How Can I Get My 6 Month Old to Quit Wanting to Eat Thru the Night!?

Her little stomach may need to be replenished more often than others babies the some age because that is her metabolism. She will grow out of it but it is just taking her longer. Keep the Faith...

S.

Really she is right on track to be a good sleeper. The book "healthy Sleep Habits Happy Child" says that breastfed babies typically need that feeding until 9 months. I forget about formula fed babies. Hang in there, she's right where she needs to be developmentally. Try to go to bed closer to when she does and see if that helps. I tend to cherish that time alone after the little ones go down, and then I stay up too late:)

I had the same issue and a very large child. Although not the answer you want, he didn't sleep through the night consistently until he was on whole milk. Things got better around 7-8 months when I would give him a bottle with dinner and another before bed. I asked the doctor about it and he didn't seem concerned.

Well from what I understand after two children, numerous neices and nephews and so on....that is a full night for a child that age. Neither of mine started sleeping the full 10 to 12 they need every night until they were probably 10 to 12 months old.

Is she nursing or bottle fed? That makes a difference too. Both of mine were nursed and would wake up once during the night after about four months or so to nurse.

And have to break it to you gently, but if you think they will sleep soundly after she gets over this hump...you might want to sit down right now. I have one that is five and one that is three. And I have to get up during the night with one of them at least once a week or more. Bad dreams, runny nose, coughing, I'm hot, I need to potty, and then there is my own crazy thoughts when I hear a strange noise and wake up to investigate.

I rarely get a full night of undisturbed rest for a full week. It has gotten much better now that they are older, but then I'm due with number three in two weeks and I'll be up every night once again. I'm getting dizzy just thinking about it.

She's doing well to sleep that long. My oldest didn't sleep that many hours in a row until she was eight months or maybe even older. It's a blur now. I was very sleep deprived. Of course, most of her problems had to do with an inexperienced mommy training her all wrong...but that's water under the bridge. The second did much better.

Good luck!!

I know what you are going through. My daughter will be 9 months in a week and still wakes up because she is hungry. I have tried cereal in the bottle and she may sleep for a little longer but she still wakes up hungry. We have tried letting her cry but I have another daughter and she wakes her up, plus my husband gets up quite early for work. We have an appointment for her checkup next week and I am hoping the doctor has some advice, I will let you know if she tells me anything new. Just hang in there, that's what I am doing.

Hi!

From what I read, it's best to slowing wean them off. So if you're bottle feeding start with the usual for three nights, drop the amount by one ounce for the next three nights, again drop an ounce for the next three nights and so on until you get to two ounces. After three nights of two ounces you should be able to get through the night - I haven't done it yet as my guy is only 4 months an is still breastfeeding 2+ times a night!!!

Good luck!

Court

I tyed my little guy over with a bottle before bedtime with cereal in it.......

to get a full night's of uninterrupted sleep, my suggestion is to wait another 3-6 months :)

Seriously though, if you're really insistent on having her sleep through you can sleep train her. I suggest consulting the Ferber book "Solve your Child's Sleep Problems" - the method works amazingly well for all sorts of sleep issues. At this point she is used to eating 5-6 hours after going to bed, so she wakes up hungry at that time. She just needs to "learn" not to be hungry until morning. If you breastfeed, you can send your husband in to comfort her instead of you going in (she won't be expecting any food from him). Anyway, the Ferber method does work, and it works quickly if you can stomach a few nights of crying and a battle of wills (yours versus hers).

Hi Nicole......every baby has its own timetable. Some sleep thru at 6 mo. and some don't. Be happy she just wants to eat and goes back to sleep. Some babies want company and that is hard to break. One of these days, she will surprise you and sleep all night. I wouldn't over=feed her at bedtime...that might contribute to other feeding problems later. You are doing just fine and before you know it, she will sleep 9-10 hours for you. I know it is hard to get up every night but "this too shall pass".

Erica,
I had the same problem with my first child who wanted to eat two or sometimes three times at night. It became very difficult because he was not sleeping through the night. Try getting him to drink water in a bottle. When he wakes up, give him a bottle of water, he will cry for the first few nights and you have to stand your ground, it will get rough, I can garantee you he will not like it. He will eventually get the idea and accept the water but eventually will stop asking for it at night. The other way would be to stop giving him a bottle all together but he is still young, water might be the easier way. Also, make sure he goes to bed with a full stomach to hold his growning body through the night.

