Suggestions for Night

Yikes! Don't let him teach you to come in every 1-2 hours! He's old enough to wake up less/never, and actually not eat at all during the night.

Take it from my step sister and mother of 12. Feed him more during the day, all day long. Not only just a thickened bottle/snack before bed, but add in a few snacks and feedings during thew whole day. Even if he seems fine and not hungry, he WILL take more food. Don't worry about overeating-he won't. If he's truly full, he won't eat. If he eats, he's hungry, even if he seems fine.

I learned this too late for my daughter, she was 1 when I finally mentioned that I was still nursing 2 times per night. My step sister taught me this trick, and she started sleeping through the night 3 nights later. My step sister's kids ALL slept thru bu 2-3 months with this method. My son has slept through the night since 3 months like this and he's a monster eater...I feed him all day.

He's now 18 months, and my mother in law recently visited, took over, and refused to feed him "so much". Sure enough, after three days, he started waking up 2 hours earlier and during the night.

Both my kids are thin and healthy. FEED HIM MORE!
After a few days, when his body registers the new higher calorie intake and fullness, he'll sleep much longer, probably all night.

After you are certain he has been eating more for a while and is totally stuffed, if he still wakes, let him sooth himself back to sleep. Don't go in! He will break the habit of having you come to sooth/feed him at night.

he is getting teeth and the nursing comforts him. do some baby tylenol before bed and hylands teething tablets. i know it is hard when they get teeth. good luck

I agree that it sounds like it might be teething. Mine both needed extra comfort and craved cuddles or parental touch when teething. My son had his firt tooth by 5 1/2 months, my daughter not till 8 months. Some kids take longer for the tooth to come in, but suffer with pain/discomfort for quite some time. I'd definitely try baby pain reliever..acetominophen or whatever you use there.

Hi B.. From what i'm reading it doesn't sound as if the sleeping problem is related to a milestone. When that happens the normal sleep pattern does go out the window but usually for only a week or so.
It sounds to me as if your little one is waking because of habit. He wants a quick feed and you go in and feed him so he wakes more frequently, expecting you to come in. At 5 1/2 months he IS able to soothe himself back to sleep and if he is 15 lbs he should be able to go through the night without a feed. If you don't want to cut out a night feed entirely then set a schedule and only feed him at that time (even if he's sleeping...gently pick him up and feed him half asleep then put him immediately back to bed- this is called giving him a "dream feed"). If he wakes any time before or after your scheduled feed let him fuss himself back to sleep. As soon as he realizes you won't come in waking up won't be so interesting.
When my girl was that age we had sleep trained her using The Sleepeasy Solution by Jennifer Waldburger. It helps with every imaginable sleep problem in children up to age 5! It is a terrific resource to help you sort out these "sleep bumps" the little ones occassionally go through. Please check it out!! There is a great section on night feedings and how to wean your child from them gently. It worked so well my little one weaned herself from her night feedings before I was ready- lol.
Anyway- I highly recommend the book. It'll help you get your little one back on track.
Good luck!

That sounds really hard, B.. I would advise nursing him lots more during the day, as someone else suggested, and see what happens. He might be just a little bit hungry. If he's started solids, you might try adding a feeding, too. Also try some white noise in his room--like a sound machine or a fan. I know this all sounds like standard stuff, but I think he just sounds incredibly normal for his age. My daughter has gone thru periods like this for several weeks--one was definitely around the 5.5/6 month mark too. It sucks, and then it passes. Good luck getting some rest. You're doing great.

B.,
Has he recently reached a milestone (pulling up, crawling)? Sometimes when a new skill is learned, the sleep patterns go out the window for awhile. Have you tried getting him used to soft music in his room at night? I think at his age, he may be too young to soothe himself back to sleep by himself......I'll bet when the novelty of his new "milestone" wears off, he'll sleep better. Hang in there.

Sounds to me like it is a growth spurt. All my kids went thru this. And all were breastfed.