Need Help Getting Eight Month Old to Sleep Through the Night

I had a daughter that did the same until she was 6 months old. My doctor told me to give her water and she would stop waking up just for water and guess what? IT WORKED!!!!!
GOOD LUCK!

My now 3 1/2 year old did the same thing. In fact, it lasted until about 13 months (that's when it ended on its own). Like clockwork he was up at 3 am EVERY night. We DID try rocking, soothing, and comforting for about 2 weeks straight at around 10 months. But each night of trying this, after about 30 mins of non-stop fussing and then crying, I would finally give in and give him a bottle. In less than 10 mins he was finished and out like a light. So, we went back to giving him his 3 am feeding because it was what gave us the most rest. In retrospect, I think he was just truly hungry.

My husband and I both worked full-time so we would switch off nights as far as who was getting up with him. So, if you try the soothing method and it doesn't work, you'll have to do what is the next easiest thing for you to do. It will end at some point.

By the way, we DID do the cereal in the bottle thing for many months (Dr. Brown's make Y-cut nipples especially for this). Apparently it works for others, but it did not work for us.

I wish I had advice ~ my 14 month old still gets up 2-3 times a night. Just wanted to let you know you're not alone! :)

Basically you are dealing with a habit that you started - doesn't it always come back to bite us in the rear?!? So, my thought is that making him cry it out is not the kindest way to deal with it - but what about trying to wean him from the night feedings? It doesn't sound like it's a hunger issue - probably more of a comfort issue. Does he take a pacifier or will he? If not, what about trying to transition back to a rock/soothe/touch type of comfort? I would try this... 1) add a good bedtime snack (cereal/yogurt/banana) in addition to the last feeding to be sure he's good & full. 2) when he wakes, be ready with a pacifier and a small formula bottle. I would first try giving a pacifier & patting him on the back until he's settled. If you have to do the bottle, hold him while he drinks it until he's settled - and back to bed. Gradually, I would dilute the formula bottle & offer less & less while maximizing the alternative option. My thought is that if you can get back to you as the soother - you can get to a simple pat on the back & back to bed when he needs comfort. That beats making a bottle every two hours! Good luck!

Does he eat table food? My dd is one and is totally addicted to the bottle. She didn't start sleeping through the night till we put her on table food. I finally had to turn off the baby monitor in her room and shut the door to my room. The first night she woke up, fussed for about 5 mins (my personal limit) and went right back to sleep. It only took her two nights of that to sleep through the night. Now she sleeps most nights straight through. We still give her the bottle at naptime and bedtime. I spoke with a dietician who said that kids need to be off the bottle by 18 months, not 1 year. She also said that we could give our dd water in the bottle to put her to sleep. As long as their not walking around with a bottle all day and night, it's not that much of a concern. It's mostly the concern that the milk will sit on their teeth all night long and cause them to rot. So, don't feel bad about having a bottle baby!

Pay attention to feding him well before bedtime and be sure that the waking is not something else...gas pains, wet diaper, teething etc. Try a tylenol before bed and see if it makes a difference. I don't know much about formula, I never used it with my kids but I keep reading bad things about it. Check the Mothering magazine website (or in print) and see if anything hits a chord tha thte formula may be a problem.
Elizabeth Pantley has great sleep books..no cry

I don't believe in cry it out at all. It's just cruel in my opinion.
Instead teach him to fall asleep on his own in his own bed without the aid of a crutch (bottle, binky, rocking, etc).
I highly recommend reading "The Baby Whisperer" by Tracy Hogg. She is also against cry it out and has great ideas for helping you teach your baby to fall asleep alone.

Well, I guess you never really know how it will be until you try it. Even when they cry for 10 minutes it seems like forever! It really is ok for them to cry. I have 3 girls and the second one was like that and we lt her cry at 5 months. She only cried for 10 minutes and went to sleep. We had a 2 and1/2 year old in the same room and she slept right through it. Just expect the worst but hope for the best. It can only be better than that. It may take a few nights but you will be happy in the end. Good Luck!

I did the same thing with my now three year old little boy...It was much easier for me to let him fall asleep with his bottle rather than hearing him cry, although I did try that. I know everyone, doctors especially, tell you not to do that, but around 8 or 9 months, I started putting him to bed with a bottle full of water and maybe a tiny little spoonful of formula, gradually decreasing the formula. I still put him to bed with a sippie cup of water, and if he wakes up in the middle of the night, he can have a drink...And he's fully potty trained, no accidents in the night time. I don't know if that will work for you, but it helped me to do it that way...Good luck!!

