8 month old suddenly waking 4-6x a night after months of being a “good sleeper.” What am I doing wrong?

jimhempel

New member
FTM here. My 8 month old has always been a “good sleeper.” Since he was 6 weeks old, he would sleep 7 pm - 3/4 am, nurse, then go back to sleep until 7 am. He did this naturally and this was our “normal” until 4 weeks ago.

He suddenly is waking up 4-6 times a night and nursing at least 3 of those wake-ups. He sleeps in a mini crib next to our bed and sometimes falls asleep on his own and other times we help him if he needs it. I’m puzzled as to why he was sleeping so well for so long and suddenly is waking often. What am I doing wrong?

Some background info: he is in the three to two nap transition (some days takes two 1.5-2 hour long naps and some days takes three 45 min naps), I let him sleep in as long as he wants to (usually he wakes between 6 am - 7:30 am), we start bedtime routine around 6:30/7:30 pm depending on when he shows tired signs and he’s usually asleep for the night between 7-8 pm. I would say he is fairly high sleep needs. He just learned how to roll onto his tummy, he is trying to figure out how to crawl but is only able to rock back and forth or push himself backwards, he’s two months into starting solids, and is starting to learn some words. It’s also possible he has more teeth coming in (has two bottom teeth so far). And suddenly he only wants mom (me) in the middle of the night.

Is this change in sleep simply developmental (he is learning so many new things right now!) or am I doing something wrong in terms of his naps/wake windows/wake-up time /bedtime? My mom says he isn’t sleeping well because I hold him for one or two of his naps each day 🙃
 
@jimhempel Is he drinking less during the day? It's common for them to reverse cycle when starting solids so they eat solids during the day and switch to most milk at night. Ask me how I know... 😑
 
@jimhempel Likely developmental. The only thing constant about babies/toddlers sleep routines is that it's constantly changing. Transitions to needing fewer and then no naps is always tough and can take a few months of varying sleep needs before settling into a routine again.
 
@jimhempel Sleep regression right on schedule. You may also notice that your baby is also crying more when you have to leave them or when someone they don’t see everyday is there.
 
@jimhempel You’re not doing anything wrong but the 8 months sleep regression is certainly doing a lot to kick your butt. Hang in there!!! We just ust came out on the other side of it and it just went back to normal all of sudden. I also contact nap for every nap and we cosleep. Didn’t change a thing and it got better eventually. Trust yourself, you’re doing a great job ❤️
 
@jimhempel Biologically normal. Google “Sarah ockwell-smith” and read her info on 8-10 months sleep issues. It’s so very common and normal. Just wait it out.
 
@jimhempel You’re not doing anything wrong at all! One of the best pieces of advice I’ve received as a FTM is nobody knows your baby better than you. His sleep needs might be different to another but that’s totally fine! You sound like you’re doing a fab job. It sounds like he’s learning so many new skills that a sleep regression is totally normal. That and the dreaded teething. Our 11 month old also went through a big growth spurt around then too. Keep doing what you’re doing!
 
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