schedule (in that order.) If you can get him to eat/play/sleep at the same time during the days then you should be able to get him back to sleeping through the night. This schedule ensures that he eats the right amount of nutrition as the day before and also sleeps the right amount of sleep as the day before--and also allows him to feel comfortable in knowing "what comes next." Playing after eating is also a natural sequence--how often do you sleep right after eating? So, eating gives him energy to play, playing tires him out, and sleep reenergizes him. I learned all this through the book "Baby Wise" and have been blessed with an excellent eater/sleeper since she was 7 weeks old (now 25months.)
unfortunately, it comes with the territory. look up 4 month wakeful period. this may be what is happening.
I remember things changing at 4 months, and the thing that helped us so much was a 4 hour routine, suggested by the baby whisperer. I would HIGHLY recommend getting her book "Secrets of the Baby Whisperer" as well as another where she answers all your questions, but I don't remember the title. Anyway, I think your little one is probably going through a growth spurt, getting a little older, maybe teething, and requiring a bit more daytime sleep. Try what the baby whisperer suggests - it worked like magic for us.
Sounds like a either a growth spurt, and he's just hungry, or he's starting to teeth.
M.
Because babies sleeping patterns can change several times throughout the first couple of years, this is probably just one of those changes. You may just have to adjust your own hours of sleep, so you're not so tired from waking up earlier than usual. Try going to sleep around 10 or 11 and then wake up with your son in the morning and begin your day. Plus, having a more structured schedule during the day will also help. This is difficult at only 4 months, but you can have somewhat of a schedule. At four months old, make sure he has a nap in the morning about 3-4 hours after he wakes up for the day and another in the afternoon whenever he gets sleepy enough. This typically works for my son, who sleeps from 7:30 pm until about 4:30-5 am. Every child is different. However, some kind of general schedule throughout the day to give him consistency will (over time) prepare his body and brain for bedtime, allowing him to sleep better. Oh! And teething can also be affecting his sleep. Use Little Teethers or Tylenol for those times when he's in a lot of pain.
K.:)
It'll take a little while for those teeth to come in. My 7 month old has 2 bottom teeth now, and continues to teeth, so I think he's getting his top teeth now.
I haven't had the first night of unbroken sleep yet. Odin still wakes up 2-3 times a night. I'm used to it, and I just feed him and we both go right back to sleep. He's a very efficient eater, so we're done in under 10 minutes.
Welcome to the club Julie!! My son is almost 5 months old and we had (have) the exact same situation. Around 4 months he stopped sleeping through the night. Unfortunately, it probably will get worse before it gets better. For my son, I'm pretty sure it's the teething that's waking him up. He just got his 1st tooth yesterday and the last few nights were dreadful. I think they're just uncomfortable and/or in pain. I also fed him a few times to get him quiet and he ate..but I realized that he's not really hungry..he just needs something familiar and comforting because he gets so worked up with all the crying.. I started 'pretending' to give him Tylenol. I let him lick the dropper. He likes the taste and it shuts him up long enough to start soothing him and rocking him. I'm hoping once the teeth come in he'll go back to sleeping normally. Good luck with your little man!
It definitly won't hurt to start getting him on some type of routine/schedule. Especially at night. Ex..bath, eat, bed. And as he gets older you can add in some story time at night as well. Children do so much better when they have a routine. They get enough sleep during the day and at night, and are much happier.
He may be going through a growth spurt, and may need to be eating some more right now. You may also need to adjust your night time schedule as well (earlier bedtime) If he is going down at nine, you should try to be in bed by 10. I hope this helps a little. Children at 4 months are a guessing game, they are growing so fast and changing daily. At this age my children still took 2-3 naps a day (hour-hour half long) and were in bed by 9. Woke once during the night and then were up around 8. Try to find a schedule that works for your family and stick to it.
At his age, it is probably teething. You won't feel the teeth quite yet at this point. Just give him tylenol or motrin for his discomfort and he'll be ok.
Hi there!
I just responded to another mom with this - I really love "Babywise" - not sure if you've heard of it - but it's a book that worked wonderfully for both of my children. If at all possible, I suggest you try and establish a daytime schedule - for I too believe that sleep begets sleep...maybe try to have 2 longer naps???? I know, it's hard with an older sib to establish 2 regular naps. I had my (now 1.5 year old) try and go down to one nap as soon as she could - I guess she helped me with that because isn't a car or anywhere-but-her-crib napper...anyway, I had good luck with the schedules that were helped established by Babywise. I wish you tons of luck!
J.
My daughter was a great sleeper until 4 1/2 months. Two weeks later she got her first 2 teeth. After they came in she went back to her previous sleep schedule - - minus the pacifier. Hang in there and try for a better schedule during the day so you know that he is getting enough sleep total.