Not a pretty picture indeed :-) Do you think he is actually hungry or is he just using the bottle as comfort? If he is hungry, try to increase his snack right before bedtime. And then I would take one feeding at a time away from him - basically weaning him very slowly. It will take more endurance on your end, no doubt but the result will hopefully be an uninterrupted night of sleep. Decide which feeding to take away. Maybe the mid-night one or maybe the early morning one. And then button down for a "power struggle" between him demanding the bottle and you rocking him, walking him, comforting him back to sleep. Do it a few nights until he gets it that at that particular time, he will not get a bottle anymore. But still continue to feed him at the other times. Once he gets it and sleeps through that time, then tackle the next feeding... you have to be more stubborn than he is. But you can do it.

I had the same problem with my second child. After 9 months of it I said enough is enough. He cried the first night (no throwing up) several times but I waited to check on him until he was quiet for at least 15 minutes, cried less the second night and has been sleeping through the night since then(now 14 months). His brother also has the room next door and it was not an issue. I have found that my 3 year old sleeps through all his brothers crying. But wakes up the minute the bus drives down the street or the garage door opens.

Try reading "Nighttime Parenting" and "The Baby Sleep Book", both by Dr William Sears. They are very helpful and very baby-friendly (which I don't believe cry-it-out is at all!). Also, 8mo is not that long for interupted sleep, sorry to tell you! Our 14mo old still wakes 2-4 times a night. My son slept through the night when he was baby, but woke every night from 12-24mo. Many kids wake during the night into their second yr. I think my kids both wake/woke because they are actually hungry. They are so very busy during the day that they don't eat much, so I think they actually need to eat during the night to catch up!

Try putting alittle rice cereal in his last bottle before bed. It was fill his belly alittle more and maybe he will sleep through the night. That is how we got our kids to sleep through the night. The Dr said it was ok and the cereal would get them through the night because they are full. Sometimes formula just doesnt make their little bellies full enough to sleep. Just a thought. Good luck. Let me know if it works for you.

iT TOOK MY husband and I a very long week of letting our 5 month old daughter cry, every night. I THINK THE ONE NIGHT SHE CRIED FOR 25 MINUTES STRAIGHT. I was in our bed crying myself after 5 minutes of her crying, but after 6 nights of this she sleeps thru the night. She gets her last bottle at 1000 and is in the routine of goig up to her bedroom and I read her a book and then she starts to get heavy eyed and I put her in her crib and I turn her fisher price aquarium on and then she watches this and falls asleep. She usually sleeps until about 0800 to 0900 each morning. She occassionally wakes up in the middle of the night and will cry for a minute or 2, but falls back to sleep without any assistance. My pediatrician gave me this going to sleep advice around 4 months. I attempted it a couple of nights at first but had a hard time with it and I would just retrieve her from her crib after she was crying for 5 - 10 minutes and put her back into her bassinet that was in our bedroom. Then I did not get any sleep because everytime she would move I would hear this and sit up to check on her. Then I was acting crazy because I was the one that was sllep deprived and working full time as a nurse. So I made up my mind to just do it again a few weeks later, and it was the longest week of my life, but now we are all sleeping well and are much happier t/o the day.

Try mixing a little rice cereal with his bottle. We started to do this when my daugther was 4 weeks old and she's pretty much sleeps through the night since then...she's now going on 17 months. The rice cereal will help him feel full longer and hopefully will stop him from waking up. Be sure not to make the formula to thick though. A teaspoon per ounce usually works out pretty well. I hope this helps :-)

I know how you and your husband feel. My oldest boy was almost one before he slept through the night. My husband and I just let him cry it out. Then boy number 2 came along a little over 3 yrs. later, but thankfully he slept through the night by 6 wks.. Then a little over 3 yrs. later came boy number 3. He was a handful. He didn't sleep through the night until he was almost 3 yrs. old. All my husband and I could do was let him cry himself back to sleep or give him a cup of juice or water then put him back to bed. Sometimes it just takes time before they sleep through the night unfortunately. We would also change him when he woke up. There really isn't a whole lot to do. I also found that my kids slept better with a little bit of noise like a t.v. or radio on. Some kids will sleep with that static noise that you get on a t.v. station or radio station. Give these a shot and see what happens other than that if none of this works it is going to be a matter of time and he will eventually sleep through the night. Good luck!
D.

I am a 31 yr. old married mom of almost 12 yrs. with 3 beautiful boys ages 10,7 and 4.