Good luck,
R.

my son is the same age he's a really good eater and sometimes i do nothing right and he still seems to sleep through and sometimes i do it all right and he can wake up twice but... after dinner at 6 or so i give him a nice warm bottle before bed at 8 pm and that gets him through usually til 5 or 6 am (sometimes later) then an early bottle before breakfast at that time and breakfast when his big brother wakes up at 8am or so

Wow....I'm so with you. I have a 7 month old who we are trying to get to sleep thru the night as well!! I asked her doctor how to handle this and she said to definetely start phasing the overnight bottle. She said that by 7-8 mos, they will start "object permanance"...basically it will become a habit. So, what I have started to do is feed Sophia (by baby girl) a jar of protein (any meat/veggie or meat/friut blend) at her last feeding of the night (usually by 7:30 or 8:00). She will then take her bottle at about 9:00 when she goes down for the night. In the beginning, she would still wake up at her usual time and I would give her a bottle, but an ounce less than she is used to per week. I'm down to 2 oz at her night time wake up, and she doesn't wake up every night now. Next week, I'll phase her down to 1 oz, but the week after will be nothing. She's adjusting well and it's going good for her to not to go off the overnight bottle cold turkey, but it may work different for your baby. Hopefully this helps...I feel your pain! Email me if you'd like to chat more! :)
B.

Hi N.,
I am going to have to 2nd Karen's suggestion of waiting 3-6 months.

I say that sort of tongue-in-cheek, but its sort of true. Some babies just don't have the ability to go all night without eating.

As long as she is eating well through the day, then it might just be a while before she can make it through the night.

I DO feel your pain, but she will get there and you won't even remember these days when she woke up.

Good Luck,
B.

I just want you to know that my 9 month old still does this. Its what they call a night feeder... in a way we have trained them to get up and "eat" but they really don't need it. But it really is up to you on what you want to do. (I haven't read all the other comments so if I am repeating something I am sorry) Have you tried diluiting the bottle? Like give 6oz and 2 1/2 scoops of formula and after two-three nights go to five and so on until the won't need it anymore. Sometimes they wake up and want to suck on something you could try a pacifier (my sone doesn't take one nor does he suck on his thumb). Does she know how to put herself to sleep at night? If she doesn't just look it up on google self soothing to sleep.
I know it really does suck I am sorry to hear that but just try different things. Also ask your doctor. My doctor gave me a paper with helpful things on it. Good luck! And hang in there! Eventually it will get better... I just can't tell you when!

I have a 6 month old as well. I can't say this will be anything different than what you are doing but I will tell you what I am doing at home. I think scheduling naps and food help them to rest better in the evening. My son sleeps from about 9pm to 7am each night. It varies sometimes he goes to sleep at 10 and gets up at 8am or goes to bed at 8:30 and gets up at 6:30 but it is always the same mount of time. It could just be luck! I got my diet from the doctor and I know it is similar o the beech nut diet, But here is what I do daily...

I do not let my son sleep longer than an hour and a half for a nap during the day so that he is used to short naps. They usually are never longer than an hour anyone. He takes one after breakfast and play and one after dinner and play.

He eats about 2 oz. of cereal and 2 oz. of fruit stage 2 each morning (about 7:00am), then he plays. I give 4 oz. of formula about 45 minutes after breakfast and send him to his nap.

About 10:30 am he will eat 2 oz. of a fruit dessert or medley of some type and a 6 oz bottle again after some seperation from the food.

About 1:30pm he will eat 2 oz. of meat and 2 oz. of veggies or a 4 oz. jar of mixed with a 4 oz bottle seperated a bit later. Then his 2nd nap.

About 5pm I give him the remaining fruit dessert from his 11am feeding and a 6 oz bottle.

About 8:30pm he gets 2 oz. of cereal the remaining fruit from breakfast 2 oz. and then a 4 oz. bottle when he is reay for bed at about 9:00 or 9:30. I change his diaper right as he goes into the crib so wetness is not the reason he wakes up as well.

I have to add he sleeps on his stomach which I know is a big no no. But, it is the only way he rests easy, and he is old enough to roll over anyway. If I put him on his back he rolls to his stomach anyway but it wakes him when he starts that way. Hope something here is helpful. I know every baby is different. Good Luck!

Hi N.,
I think 5-6 hours straight is pretty darn good for a 6 month old. I nursed my daughter for 15 months and still had waking up to eat in the middle of the night.
You could ask your pediatrician, but my guess is he/she would tell you that 6 month olds don't typically go that long without a "refresher" meal.
Good Luck!
:) mb

My son was an "eat often" child. I thought he wasn't getting enough nourishment but the dr. said he was just fine and healthy as could be. Some children require more than others and will outgrow this like many other things. I guess I learned to get sleep when I could when he was little. I look back at those times and they don't seem so important now. I'de do anything to go thru them all over again. At least when we're young, we have more patience and could push ourselves harder. Just love those moments with her mommy...they don't last.

