Baby's Night Wakings

OK, new parent's don't get a lot of uninterrupted sleep. That's to be expected for the first few months. But what about when Baby is 3 or 4 ... or 8 or 9 months old and is still waking in the middle of the night? Surely this 15 or 20 lb. little guy can hold enough in his tummy to make it until morning! So what went wrong? And more importantly, how can you fix it?

Why not try The Baby Whisperer Solves All Your Problems' Wake-to-Sleep method (p 191)? If Baby habitually wakes at the same hour during the night he may need to reset his internal clock. Try setting your alarm for one hour before Baby normally wakes. Then go into his room and rouse him slightly. Don't get him out of bed or anything, just rub his tummy a little. You don't need to completely wake him. One night of this is usually enough to break the nighttime wake-up pattern, but Ms. Hogg suggests trying it three nights in a row if once doesn't do the trick.

One Caveat: If Baby is used to getting food during the middle of the night, it might help to reduce his intake gradually while adding calories during the day before attempting the Wake-to-Sleep method. Don't expect a baby under 10 lbs. or 2 months to not wake up at night. Their tummies are just too little.

I really like this method as it puts parents in control of the situation. Rather than just lying in bed waiting for Baby to demand attention, you're teaching him what's expected during the night. Sleep is a learned skill. It will take action on the parent's part to teach it. This is a counter-intuitive but wonderful way to do that for habitual night waking.

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The Baby Whisperer Solves All Your Problems