10.5 month old consistently waking??

[CarlyRose80]

Hi all.
I don't know what else to try. He's 10.5 months and has never really slept a whole night without waking. He's on 3 meals, morning and evening bottle, sometimes a dream feed and still wakes up for milk in the night.
He wakes for any reason and I don't know how to encourage him to sleep without waking. He's warm, he's fed, medicine if teething etc etc.
He's doesn't cry he wines, and wines. Sometimes he settle back on his own but normally milk or white noise has to be used to help him go back off. He can wake upto 5 times a night and I exhausted especially being back at work now. Please help. He's in his own room, has blackout blinds and I keep each wake up quiet and as least disturbed as I can :-(((

[girliefriend]

Hmm tricky, I would stop any milk feeds at night or have them as a last resort.

Does he sleep well in the day?

I would be thinking teeth or having to learn to self settle through some cc.

[minipie]

hmm this is a puzzle, since you say he can self settle sometimes? so clearly he knows how to go back to sleep without your intervention, the question is why won't he the other times.

how long do you leave him before you intervene?

[CarlyRose80]

He does self settle if I leave him. He wakes many times doing that "ahhhhhh" noise continually. Eventually if not needing anything he will go back to sleep (10-20 mins later) but when it goes on for longer I have to go to him (2 other school age children asleep) and he normally feeds. I just don't understand why he keeps waking. Last night was bed at 7pm. Slept till 11.30 woke and had bottle. Then woke at 1,3,4 and 5,30 where he stayed up at the latter time and also had a feed. No feed offered at other wakings and I didn't go into him but the point is he's waking and awake and loud. Mehhhh:-(((

[minipie]

Ah ok if it's the later wakes that he can't/won't self settle then that does kind of make sense ... dd is the same, much harder to settle the later she wakes, I think it's because she's had more sleep by then so the urge to go back to sleep isn't as strong.

If it was DD doing what you're describing I would think she was teething or had a cold/stuffed up, some form of discomfort basically. have you tried nurofen? eg in your case I would try giving nurofen at the 1am wake and see what happens. if it helps then does suggest some sort of discomfort.

[girliefriend]

Agree with above post, it sounds like he wants to sleep but something (poss pain) is waking him up.

Does he sleep much in the day? I think I would limit daytime naps and not let him sleep at all past 2pm to see if that helps.

[CarlyRose80]

Thanks. Hubby got me Gina ford book and it seems it's all food related. Needs more food in the day and less milk at night (and day) whys it always difficult.

[minipie]

Ah but Gina Ford always says it's food related, because if it was anything else (like teething) her magic routine wouldn't fix it and she'd sell fewer books.

It really doesn't sound like hunger to me... for comparison, dd (same age) has three meals a day and also four milk feeds a day ... but her milk feeds are small, only about 4oz/120ml each, so I would guess your DS is having the same.

[CarlyRose80]

More recently his feeding has improved. Due to reflux he wouldn't eat a thing but a month on with the help if medication he's doing great. 6am 5oz milk. 8am toast or porridge. 9.30am 5oz. 12pm dinner and pudding. 4pm snack (fruit/yogurt) 6pm something else just depends what it is then bottle at bed at 6.30-7pm 5oz. Doesn't always drink it all as tired. Will wake for a feed in the night (4oz normally) that's a rough day. I think it's just being tired that makes him wake as at nursery he hardly sleeps. Wednesday he had 30 minutes all day and was there from 7.30-5.30!

[CarlyRose80]

I actually missed a bottle out as today he had a bottle at 1.39 before his nap so I know he's eating plenty.