Hi N.-

I found putting oatmeal in the bedtime bottle worked for my boys or feeding something heavy i.e. banana or thick yogurt is what I do with my 18 month old now. I am sure you probably have tried them all. Good Luck!!

Relax. Your baby is telling you what she needs. I know that six months feels like a long time but many children do not sleep through the night for much longer. It sounds like she just still needs that meal but I am sure it will not be much longer if she is already going 5-6 hours. Treasure the other wonderful qualities of this age...they will be over very soon!

If it makes you feel any better mine just started sleeping throught the night at 18 months. She also just statrted to sloe down in her growing too...she is almost 21 months now and is 35 1/2 inches tall and 32 pounds!!! Both my kids were like that, and they were starving, not fussing just to fuss. I have always heard of these baby's that sleep through the night from 4 months on, mine were not those babies LOL :) The other thing to is this I think, I have always worked outside the home with my kids, so sometimes I think they get up just to be with you, and if it's been 5 or 6 hours since there last feeding they also happen to be hungry :) Good luck and hang in there, you are not alone. I'll keep my fingers crossed that ahe starts sleeping soon.

If she's eating solids before bed and still not sleeping through the night, then she's just not ready.

Neither of my kids slept through the night until after 12 months old.

I agree with waiting another 3-6 months. Before that, most babies will not sleep through the night. Some do, but most don't.

N.- I'm not sure how to answer your "sleeping thru the night question." I had 7 month old twins who got up every 3-4 hours @ 6 months of age & starving. Our ped., who has a 5 month old, said that as this point in time, they should be sleeping more often. We discussed wakeup times, naps, & bedtime & I realized that my boys were napping poorly during the day, which led to nightwakings. She said at 6 months, they should be sleeping a good solid 10 hours at night. She has an infant, who is 5 months old & she said she is a very strict mom on not going to her at night in the beginning, (of course age appropriate), & she sleeps 10 hrs & 5 months of age. I've mastered naptimes for the boys now & they are nursing at least every 3 hours during the day & they get a full 3 meals too now. At bedtime & naptime, I realized that they are babies who cry for 5, maybe 10 minutes & then they go right to bed. At bedtime, we are at the point where they wake up at 4-5 hours & they do eat. I'm not a great advocate of letting them cry it out (because when I do, it seems like they go for about an hour & my heart is breaking more than theirs at the one hour point), but most books advocate that the cry it out works. I've caved in pretty much after the 2nd night, but do what is best for you. If you don't mind waking up every 5-6 hours, then do it still. If not, try reading some of those books out there, if it doesn't bother you to let her cry it out. I read in Healthy Sleep Habits, that at this age, if you are putting her to bed at 7:30, then she should be waking up at midnight & between 4-5 am for a feeding. I think he is right on target with this. This is what my boys pretty much have been doing since about 7 months of age. At 9 months of age, he states that they should sleep the whole night through from 7:00-7:00. I'm waiting that extra month... letting them cry it out now, & knowing that when I do wake up at midnight & 4:00, & knowing they are starving at these times, doesn't make sense to me to let them cry. Do what is best for you & your baby. Everyone's babies are different. I love the moms who have been getting 12 hrs a night sleep when their infants were 2 months old. I think though, if your baby is sleeping 5-6 hours at a time at night & goes back to bed, just wait a little longer until she hits 9 months & see if she turns the corner. It seemed like at 6 1/2 months, my boys started sleeping a little bit longer at night too.

dear N., sweetheart, i hate to be the bearer of not so good news, but your baby IS getting a good night's sleep. it's you who believes you are not. you are now a mama, a sacrificer, and your life now revolves around the baby and its needs...not yours. six hours are plenty for you. you have to have a mindset. being a mommie is not always so glamorous and muc h fun. mother of three, grandmother of two...,and i well know.

Some babies truly are hungry during the night at 6 months old. At least she is only up once. I'd suggest waiting a month or two to see if her need to eat at night disappears on its own. They are only little for such a short time. Hang in there!

By the way, even if you stop feeding her at night, she may very well still wake up.

