One-year-old still waking for night feeds?

ShaShaBear

I've a little girl about to hit 13 months and she is STILL waking twice, sometimes 3 times a night for a bottle.
She's on 4 and sometimes 5 meals a day - eating toast, cereal (loves porridge, readybrek, weetabix - all very filling stuff) and will eat soups, spud dinners, snack on fruit and veg and we give her a supper of cereal and warm milk right before bed. She's currently going to bed at 9pm after her cereal and 8oz of cow's milk and will sleep until maybe 11.30 when she wakes screaming for another bottle. Sometimes she will self-sooth a few seconds later and doze back off, but she is always back up by 12am. I will have to give her another bottle by 4 and sometimes again at 6am (whereby I usually just get up to save myself the torture :P ).
Things I have tried:

• Offering water - this works as long as it is warm, but she wakes quicker for another one
• Upping daytime feeds - I literally don't think I could squeeze more solid food into the poor girl's tummy than I already am.
• Let her cry - this was an exasperated, last-ditch effort and it made no difference. She will cry so hard she ends up vomiting if I leave her.

This has been a continual problem since she was about 8 months old. When she takes the bottle, she is completely draining each one and would not be physically sick after drinking three extra bottles of milk a night which would make me think she is hungry. On the flip side, is it normal for a baby to be that ravenous despite getting 4-5 varied and filling meals a day?
Short of keeping her awake until 11.30pm to come to bed with me, I don't know what to do. Health nurse just told me she shouldn't be drinking them and was relying on the bottle for sleep, but that doesnt explain why she drains 8oz of milk sitting up in her cot wide awake and only then get settled back to sleep?

I've taken her to the GP too and he said there was nothing wrong so it's not medical advice I'm seeking, more some advice from other mums and what worked for them - I'm out of things to try!

jlm29

My second boy is 13 mo, and still waking, but he's breadtfed and I haven't attempted to nightwean yet. He's improved a lot lately, so I don't think I will now!

My first went through a stretch of lots of night waking for a bottle too. I used give him a bottle of water. He'd take a sup, realise it was water (not warm, room temp), and cry. I walked the floors with him until he stopped crying, and eventually he'd give in and go back to sleep. The first night he woke three times, the next two, then one, then he gave up. It was a long few nights, but it worked!

shesty

What jlm said.She's probably not actually hungry.She's just waking because that's what they do, and she doesn't know any other way to go back to sleep.Other than drinking her whole bottle.That's the feeling she needs to go back to sleep.

My pair (9 months and 2.5 yrs) still wake.The 2.5 year old wakes a lot less.But I'd fully expect my 9 month old to wake most nights.She just needs a soother generally.Some nights we have to have a little cuddle.But she does go back to sleep.She does not get a feed between bedtime and 6am.She seems to be just fine with that.Our older girl was the same.

Unfortunately you are going to have to just have a few horrendous nights if you want to stop this.Pick what you're going to do I suppose......offer her water and soothe the crying, or go cold turkey, offer her nothing and soothe the crying.I wouldn't leave her crying (don't think you intend to anyway).But she basically needs to figure out another way for her to fall asleep, be it with a soother or a teddy or a blanket or something.Unfortunately it means you'll be up with her while she does....but look at it this way, it should only take a few nights, and it will be worth it in the long run.

ShaShaBear

shesty wrote: »

What jlm said.She's probably not actually hungry.She's just waking because that's what they do, and she doesn't know any other way to go back to sleep.Other than drinking her whole bottle.That's the feeling she needs to go back to sleep.

My pair (9 months and 2.5 yrs) still wake.The 2.5 year old wakes a lot less.But I'd fully expect my 9 month old to wake most nights.She just needs a soother generally.Some nights we have to have a little cuddle.But she does go back to sleep.She does not get a feed between bedtime and 6am.She seems to be just fine with that.Our older girl was the same.

Unfortunately you are going to have to just have a few horrendous nights if you want to stop this.Pick what you're going to do I suppose......offer her water and soothe the crying, or go cold turkey, offer her nothing and soothe the crying.I wouldn't leave her crying (don't think you intend to anyway).But she basically needs to figure out another way for her to fall asleep, be it with a soother or a teddy or a blanket or something.Unfortunately it means you'll be up with her while she does....but look at it this way, it should only take a few nights, and it will be worth it in the long run.

It's such a toughie, my older girl is 2.5 as well and she sleeps like a rock. Had a little bit of trouble with night terrors around the 1-year mark that lasted a week or so and that's it. This little madam will not take a soother at all, whereas my eldest did. I'm thinking maybe trying to switch to water again first so as to not remove the shock of no bottle but unfortunately we live in a tiny house with paper thin walls so a few nights of one baby crying means a few nights of two babies crying in my house

appledrop

Do you mind me asking if you breastfeed her? I know some of my friends who breastfeed had problems with there babies sleeping through the night when they got older as they got used to the nighttime feeds. At that age she doesn't need the bottles at night but id say it's a comfort thing. I'm not a fan of the leaving them to cry method either. I know this would never work with my little guy. Maybe try the soother again as this could replace the bottle or maybe a comfort blanket.

