8 month old baby and sleep.
By djc20042003
@djc20042003 (16)
United States
October 6, 2009 7:10am CST
I have a 8 month old baby that still wakes up to eat. I think he does it out of habit.(he is a breastfed baby) We co sleep, so he will start moving and rubbing his eyes. And if I don't wake up fast enough he will start crying...he keeps his eyes close the whole time. And he fights having a paci. Help please.
2 people like this
2 responses
@owlwings (43910)
• Cambridge, England
6 Oct 09
Most very young babies sleep (or appear to sleep) most of the time when they are not hungry or otherwise uncomfortable. By eight months, though, a baby should be taking an intense interest in the world and should be looking around, making noises, learning to use their hands to touch things and responding to adults with smiles and recognition. They still need food regularly and probably won't sleep through the night still.
Feeding and nappy/diaper changing should only take you about half an hour or so. It doesn't have to be a big issue or to disturb your sleep too much. Most calm parents cope with it easily and can go back to sleep after with no problems. Don't forget that if you feel anxious, stressed or annoyed, your baby will be also. If you are calm, your baby is more likely to be, too, and will easily settle off after a night feed.
1 person likes this
@owlwings (43910)
• Cambridge, England
6 Oct 09
Some children take to pacifiers (or their thumbs) and others don't. I used to work in a music shop and I found it amusing that when a child came in saying that they wanted to play the clarinet, oboe or similar instrument, their parents very often said (when I asked) that they used to suck their thumb.
If you train your child to use a pacifier when they don't want to (or, conversely, stop them from sucking their thumb when they want to), they will probably always associate having something in their mouth with pleasure. This can be one of the reasons that people play the clarinet, like chocolate or become smokers. If your child resits a pacifier, don't force it on him!
2 people like this
@MysticTomatoes (1053)
• United States
6 Oct 09
Let him CIO. I'm not going to jump up and rush to my DD's side when she was that age and every time she cried. She got a bottle before bed and she fell asleep. By that time, they can sleep through the night and should sleep through the night. Put him in his own bed and let him cry it out if he wakes up at night.
