Really struggling with how to get some help with my baby’s sleep that doesn’t include any level of CIO/sleep training. I feel strongly that it’s a schedule issue that I just can’t figure out and looking for advice!
Some background on baby- 8 months old fomo baby, has always been a cat napper. Prior to 4 month regression was sleeping 8-9 hour stretch, eating once and back down for a couple hours. He gets hit HARD by regressions- 4 month lasted about 6 weeks and thinking we are in the beginnings of the 8-10 month regression now. Is bottle fed pumped milk exclusively due to NICU/medical complications at birth making latching impossible but was full term.
We just transitioned down to 2 naps. It didn’t feel possible to even teeter between 3 nap days and 2 nap days because he was skipping his last nap 90% of the time causing his last ww to be close to 5 hours and it was not pleasant.
When we switched to 3 naps at 6 months he occasionally started to take a longer 2nd nap on his own. He has never napped longer than 45 minutes for the first nap and that’s rare- 99% of the time it’s 30 minutes and it doesn’t matter if it’s a contact nap, crib, car, etc. this has made the transition to 2 naps really difficult.
Since transitioning a week ago first nap is still always 30 minutes and then he crashes for his next nap- usually 2 hours sometimes a little more/less (like 1h 45m-2h 15m). 75% of the time this has been on his own in his crib but every couple days he’s woken at the 30 minute mark and we just go in and rock with him until 2ish hours.
We’ve tried different variations of a 2 nap schedule and nothing has worked for that 1st nap. He generally wakes up happy but then gets quite crabby until he crashes for his afternoon nap. Night sleep is also all over the place. Some nights he’s had split nights but slept well the beginning of the night (thinking undertired?) but then other nights- like last night- he was inconsolable 2 hours after falling asleep but then slept a bit more normal- which is still nowhere close to sttn- but that seemed like over tired because of the wakes early in the night?
Still no teeth and no signs of teething. Is on solids/purées 3x/day. Milk intake is tricky as well but he drinks 30-32 ounces/day. We feed to sleep but he doesn’t fall asleep at the bottle, then we rock to sleep/close to sleep and lay down in crib. He is usually pretty easy to put down. Ever since the 4 month regression he wakes every 2.5-4 hours at night and will only go back to sleep with a bottle so he usually gets 2 3 ounce bottles in the night and then we wakes around 430/5am and I give him his morning bottle and rock/cuddle until 630/7. He will not co-sleep. It doesn’t matter how big his night time bottle is or how big dinner is, he will always wake 3 hours after falling asleep. He always drinks the full 3 ounces but i don’t want to offer more and get him used to night feeds.
Current schedule(ish):
715am: wake
730-Offer small bottle
830- Solids
945- bottle, rock, nap- always 30 minutes
1130- solids
130- bottle, rock, nap- 2 hours (sometimes rescued with contact nap)
4- bottle
530-solids
630- bath
645- bedtime routine (bottle, rock- sometimes he goes down awake, sometimes asleep- this doesn’t seem to matter)
7/715- bed
Nights almost always look like:
930/10- up and will only settle with a bottle- before what i believe to be a regression started before would suck down his bottle and go right back to sleep- now it can sometimes take 30 minutes- hour to settle him
1230/130- up and wants bottle
430/5- up and usually will settle with bottle but will not go back in crib- have to rock until wake time.
Some nights he’ll have a split night at 130 feed- this is new. Some nights he’ll wake for pacifier but he does know how to grab it himself.
I know these wakes don’t seem horrible but I also pump in the night still and I’m so drained. Feel like I’m getting something so wrong with sleep / feeding schedule and would love advice/suggestions!
Some background on baby- 8 months old fomo baby, has always been a cat napper. Prior to 4 month regression was sleeping 8-9 hour stretch, eating once and back down for a couple hours. He gets hit HARD by regressions- 4 month lasted about 6 weeks and thinking we are in the beginnings of the 8-10 month regression now. Is bottle fed pumped milk exclusively due to NICU/medical complications at birth making latching impossible but was full term.
We just transitioned down to 2 naps. It didn’t feel possible to even teeter between 3 nap days and 2 nap days because he was skipping his last nap 90% of the time causing his last ww to be close to 5 hours and it was not pleasant.
When we switched to 3 naps at 6 months he occasionally started to take a longer 2nd nap on his own. He has never napped longer than 45 minutes for the first nap and that’s rare- 99% of the time it’s 30 minutes and it doesn’t matter if it’s a contact nap, crib, car, etc. this has made the transition to 2 naps really difficult.
Since transitioning a week ago first nap is still always 30 minutes and then he crashes for his next nap- usually 2 hours sometimes a little more/less (like 1h 45m-2h 15m). 75% of the time this has been on his own in his crib but every couple days he’s woken at the 30 minute mark and we just go in and rock with him until 2ish hours.
We’ve tried different variations of a 2 nap schedule and nothing has worked for that 1st nap. He generally wakes up happy but then gets quite crabby until he crashes for his afternoon nap. Night sleep is also all over the place. Some nights he’s had split nights but slept well the beginning of the night (thinking undertired?) but then other nights- like last night- he was inconsolable 2 hours after falling asleep but then slept a bit more normal- which is still nowhere close to sttn- but that seemed like over tired because of the wakes early in the night?
Still no teeth and no signs of teething. Is on solids/purées 3x/day. Milk intake is tricky as well but he drinks 30-32 ounces/day. We feed to sleep but he doesn’t fall asleep at the bottle, then we rock to sleep/close to sleep and lay down in crib. He is usually pretty easy to put down. Ever since the 4 month regression he wakes every 2.5-4 hours at night and will only go back to sleep with a bottle so he usually gets 2 3 ounce bottles in the night and then we wakes around 430/5am and I give him his morning bottle and rock/cuddle until 630/7. He will not co-sleep. It doesn’t matter how big his night time bottle is or how big dinner is, he will always wake 3 hours after falling asleep. He always drinks the full 3 ounces but i don’t want to offer more and get him used to night feeds.
Current schedule(ish):
715am: wake
730-Offer small bottle
830- Solids
945- bottle, rock, nap- always 30 minutes
1130- solids
130- bottle, rock, nap- 2 hours (sometimes rescued with contact nap)
4- bottle
530-solids
630- bath
645- bedtime routine (bottle, rock- sometimes he goes down awake, sometimes asleep- this doesn’t seem to matter)
7/715- bed
Nights almost always look like:
930/10- up and will only settle with a bottle- before what i believe to be a regression started before would suck down his bottle and go right back to sleep- now it can sometimes take 30 minutes- hour to settle him
1230/130- up and wants bottle
430/5- up and usually will settle with bottle but will not go back in crib- have to rock until wake time.
Some nights he’ll have a split night at 130 feed- this is new. Some nights he’ll wake for pacifier but he does know how to grab it himself.
I know these wakes don’t seem horrible but I also pump in the night still and I’m so drained. Feel like I’m getting something so wrong with sleep / feeding schedule and would love advice/suggestions!
