My 10 week old baby who is formula fed and weighs 12lbs 5ozs is still waking for a full feed at 3.00am. She is now losing interest in her 7am feed. I let her wake herself for the 10 pm feed so it can be at 11pm. Do I persist in giving water before her 3.00am feed and should she now be having 6oz feeds in the day?
My 10 week old baby who is formula fed and weighs 12lbs 5ozs is still waking for a full feed at 3.00am. She is now losing interest in her 7am feed. I let her wake naturally for the late feed so it can be at 11pm. Do I persist in giving water before her 3.00am feed and should she now be having 6oz feeds in the day?
We thought she may be too tired to feed properly if woken for the late feed but should we be waking her at 10pm? I now find it is a struggle to get her to take 3/4ozs at 7am.
Feeding details
3.00am: 5ozs formula
7.00am: 5ozs formula
10.30am: 5ozs formula
2.15pm: 5ozs formula
5.00pm: 1oz water
6.00pm: 5ozs formula
10.30pm: 5ozs formula
Daily milk intake 30ozs
My daughter naps at 8.45-9.30am, 11.45-2.00pm and 4-4.30pm. She settles at 7pm.
Most babies under the age of 4 months need a spell of time awake between 7pm and 7am. By keeping your daughter up for over an hour at the late evening feed, and using the split feed method at this time, she may begin to stretch herself in the night. Many parents do find that this method is effective after it has been in place for several nights.
Begin to wake your daughter at 9.45pm by putting on the lights and removing her covers. To make sure she is fully awake before feeding, take her to a well lit room with plenty of background noise. Offer her a full feed and then keep her awake until 11.15pm. Take her back to her room and change her nappy before offering her a small top up feed in dimmed light. Once you have laid her in her cot, make sure she is well tucked in using a cotton sheet lengthways across her and tucked well in under the mattress. Secure this using two rolled towels tucked down the sides of the cot bars.
If your daughter continues to wake at 3am despite having a slightly larger feed at 10pm/11.15pm, offer her cool boiled water and a cuddle to see if she will settle back for a time. Use the “core method” which is explained in the CLB and CSG books to push her on slowly.
Once your daughter is sleeping a longer stretch she may still need a full feed when she first wakes but then can be given a smaller top up feed at 7am/7.30am to help her through to 10.30/11am.
If your daughter is waking early from her daytime naps due to hunger, or is draining all her bottles and looking for more food, then increase the feeds at 7am, 10.30am and 6.15pm first. This may also help her drop the need for a middle of the night feed but only if she continues to sleep until nearer 7am.