5 mo.growth spurt? Lately looks like she's chewing air & is sleeping horribly at night - like 3 hrs at a time?

Question

Help! My husband and I have got to get some sleep. Lily has acid reflux and has been under control w/ meds since she was about 3 weeks old. And she used to sleep from 7:30-1:30 and then we'd feed her and she'd sleep til 7. For the past 10 days she has been sleeping in 3 hour increments. I'm pretty sure she's teething but maybe something else is going on? How do you people get your babies to sleep from 11-7? Yes, we've tried a focal feeding at 11, gives her a belly ache and wakes her more than helps. She will only sleep in a swing and I've taken the swing off the stand and placed it in the crib vs. having her sleep in a car seat like others have suggested. She is a very long baby and I would think she's ready for her crib - w/ a wedge and angled but she hates it when her legs touch the crib mattress vs.legs being flexed to her belly like the swing. I am exhausted and have researched sleep methods and all sorts of stuff. We've established a very consistent routine but she just doesn't sleep well. Maybe the 6 mo. mark will certainly put the acid reflux symptoms to rest and she'll sleep better?

Answer 1

My little guy is 5 months and breast fed..I swear the last couple of days he has been eating every half hour, even at night,as he sleeps with us, and chewing everything..He spits his pacifier out as though I think it hurts his gums. They are not swollen yet, but your story surely sounded familiar..Good luck..Not much you can do..Teething tablets maybe?

Answer 2

Hi,

I think the most important thing to start with is to get your baby into a good sleep routine.  I had massive problems with getting my 4 month old son to sleep.  He would just lie awake and cry for hours, then when he finally went to sleep he would wake every hour or two hours through the night and cry again!  Talk about pulling our hair out .... we were absolutely desperate for sleep!

It was a baby sleep audio program recommended by a friend that finally saved us. We followed the advice and began by creating a baby sleep routine which included bathtime, dimming of the lights, putting James into his crib, final nappy change and then lullabies. We also made recommended changes to his naps during the day and used some of the other recommended techniques. Within two weeks he was sleeping through the night most nights with just the odd night where he would just wake once!

Definitely start by creating a good baby sleep routine though and you could find that solves most of your baby sleep problems.

Good luck!

If you want to take a look, the audio program is at http://www.babysleepsolution.com

Answer 3

I went through the same thing with my daughter and it is just a matter of time. Try a little rice cereal at her last normal feeding before bed to help keep her tummy full and give her time. Our daughter experienced painful joints in her legs when she had a growth spurt until she was 2 and was in pain and wanted to keep her legs pulled up tight to her tummy to.

Good Luck and I hope I helped