7 Month Old Not Sleeping

Mary L below recommended the book Baby Wise. Try that (and Baby Wise II) for help with this problem & other great help. The author is Ezzo.

I would think he is either hungry or he has his days and nights mixed up. If feeding him doesn't work, try keeping him up all day. Or a mixer of the to, he should then sleep through the night.
Hope this helps.
Y. B

I have a six month old. I completely understand where your at. Around six months old all three of mine done the same thing. I contribute this to teething and seperation fears. And these are hard times for us all. If you have a napping schedule and feeding schedule. Stick to it.Try a little tylenol for the pain,(if your not opposed to it) and place a damp cloth in the fridge until pretty cool. Give that to him and see what he does. He may just need something to chew on. And if it's a seperation issue. All you can do is, talk to him and reassure him you are there. It is okay for them to cry. If you checked every possible thing that could be wrong, then just try to set back and let him start learning to self soothe. Also, mine loves bitter biscuits. Messy but they work. I recently started cereal bottle for last feeding of the night. I'm from Malvern. And this is my first time on Mamasource, like to make some friends as well. Just recently became a stay at home mom. I hope I might have helped you in some way. Take care and good luck.

Nothing, my son when through several of these phases. One month he would sleep for 4 hours at a time the next month 2 20 mins naps was all he needed. He will change again, just be patience and pray.

Hi there,

I think it may be more of a comfort thing. I breastfed my children and did not begin solids until 9 months and they slept through the night.

When they would wake up overnight, instead of rushing to them and picking them up, I began to peak in to make sure they were ok and then let them cry for a minute or two and they would go right back to sleep. They just have to learn to put themselves back to sleep.

my son was up often too - and there were so many reasons for what it could be - growth spurt, comfort, teething, getting ready to reach a milestone or just met one. there's a great website called www.kellymom.com that is full of helpful info. EVERY baby is dif't - so what holds true for one will not for another. some babies need to eat more often, some need more comfort and reassurance. my son is about to be 4 years old - i never did cio(see below for a link about it), i always fed him on demand - and he is now a healthy, confident and wonderful little boy. so stick with your instinct and don't worry what others say your baby should be doing.

http://www.hno.harvard.edu/gazette/1998/04.09/ChildrenNee...

hang in there - this will pass and your baby will move on to another routine!! my son never took a bottle so i can completely relate to being tired - but i don't regret one minute of attending to his needs!
J.

There is a book out called BABY WISE. It is absolutley the best thing in the world. I swore that I would never read a book pon how to raise my child, but after so many sleepless nights I was willing to do whatever it would take. It is really helpful. I is at any bookstore and may even be available at your local library. Good Luck and God bless.

Hi T., I would agree more with the comforting and less with the late feeding. He's getting to the age where regular daily meals should be taught, but feeding him right before bed or overnight could actually be triggering this response, and it could continue all the way to adulthood. Try feeding him at least an hour before bed so he can digest, and comfort him when he wakes. My girls had a binky that helped, but it was strictly for bed use. The sucking motion calmed them so they didnt need the bottle.

Maybe he's going through a growth spurt and needs the extra calories?

My mother, a nutritionist who works with infants and children in particular, just called, and I asked her your question. Here's what she says:

Because your baby is eating more solids now, he's probably not getting as much protein as he would with formula, and the more carbohydrate-rich foods that tend to make up a baby's first solids don't last in the stomach as long, or provide the calories needed to keep growing well.

So if he's formula-fed, you might want to give him more protein-based foods, though you should wait to introduce more protein starting at 8 months. Probably just a *little* protein food an hour or two before bed would help till then. Beans straight from a can are the healthiest form of protein: they're very nutritious and last longer in the belly, they are easy to prepare, and cheap! You'll want to drain and rinse them to get rid of the excess salt before cooking them. The easier-to-digest beans are great northern. Start gradually. Cooked egg yolks are good, too, say, stirred into sweet potatoes or whatever, but don't introduce egg whites until your son is 12 months old.

Babies still need 26-32 oz. of formula per day while they're exploring solids until 12 months. By 12 months, he will be eating enough solid foods that he can switch off of formula or go to toddler formula, and then take 16 oz a day in 4 oz. portions at a time.

Feel free to email me if you have any other questions.

L.

First, ignore anyone that tells you to read Baby Wise by Ezzo. It's been associated with failure to thrive and is nothing more than rigid schedules and cry it out to extremes. By virtue of him not being with his parents, I'd guess he's already been through a lot in his short life and you're probably looking for ways to establish a stable loving relationship. Try The No Cry Sleep Solution. I don't have much advise for formula fed babies as I never gave my kids the stuff. Being as how you're a grandma, I understand that's not an option. He might be teething, he might be going through a growth spurt, he might be going through a big developmental leap. Sleeping through the night is not a set thing until much older and is more of a process. If he's teething, I'd try Hyland's teething tablets. You can find them at Walmart with the baby vitamins. You can also try carrying him in a sling or other baby carrier. The rocking motion along with being close to you will help him feel safe and secure and will lull him to sleep freeing your hands to do other things. He's a lucky boy to have someone that cares to care for him.

He is probably, going through a growth spurt and quite possibly is hungary.

Is he on solids? If not start feeding solids such as cereal to fill his little belly.

I'm a grandmother of two I lost my daughter 6 years ago. I have her two boys. For the seven month try putting a little cereal in his milk before bed time and i'm sure he will sleep
because he will have a full stomach. Think about it milk run right through you

You can go here http://www.thebabywhisperer.com/smf/ and look through routines and sleeping through the night. HTH. It's a fairly common problem at seven months.

What kind of handicaps...this might hvae something to do with it. My child, who is now 10 months, did that off and on until she was 9 months old. One week she would sleep fine, and the next she wouldn't stay asleep. I just had to let her cry after I made sure she had a dry diaper. I would change her in her crib, pat her on the back for a couple of minutes, and play some soft music. She cried a few nights for 30 minutes before she stopped. Hope things get better soon.

Have you tried giving him a bath and feeding him somethin gheavy like some cereal in a bottle or in a bowl or some baby food after his bath right before bed time? So that way he will be full and hopefully sleep through the night or at least until the sun gets ready to come up.

I highly recommend the book "Healthy Sleep Habits Happy Child" by Weissbluth. You should be able to find it at any bookstore or amazon.com. It's great! It gives you lots of ideas and you don't have to read the whole thing, but you can skip to the part you need. It also covers childhood too. I still reference it sometimes. My son took 5-45 min. naps around that age every day and that was OK as long as he was getting that many. He still fights sleep at 2.5 years old, but at least he's getting enough most days. Hope this helps. Welcome!

When my son was small someone suggested waking him up before he gets up, he will soon get use to you waking him up and will sleep thru the night till you do. It worked for me. It seems like less or shorter naps would help him to sleep thru the night.

I forced my child to take a pacifier and would not give him the bottle until 4 hours had passed. It only took a few days to get him on schedule.

Are you sure that he is really hungry? My son used to do this as well, but it didnt last for too long because someone had given me the advice that he probably isnt really hungry, he just thinks he is. I just started by entering the room quietly and calmly, telling him to go back to sleep and patting his back for a short minute or two. If he continued to fuss and cry, I would give him a hug and then lay him back down, crying or not. If he continued to fuss, it never really lasted long(though sometimes it seems like it does!)If you break the routine of giving him that bottle, it will probably break his routine of waking up for one.
As far as napping during the day, I am really not sure. If my little man woke up early, I didnt go get him. I would always let him fall back to sleep. This doesnt always work for every baby. Good Luck! I hope you make some good friends, what area are you living in?

J.