ShaShaBear

appledrop wrote: »

Do you mind me asking if you breastfeed her? I know some of my friends who breastfeed had problems with there babies sleeping through the night when they got older as they got used to the nighttime feeds. At that age she doesn't need the bottles at night but id say it's a comfort thing. I'm not a fan of the leaving them to cry method either. I know this would never work with my little guy. Maybe try the soother again as this could replace the bottle or maybe a comfort blanket.

Not any more, I did for the first month but I had to stop due to infection. She received bottles of breastmilk almost as often as the breast during that time and would take a soother up until about teething started at 3 months. She will put it in her mouth, bite it and then spit it out or chew the plastic handle. We even tried handing her the top of the bottle (supervised) and she just kept turning it around and saying "Huh?" probably wondering where the bottle was!

Call me Al

At this stage it sounds like habit for her and, as others have explained, she doesn't know any other way to self-soothe back to sleep.
I went through this with my youngest, but he wasn't using milk, he was using cuddles and comfort from me as the crutch to get back to sleep. He used to scream the place down until i went to him and rocked him back to sleep. It was exhausting. Not a bother on him of course though during the day as he slept the morning away while i got his brother up and ready for the day.
My husband took the bull by the horns one weekend and just broke the pattern. I couldn't do it so he just stepped in and took control. It was very upsetting to listen to at times but it worked in 2/3 nights. My child wasn't left alone to cry it out or anything, he just didn't take him out of the cot and sat beside him reassuring him that it was ok to lie down and rest.

dori_dormer

Have you tried giving less milk? Like only 4oz? I have found with my 6mth old that he wakes more often if he drinks loads at night. I *think* it's his tummy getting over full and therefore feeling empty sooner?
Or is she cold? The warm bottles may be warning her up and that may be why she doesn't like them cold? I go into my toddler a few times a night and put the duvet back on him. Stops him waking up!
Also we only managed to get our fella off the warm milk during v the summer when he was too warm and proffered them cold

ShaShaBear

dori_dormer wrote: »

Have you tried giving less milk? Like only 4oz? I have found with my 6mth old that he wakes more often if he drinks loads at night. I *think* it's his tummy getting over full and therefore feeling empty sooner?
Or is she cold? The warm bottles may be warning her up and that may be why she doesn't like them cold? I go into my toddler a few times a night and put the duvet back on him. Stops him waking up!
Also we only managed to get our fella off the warm milk during v the summer when he was too warm and proffered them cold

I don't think she's cold, she's actually not a one for kicking blankets off while she's asleep, and she's always toasty when you lift her. I have tried giving less but there seems to be a "sweet spot" to her fullness which signals sleep. I gave warmed water last night and she drank about half of it and did eventually sleep, but not without some whinging

Call me Al

Well going by the diet it doesn't read like she has any reason to be hungry.
Personally with her teeth coming at the very least I'd be replacing the milk with water.

ShaShaBear

Call me Al wrote: »

Well going by the diet it doesn't read like she has any reason to be hungry.
Personally with her teeth coming at the very least I'd be replacing the milk with water.

She definitely doesn't have reason to be. She eats at least as much as my 2.5 year old, even reduced her solids at one stage because I was worried it was constipation or stomach pain, but that just led to crying all day :rolleyes:
Just have to keep persevering with the replacement options and hope it just clicks with her. Maybe when she's walking

dori_dormer

Some kids are just hungry. Both of mine are! As long as it's healthy food give what she asks. They grow so fast that they really need the calories. She could begoing through a growth spurt

ShaShaBear

dori_dormer wrote: »

Some kids are just hungry. Both of mine are! As long as it's healthy food give what she asks. They grow so fast that they really need the calories. She could begoing through a growth spurt

For 6 months :pac:
Ah I'm sure it'll settle down eventually!

dori_dormer

Yep they grow faster in those 6 months than any other time in their lives!

ShaShaBear

dori_dormer wrote: »

Yep they grow faster in those 6 months than any other time in their lives!

Ironically, she napped for 2.5 hours today and started to doze off on me at 8pm. Spotted tooth number 8 freshly cut and now Im wondering if she's just a horrid teether!

LegacyUser

Hi

You're doing so well. I have 13 mth old too and 2 older ones. Baby wakes once a night usually..the other 2 didn't at this stage.

It might be separation anxiety. Some babies for whatever reason experience it more others. There's a website called hand in hand parenting that talks a lot about babies emotions and lots of free resources on sleep. My littlegirl wakes more if we have a busy day.I think they process stuff during night.

Ironically she might be going to bed too late. She might be over tired/ stimulated. You could try bringing back bedtime bit by bit.

6.30/7 is a good bedtime for babies that age who are getting one big nap during day.

Good luck. Pm me if you like.