I feel you Nicole, I am the mom of five kids myself. My youngest just turned one and she still wakes up wanting a bottle. She eats everything under the sun so I know that she isn't hungry.
With my other dd who is now 4 , she also did the same thing and it turned out that she was gassy and a lot of times when a baby has a stomach ache or is gassy they will appear to be starving and gulp their bottles. I gave her some Mylicon drops after her go to sleep bottle and it stopped it.
It didn't work on my baby but sometimes they just want that cuddling time with mommy and the first thing that we reach for when they wake at night is a bottle or binky.
i am sorry that I didn't have any way of solving the problem for you but I don't think anybody could? I just wanted to let you know that your not alone and that I am going through the same thing . I haven't had one night where I was able to sleep through the night for the past year and a half because when I was pregnant i couldn't sleep through the night because of symptoms. I hope that it gets better for you.
Good Luck,
W. Mom of 5

Try giving a bottle with rice or barley cereal with her formula when you put her to bed and I'm sure she will sleep majority of the night if not all night long. About a tablespoon.

Here's what I did with one of my tots.

Since she knows she will get bm/formula, you may want to start decreasing that. If it's a bottle of either, then start watering it down and giving her less. Continue to decrease the amount of bm/formula until she is only getting water and less of any liquid. As you reduce the amount, continue to work on self-soothing techniques. I didn't want to let my babies cry it out, so I used the Baby Whisperer Pick up/Put down method. Hope this helps.

I am going thru the EXACT same thing--only mine was waking up every 4 hrs! You're doing awsome, lol!!! Basically, what I do is when she wakes up to eat before the appointed time I just let her hear my voice and say, "It's ok, Mama's here" until she calms down and goes back to sleep. At first she cried for several minutes but after that she would only cry for a minute or 2. By the third night she had slept thru. I figure I'll do that until she is solidly sleeping at least 6 hr stretches and then up it to 7 and then 8 hrs. I don't do the water thing like my mom recommended bc then it's still enforcing waking up for something--and then that can get you into just an even more hairy situation. Also, I get her and nurse her just before I go to sleep, even if it isn't time for a feeding so that I can get a longer chunk of sleep in. According to my friends with multiple kids, there's no reason she shouldn't be able to sleep 8 hrs at this point, wake up for a feed and then go back down for another 2 hrs or so. She's just waking up out of habit, not hunger at this point. Good luck!

as long as you continue she will continue. it is not easy. you just stop. I did this until my son was a year old and still doing it. We just had to stop. My husband and I lay in bed together crying but after 2-3 nights it stopped and hes been sleeping through the night since. well, worth it.

I think your expectations are too great. Your baby is just hungry. Six hours is a good stretch for 6 months old. I know this time is difficult for you with not getting a solid nights sleep yourself. (I have 4 children, so I've experienced this)so I don't want to sound like I have no compassion. But, what we define as a full night for a six month old and for an adult a two different things.

Hi! I'm glad I'm not alone on this. My 6 month daughter is doing the same thing. So, I'm guessing its very normal =)
Hopefully soon we can get some sleep and get rid of our dark circles =) My sister in law told me that we won't get a good night sleep for another 18+ years =)

Well I have to disgree with most of the responses. Most babies do not NEED a middle of the night feeding after 4-5 months. The problem is that alot of parents guilt themselves into thinking they do. Both of my kids were sleeping through the night (8-9 hours) by 3 1/2 mos. I know that is pretty early and I dont think that is necessarily a goal for everyone. My husband and I agreed to let our kids cry it out. And after a few nights of long cry sessions it was over. If you keep giving her the bottle when she wakes up, she will continue to wake up. CHeck on her, ressure her and let her learn to put herself back to sleep. Hope it helps

I wish I had the answer for you, but my 10 month old still wakes up once during the night, nurses and then goes back to sleep. I am a Mom of three and all my kids were like this. I didn't have the heart to let my stubborn kids cry for hours, but I have heard that it works. If you can't let your baby cry eithor, just know that they are only babies for a short time. Trust me, they grow up quick! My oldest will be starting kindergarden in the fall, and my middle child preschool. I don't know how that happened...I think I just blinked :) They grow up too fast as it is. Good luck!

Hi N.! At this point if she's doing well on solids she's probably only getting up to eat out of habit and to spend some late night quality time with you. She is most likely getting all the calories she needs during her daytime feedings. My daughter did this as well and we would let her cry it out for a while and if she persisted we would offer her some water. After a while they figure out that it's not worth the effort to get up for just water. It may take a little while but soon enough you'll be getting a full night's sleep once again!

Not sure how else to say this, but deal with it... She is only 6 months old. She is going to need to eat often but should go longer stretches as she gets older and you start to add some solids to her diet.

I know it is hard, TRUST ME. I nursed my daughters until their 1st birthday and my 4 year old just recently started sleeping through the night.

5 - 6 hours would have been a godsend to me. This too shall pass.