Relax. Many of us have been there. It is a phase that will eventually pass. There are many ways to handle it and you need to find one that you are comfortable with. Have you tried giving him less and less in his bottle? I tried this with my son...then when the bottle got down to about an oz. I switched to water. After a couple of nights he no longer wanted it at night. I went through the vomiting stage with my oldest daughter around 15 mo, I went through the I am going to hold my breath until I pass out stage with my son around 20 mo, I went through the come get me or I will wet the bed stage with my second daughter around 30 mo... I could continue on. I have found that our children go through different stages that are probably effected by growth spurts or teeth. When my oldest was 10 mo, She stopped sleeping at night altogether. She would wake every 15-20 min. She was bringing in 6 teeth. This lasted 8 weeks. I never once even made it to bed. We camped out in the recliner. Teeth popped through and back to bed she went. Children are amazing. And some of the things their little bodies go through is incredable (sp). I would suggest keeping a close eye on how much is eatten during the day to make sure he is truely eating enough...then find a way to comfort him that you feel comfortable with. With lots of patience...this to shall pass.

Little about me:
I am a 30 year old SAHM of 4, ages 6,4,2,3mo. Three beautiful girls and one amazing son. Married for 8 1/2 wonderful years to my amazing husband.

Hi J.!

I must say your picture may indeed be very accurate! I tried letting my son cry it out. And it NEVER worked. I did the 5 minutes, then 10, then 15. He cried so hard, he threw up. So I stopped and tried again 2 weeks later. Same thing. I did not enjoy cleaning him, his crib, and sheets at 2am.

I started by gradually watering his bottle down. He didn't really care. So then I started lessening the ounces. I got him down to 2 ounces of mostly water. And then stopped the bottle, which was okay with him. However, he still woke up. I think it was more of a comfort thing for him. I'd hate to tell you, but my son didn't sleep through the night until he was 15 months old!!!

As tough and tiring as it was, I would always pick him up, give him a hug, hold him til he was asleep, and then laid him back down. And even though I did that, he's now 2 and goes to sleep on his own and sleeps through the night. I think my son just wanted some extra comfort. To this day he's still likes to cuddle, hug, and sit with me. He's just a cuddly little guy!

I hope you find something that works for you! Good luck!

We've been through a similar situation as this with our now 26 month old son. I felt like it was just easier to give him a bottle than let him cry at that point. But, I got so sick of getting up every night like clockwork and he was starting to get teeth in also. And, I guess you probably know that it is not possible that he is hungry for a bottle during the night at that age...so, my recommendation is to just let him cry. It sounds horrible, but it works. And, it is typically sooo very temporary. At least it was in our situation and our daughter was 3 at the time and we don't know if she woke up or not when he did. If she did, she is old enough to get herself back to sleep and she knew not to get up during the night anyway. Does he use a pacifier? Those are very useful. And, I don't know if he has teeth yet, but that is soooo horrible for their teeth...(having a bottle during the night). So, it's really for his own good that he not have a bottle. They get very stuck on routines and expect you to stick with those routines too, so it will be an adjustment for everyone when you do stop giving him a bottle. But, it really should only be temporary (ours only took a few days). It's unbearable to hear your baby crying, but he will be or he is fine. And, it seems cruel, but I really don't think it is. The first night, I went in after 20 minutes and gave him his pacifier, but that was all. Hope that helps!!!

I have an 8 month old baby also and although she is not the best sleeper in the world we have made progress. I think the best thing to do is to let them cry themselves to sleep. I know that it is hard and I do not have another child but I really think that this works. I do the exact same thing before bedtime every night and now my little girl goes to bed without a peep. Each night we eat dinner followed by bath and then play and a bottle and bed at 8 pm. I think the consistency is the main way to get the baby to go to sleep at night. A routine is key! Maybe you should try putting the baby to bed before the older child (like an hour before) and letting him "cry it out" before the other child even goes to bed. The way I deal with the crying is putting her in her room and then going downstairs and turning the monitor off for 10-15 minutes so that I cannot hear her. Eventually (3-5 days) he will stop crying for quite so long and then not at all. This is what has worked for me just passing on some thoughts. Hope this help!

I don't know if it makes you feel better or not, but 8 months is nothing. I have friends with 18 month olds who are still up ever 2 hours or so :(

I've never been one for "crying it out". I'm a mom of 4 (7,5,3, and 5mos). In my experience every child is different and needs mommy in different ways. AND, there are so many stages they go through. This "not sleeping through the night" may be short lived (ie a growth spurt) or it may last 15 years. I have a niece who feels the need to just "check in" with her mom every middle of the night. My thought is God entrusted this little boy to you -- the mommy. Trust your God given "instincts" with your little boy. He may just need his mommy a little extra at night...and before you know it he'll be hopping on the bus and you'll wish you could rock him to sleep. God Bless and enjoy your infant!!!

