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Hi, I am very concerned about my 7 month old baby. He just started day care about 2 weeks ago, and since then he hasn't been sleeping all night (he used to go to bed from 9pm until 7 am) and now he wakes up about 3 to 4 times in the night. He started to eat solids about a month and a half ago, he is in number 2 food now, but it seems that ge is hungrier everytime and he wakes up several times in the night to eat. He has been very fuzzy. Does it sounds like I need to change his diet? give him more food during the day? If so, how do I do it if Im trying to feed him homemade food?. and finally he just started crawling.......Does he needs to move from number 2 foods to number 3?. Im being miserable everynight for the past three weeks. I have to wake up at 5 am to get ready for work and I usually go to bed at 11pm. Please give me your advice! I need to get some sleep. ”

Asked by superdupermom on 24th January 2008

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Comments so Far...

I'm with Lee--your little one has had some big changes going on! Plus with all the extra action and excitement in daycare, new, very physical activity--he might just need some more calories during the day. Try bigger portions--like Lylah recommends-of some comfort foods you know are familiar and soothing to him. He's still adjusting to the new things in his world, so adding extra textures/foods might just be overstimulating. And of course, stuff him full just before bed : ).
At night, try moving his crib close enough so that you can pat him when he cries to reassure him, but try not to pick him up (ha, easier said than done). But, most importantly, you have to choose a course that you are comfortable with and can live with! No matter what you choose (pick up/rock/cry it out), it has to work for you and keep you healthy, happy and sane. He'll be fine in the end no matter which route you go.

Flag as inappropriate Posted by OliveMartini on 25th January 2008
Oh, gosh. I feel for you. It's been a while, but I do remember what it's like to be desperate for some sleep! My younger daughter had major sleep issues (they do resolve themselves!). It's so frustrating to not be able to communicate with your son. But as others have said, it's likely due to a developmental stage and not so much about a specific food or problem. You may want to consult one of the sleep books like Elizabeth Pantley's No Cry Sleep Solution. Good luck!

Flag as inappropriate Posted by Amy@UWM on 25th January 2008
I had a really tough time with my baby at around that same age as your son. Ugh. It's awful. Yes, I do think you have to gradually get him used to soothing himself back to sleep. We fell into the trap of rocking our baby to sleep and it took forever and then she'd keep waking up. In the end we had to do the 'cry it out' thing to get her to sleep and things improved A LOT and now she sleeps really well. But it's a trial and error thing and you have to do what's right for you.

As for his food: I have a suggestion to make. Because of his new schedule, and he is growing, you may want to increase his feedings from the time you get him home after work until you put him down to bed. Remember he cannot eat big meals at one time, so in order to get what he needs he might need several small feedings. That way you will also feel more confident that he's going to bed with a full tummy and then he's probably not waking in the night due to hunger.

Good luck!

Flag as inappropriate Posted by Diane on 24th January 2008
Thank you for your responses. It is true, my baby is going through so many changes right now, that it is very hard to point out the factors that are causing his lack of sleep. I just call his day care and they told me that he naps during noon for about two hours (like always) and they give him two servings of solid food and 6-8oz bottles. I got into the gerber food website and It seems that he needs to move to stage 3 or chunkier foods (bigger portions). So Im going to try to give him those to see what happens. I also spoke with the pediatrician and he on the other side told me that it has nothing to do with his food or his teething, but a way of calling my attention (I have a one bedroom appartment and my baby sleeps on his crib by my side) he knows that I am there and if he wakes up I problably will give him milk. He told me that I should let him cry until he falls sleep again is that ok????. He used to soothe himself but my husband while working from home got him use to be rocked in order to sleep. Can I kick off his habit? and how?
I do think that his crib is too small for his size now, we are moving to another place soon where he will have his own bedroom and a bigger crib, but that will happen in a month from now. Thank you again

Flag as inappropriate Posted by superdupermom on 24th January 2008
Lee makesa a good point -- any big life-change will take an adjustment period, and it sounds like your little one is having several life changes at once! Around 7 months old, your child may also be teething , which would wake him up at night, or just outgrowing his current sleep area (if he's still in a basinette or small crib, it may be time for a bigger one).

Try to find out how often and for how long he naps at daycare, and how much he's eating there... if he's sleeping too much during the day or eating too little while at care, you might be paying for it at home.

Another thought: With all of the new foods he's been eating, is there any possibilty of a food allergy? That could definitely affect his sleep. I can't quite picture the differences between "stage 2 and "stage 3" foods (texture? size of chunks? or ingredients?) but going back to a few tried-and-true foods for a while (simple things, like ceral, mashed fruit and veggies) might be helpful -- as long as your baby is taking breastmilk or formula, you don't really have to worry about the variety of solid food he is eating at this stage.

Finally... good luck to you! It's hard to function on little sleep, and things will get better (even though it seems pretty awful right now)!

Flag as inappropriate Posted by Lylah M. Alphonse on 24th January 2008
I think that any time a baby has a big life-change, like starting daycare, it takes an adjustment period. All the additional stuff -- having added solids, starting to crawl -- add to that.

My advice is to ask your daycare providers. What kind of schedule is he on during the day? How many naps? When? Could their schedule just not be jiving with yours? They SHOULD be providing you that info, but if they're not, you need to ask them for it. I always learned a lot from my son's daycare teachers. Even though they did things a bit differently than I did (ex., they put him down to nap at 9am where I'd put him down at 10), we all adjusted in the end... good luck, I hope you get some sleep!

Flag as inappropriate Posted by Lee on 24th January 2008