Sleeping FAQ: 4-6 months – Night Waking

My 4mths daughter has slept through to 4am quite regularly so should I now give her water if she wakes earlier?

Shall I feed my daughter if she wakes before 4am or use water? Twice, my daughter has gone through from 11.30pm to 5am. Last night though she woke at 3am, I gave water & she settled until 4.40am. Then I gave one breast & she settled until 6.40am, when I gave her the other breast and we got up. She took a little feed with no top up at 6.40/7am & again no top up at 11am but drank 85ml at 1.55pm before her sleep. Before the 2 nights of waking at 5am, she was waking around 4am on a quite regular basis. How shall I deal with the nights as my daughter is small and still catching up with her weight? She also has formed stools now she is on formula and a little trouble with getting them out, she hardly ever pooed before the formula! Does she need more fluids?

My daughter feeds at 7.30am 10mins breast and 30-60mls top up of goats milk formula. 11am 10mins breast and 70-80mls top up, 2.30pm breast and 70-90mls top up,4.15pm boiled water offered, 5pm Breast 10mins, 6.20pm Breast 5mins, 70-100mls top up, 10.30pm 170-180mls formula. She weighs around 12lbs.

She naps at 9-9.45am, 12-2.15pm and 4.45-5pm.

The ”core night”, which is the expression used for when you offer water if the baby wakes before a certain time, usually is implemented if your baby has slept through to that time for at least three or four nights. Preferably, this should be on consecutive nights so you are sure they are able to get to that time.

I suggest that you now offer water before 4am, even if she only settles for another hour, and then offer her one breast when she wakes. Once she consistently sleeps until after 4am you can begin to make 4.30am your time. This is how you gradually push a baby on through the night. Providing the feed at 7am is good, and she does not seem to be losing interest in it, then she does still need this early morning feed [but with a reducing amount of milk]. If you feel that she is becoming uninterested in her 7am feed, or you have to always wake her for it, then she is showing signs of being ready to go longer in the night.

She is still catching up on her weight and I think will need this early feed for a few more weeks. By pushing her to get to at least 4am, using water, but then feeding her when she wakes she should begin to move herself on a little. It is rather dispiriting when you think you have cracked it but, often, babies will do this rather random waking for another couple of weeks before they are fully moving towards a later wake-up time.

Obviously, once formula is introduced into the diet a baby will poo in a slightly different manner. Breast milk is tailor made for baby so there are very little waste products. With formula there is a little more waste product and it is usual for the stools to be more formed than the rather explosive breast milk poos. You may be aware when your daughter is having a poo but, providing she is not in obvious discomfort or distress either before or whilst performing, she is fine. A little grunting and groaning is quite normal! As a baby spends a lot of time lying down it can be a small problem to actually eliminate a poo- holding the baby upright can help. So can massaging their tummy in a clock wise direction. Another trick, which they usually love, is to “cycle” their legs whilst they are laying down- this can help the intestines and colon to get moving. It is often used as part of a Baby Yoga routine.

As you are already giving her water daily she should be alright. As it is not hot at present and she is not fully formula fed then she should not need too much extra fluid. She may still only poo every other day which is quite normal, as is a poo every day. All babies are different. As her digestive system matures and she gets more used to the formula this problem should pass. If you want to offer her more fluids in the day then do so but make sure it does not knock out her appetite for feeds. This is why mid afternoon is the best time to offer some cool boiled water.