I'll do a "Dr.Phil" So how's it workin for ya?(just a little joke) I believe that you are going to need to let this little fellow cry it out. If you continue to go to him with food every time he calls then why should he ever stop? He is doing what works for him. He may not stop this behavior for a long time. Your idea of what could happen may not happen at all. He may just eventually cry himself to sleep. Maybe you could start out just going to him to console him but without food. It is hard to say what to do but for sure you need to change what you are doing or nothing is likely to change. Good luck to you fellow Mother.

Now is the time to do the rocking and the soothing. Don't give him a bottle.
Be sure he's getting full in the evenings - cereal before bed helps with this.
I would recommend crying it out, but it's not the way to start. Start by soothing, holding, rocking, etc.
Once he realizes he's not getting a bottle and his body adjusts to not having it, he'll start sleeping better.
You will probably still need to sooth a few times a night for a while. After he's not waking up so much though, it's time to let him cry it out.
I would recommend a white noise machine for your daughters room so she can't hear him (they really work). (We have a humidifier that makes white noise (the fan in it) that we turn on high when there will be too much noise around our sleeping 3 1/2 year olds room. It works wonders!)
Best of luck, patience and caffine may be required.

Hi J.,

I agree with some of the other mom's about putting cereal in his bottle. Most doctors will tell you it should not be fed through the bottle but it helps. I have a 5 motnh old and we feed him oatmeal cereal by spoon at his 6:00 feeding and then at 9:00 we give him 6 oz or formula with 1 tablespoon of oatmeal cereal. In the beginning he would wake at night still wanting fed so we started giving him 2 oz to hold him over til morning. He would cry and was still hungry but he would fall back to sleep after about 5 minutes. We did this to let him know that he would not get a full meal at night but we would give him a snack if he was hungry. We only had to do this for one week and he was sleeping through the night.

Good luck I know how hard it is to not get your sleep.

We have an 8 month old boy as well with the same issue, but not quite as bad. He wakes up about 6 hours into the night and nurses like a maniac before he goes back to sleep for the rest of the night. Our 2yr old daughter is next door and is often disturbed by the whole routine. We have not found a solution yet, but my doctor recommended the following yesterday: 1. Start on meat if you have not already 2. Up the quantity of his solid foods 3. Give him dinner and a bottle a little earlier than usual 4. Top him off with another bottle before bed.

I am going to start tonight...good luck!

Is the girl a light sleeper? My kids {5} never woke up from the baby crying & some were in the same room. The only solution I see is letting him cry it out. That does not mean to hold him while crying. This will create a new bad habit. Make sure he's okay, visually, then let him cry. If he vomits by all means clean him up, but it usually only takes 3-4 nights to break this habit. Be strong. Leave him in bed. He needs to learn to put himself back to sleep without the bottle. Start on a Friday night. Good Luck! Been there, done that.

My little boy is breastfed and still nurses twice during the night. I've noticed if he eats later in the evening it extends his sleep a little but not completely. But breastfed babies are a little different than bottle. Try to extend the period where you respond to him, if you normally jump, try to let him cry it out a little(I'm not a big proponent of letting them cry it out)He will at sometime learn how to comfort himself if you give him the chance. My little one used my nipples as his pacifier at first so I had to be mean mommy and let him learn the hard way to pacify himself by not letting him nurse as long. Good Luck!

Okay, so if you really want some honesty I will try to help. Crying it out for a night or two is probably going to be your only solution, otherwise you will start a new cycle of subbing the bottle with something else. Be it singing or back rubbing or whatever it may be. And guess what, that involves you. So if you are concerned about your daughter see if she can have an overnighter with a relative. Talk to your pediatrician if you think you'd be causing your son any harm by letting him cry to the point of vomitting, but I can almost guarantee they will say no. If you do decide to go this route be forewarned it will be tough. Be commited and don't give up halfway through the night or else you will confuse your son and prolong the process. I hope you find the right solution for you. S.

Can we make this a good time to switch to a sippy cup? Let your son be a part of getting rid of the bottle. Then when he hollers at night, take him in a drink of water and tell him "remember we got rid of the bottle, all gone" I switched mine to sippy cups as soon as they could hold a bottle and never put them to bed with them. If this doesn't work, I would say, he will have to cry a bit. If you don't go in right away, he may just lay back down and go to sleep. Hope this helps. Shannon