Night Wakings - How/When were you confident it wasn't due to hunger?

Short history - I posted about 10 days ago re: my 9.5 month olds who were waking every hour after being put down at 6:30. After a lot of support and encouragement - I let them CIO. It worked like a charm and within 4 days they were no longer waking up between the hours of 6:30pm and 4:30 a.m. I'd say they've slept until 6:00 half the time andd 4:45/5:00 the other half.

So last night they both woke around 4:30 and I thought since they are SO hungry when they wake up at 6:00 - maybe if I feed them at 4:30 they'll go back to sleep and sleep til 6:30 or so. I remembered reading in HSHHC that if older babies (9months +) wake up and you feed them and they go back to sleep - it is okay to continue feeding them.

So, I fed Finley and laid him down and I fed Sullivan and laid him down before I could even leave the room - both of them were crying (it was now about 5:15). So I listened to them cry for 15 minutes, went back in patted, gave pacis, left again. Sullivan fell asleep around 5:45 after fussing and Finley never went back to sleep so I brought him in our bed 6:00 and we all slept til 6:45.

Should I assume since they did NOT go back to sleep after that 4:30 feeding that they do not need to eat then? The other times that they have awakened around that time and I have let them CIO - they usually are back asleep within 20 or so minutes. So, maybe I need to go back to that.

I just can't stand the thought of them being hungry - but at the same time, I think to myself they are 9.5 months old - do the NEED to eat during the night still?

How did any of you feel confident that your babies were not waking due to hunger during the middle of the night?

Thank you!!

 

I knew my girls were not waking in the night for hunger whenever I'd offer them a bottle in the night and they would suck for about 2 seconds, not really take anything, and then go right back to sleep. I would only assume they don't need to eat if you are offering it to them and they aren't taking it.

But then I see you mentioned your babies are 9.5 months old - I don't know if they were preemies or not. If they were not preemies then I'd say you're right they don't need to eat during the night anymore.

 

Thanks, Aimee!

They were born at 35w 1d.

I just wanted to add they eat anywhere from 28-30oz during the day along with 3 solid meals and they both weigh 18lbs - if any of that info helps.

 

i have heard - in the very book you refer to - that there is no physiologic need for food during the night after 5 (?) mos. i'd double check to age to be sure. with my girls we did CIO at around 5-6mos and, apart from waking now and then, they started sleeping from 8:30pm-6am. then i go in and feed them and put them back down. they used to go back to sleep for a few hours. but it seems that they are in the midst of dropping that nap. your kids are almost the same age so, i wouldnt be surprised if they were just dropping the early morning nap. i would try letting them fuss when they wake at 4 and see if you can hold off feeding till 6. when i hear fussing before 6am i usually let it go and listen for it to escalate before going in. hope that helps.

 

QUOTE(mama23boys @ Oct 24 2008, 07:27 AM) [snapback]1039885[/snapback]
Should I assume since they did NOT go back to sleep after that 4:30 feeding that they do not need to eat then? The other times that they have awakened around that time and I have let them CIO - they usually are back asleep within 20 or so minutes. So, maybe I need to go back to that.


:good: Yes, probably. It's sounds like it's okay to let them CIO here :hug: .

 

It's a tough spot because if they are taking a good bottle at 4:30 then they are hungry. For us, once we dropped the third nap at 9 months they had to go to bed at 5:30 and not a minute later or else they were super overtired and harder to get down. But since they went to bed so early they had to get up early because they were hungry. Mine did not STTN until 9 months. For me I knew they could STTN since they had done it a handful of times and they were no longer draining their bottles. Also once I fed them and put them back down, they would stay awake for at least another hour just fussing and babbling. So I just took longer and longer to go in and get them when they woke up. They never really cried, just fussed. Then they just started sleeping thru. But they got up at 5am for about 3 months until they matured a bit more. It sounds like you are so close. GL!

 

Mine woke up at 4-5am for a month or so... I know they were hungry when they still ate the 8am bottle fine. That was until they were 7 months. Then they started STTN, but still woke up twice in two weeks at 4am... but they wouldn't drink their 8am bottle. That's when I knew it wasn't out of hunger anymore.

 

I think when they wake and eat a small amount and then don't really settle (or settle!) you know its not food.

 

Thanks, Everyone.

It is hard to figure out. They've slept straight through about 5x's over the past 10 days. And then the other 5 times they've gotten up at 4:30ish. They do drink the whole bottle (only 4oz) - but I have to jiggle it, etc. to get them to keep drinking. They would happily lay on my lap and suck on it lightly and snooze. They definitely don't go back down and sleep another few hours. As soon as I lay them down they either try to settle back to sleep and then start crying or start crying immediately.

I don't want them to be hungry!! Yet, I know they are capable of going straight through - so I just don't know what the right answer is!

I am going to increase the amount of EBM in their bottle at 6pm and see if that helps at all. I can usually only get them to take 5-6oz before bed...but if I can get them to take 8oz, I might feel a little bit more like they aren't hungry. I'll have to do a lot of jiggling that bottle though! It is work to get them to take the 5 or so oz.

 

My pedi told me that once they are 13lbs there is no physical need to eat at night anymore. I'm not sure if you consider 4.30 night or not but I think they may just be waking out of habit. I am in a cio situation myself so I know how hard it is to worry that they are not hungry. If you try to leave them in for a few days and they don't settle down you may just have to bite the bullet and get up with them at 4.30....way too early for any of us.....