8 Month Old Waking Every Morning at 2Am

Hi, my peditrician said at my daughter's 9 mo. visit that she may start waking up to eat around 2 am for a couple of weeks and that it was normal. He said just feed her - she's having a development spurt and it won't last long. That said, if you feed her then she goes right back to sleep, she probably was just hungry and you could try doing a dream feed for a couple of weeks around 11. But if you feed her and she's still up after you put her back down, I'd stop the bottle and let her settle back down on her own if she can - it's probably separation anxiety or something. My kids also share a room and we put a sleeping mat on the floor in our room for our 3 yr. old so that he can come into our room if his sister is up crying for a little bit (I never leave her more than 15 mintues but he sometimes wakes up before that). She almost always goes back to sleep on her own - unless she's hungry! Good luck : ).

I have no idea what is even unusual about an 8 month old baby waking at 2am every night! In my experience, that's 100% normal. What I used to do was a quick nurse and rocking in the rocking chair, then back to bed.

Perhaps she wants you to lie with her until she falls asleep, then try putting her back in her crib?

My 3 year old was never a fan of falling asleep on his own. I always put him to sleep with me, usually in my bed, then transfered him to his crib for naps. We co-sleep during the night and have been since his birth, but he takes his naps alone.

And personally, I don't see anything wrong with your 8 month old eating at night. If she's hungry, feed her...why fight it? She'll grow out of eating at night just as all kids do, when she's ready.

Good luck with everything :)

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C.,

She could be going thru a growth spurt and need the food. I would say if she takes the bottle you should go with it and feed her. My kids have gone back and forth for the first 15 months, they would sleep thru the night then they didn't, then they did. If I remember it was around 15 months for both of them when they consistently made it thru the night not to go back.

Good luck,
L. M

If she drank the 4 oz she could quite possibly be hungry or thirsty. I know in these dry winter months I get dry during the night and need a drink. She could be getting a growth spurt. Try giving her that 4 oz at night before you go to bed and see if that helps hold til morning.

Hi C.,
It's not unusual for this to occur at this age. Could be a growth spurt or just separation anxiety at this age. The key is making sure she receives no stimulation at this time. Feed her in the dark and put her right back to bed with no talking/playing etc. It may take a few nights, and she may cry, but then she will get the message. If you're worried about her waking your other child, you could take your other one out of the room for a few nights until the routine is established. With consistency, it should only take a few nights. I highly recommend the book "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child," by Dr. Marc Weissbluth. I've used it again and again with my 7. Good luck.