When and how did your baby start sleeping through the night?

Question

I'd like to know some things that helped your baby sleep through the night. When and how did you do this? My daughter is 2 months so I'm not able to feed her rice cereal or anything.

Answer 1

At two months your baby shouldn't sleep through the night yet- she still needs nutrition in the night too. Usually babies don't start sleeping through the night until they double their birth weight. My daughter started sleeping through the night at about 3 months, even though she hadn't doubled yet. She did have some rough periods every couple of months though. Since 7 months she has been on a solid bed time routine and has no problem going down for bed and staying asleep (she is 15 months now). She had to cry herself to sleep at 7 months because this was the point where she realized that life went on even though she was sleeping and she didn't want to miss out. If I went in to comfort her she would just cry all the more. She got over it in a few days and now sleeps wonderfully.

Answer 2

The baby definition of sleeping through the night and the adult definition of sleeping through the night are two totally different things. Sleeping through the night for a little one is about 6 hours. You baby is still at the age where she needs to eat when she wants to eat so she'll have plenty of fluids and nutrients. I suggest that you start working her into a routine. About the same time every night start calming the house down if possible. Turn off some lights, turn down the TV, eliminate as many distractions as possible. Have some quiet cuddly time together (about 15 minutes), followed by a nice warm bath, a bottle or breast milk, and then put her into her bed and if she has a mobile those work great! Now that will set the stage. When she wakes up at night make it as uneventful for her as possible. Walk into her room, feed her, change her if you absolutely have to, and then walk out. My pediatrician said it was going from !!Mommy!! to -mother-. Be mommy (funny loving goofy silly) during the day and then at bedtime be mother. Mother will take care of baby but show no emotion or silliness. When you're playing mother avoid eye contact with her and definetly take care of her but let that be it It took about two weeks of this with my daughter but after that she had the schedule down and was out like a light before the first round of the mobile music. She was about 3 months when she was sleeping a solid 6-7 hours a night. Hope this helps a little and good luck!

Answer 3

I have a 2 month old as well and 2 months old is too young to expect your baby to sleep through the night. I got this advice from my pediatrician: do nothing for the first 3 months, they're too young. At around 4 mos. you can begin sleep training (cry it out) if you want but it's a personal decision. And at that age, through the night will equal a 5-7 hour stretch (some people are very lucky if their child sleeps longer), so don't expect too much too soon.

I give my soon a really good feeding before bed and I swaddle him tight and I've noticed that he sleeps an hour longer when I do this!

Answer 4

She 3 month just started "sleeping through the night" which is sleeping 5-8hrs straight for her. She was about 6 weeks the first time she slept 5hrs in a row but she wasn't consistent till about 1 week ago. Time was the only thing. We do a bedtime routine which I think helps her a bit. I mean she may not even keep this up but were hoping. I dont feed her rice cereal or any soilds. not till shes 6 months.

Answer 5

With my first, I tried "Ferberizing" (cry it out) her around 4 months, but couldn't handle it. Then at 6 months I couldn't take the middle of the night feedings anymore and stuck with the cry it out method - it was awful for about 3 days, but then she started sleeping 12 hours a night.

With my second, she just started sleeping through the night on her own around 5 months, 12-13 hours a night. I was prepared to let her cry it out around 6 months but she beat me to it - I don't know how or why but I'm very thankful!

If you're looking for advice on how to get yours to sleep more, I'd say do nothing until she's at least 4 months old - then she physiologically can go a while without food. Get a simple bedtime routine down - bath, book, cuddle, song, etc. - put her in her crib drowsy but awake, and let her fuss a bit. If she gets up in the night, start making the bottles or breast time less by an ounce or so (or a few minutes) each night.

Answer 6

Hi, my son is 5 months and still not sleeping through the night.

i have every book in the world.. tried every single suggestion, he's just stubborn.. So i just stopped worrying about it. He is obviously waking up for something, if nothing would help him sleep. So i feed him or give him a pacifier when he wakes, and he's back to sleep within seconds.

At some point, he'll start sleeping 8-3am for a couple of weeks, But then it's every 3 - 4 hours again.. 3 times in his whole life he's made it from 7 to 5 am ! Then he started waking up 30 min's after being put down ... Now he's teething, and wakes every 4 hours for a bottle.. i think if teething wasn't bothering him he could sleep through the feeds as well.. And the times that he did sleep longer, we didn't do anything differnt with him at all whatsoever.. So it's true when they say that a baby will sleep through when he's ready..

Only thing i know that has helped is a regular bedtime routine.. Roughly same time, exactly same way.. Also having enough to eat during the day will affect the times he'll get up at night, as well as naps.

A baby also needs to have healthy sleep associations and be able to self soothe before sleeping through the night.. Everyone wakes up, adults and babies who can self soothe put themselves back to sleep, those who can't. cry out for their mother's breast!

So i wish you luck!.. Hopefully your baby will be easier than mine!


** i don't believe in the cry-it-out method.. i'd rather let my son sleep when he's ready, but thats just me. His night wakings don't bother me anymore, so i just "roll" with it =] ***

Answer 7

My daughter is now almost 15 months old and she still does not sleep through the night. Although somethings that make her sleep for longer periods of time are....Johnson's Lavender baby wash and lotion. I also spray her room with lavender spray. I started putting rice cereal in her bottles when she was about 3 months old. The doctors say not to, but I have been told by so many mothers it was fine. My daughter did just fine and it helped her sleep. Also try playing lullabys in her room, or nature sounds. Hope I was a help.

Answer 8

You need need need a routine!

Bath. Story. Bed.

Aromatherapy works wonders, as well. I use to use the baby magic night time lotion. It's a nice creamy lotion, and it smells AWESOME.

Also, if your daughter wakes up at night to feed or get a diaper change, try not to make eye contact, turn on a bright light or smile at her. I know it sounds silly, but I read this in a Child Magazine. If you make nighttime boring, they will be less likely to wake.

I have two children ages 2 and 4. My son Billy was about 6 weeks before he slept through the night on his own, and it scared the daylights out of me because I thought something happened to him! Occassionally he would wake during the night, but it eventually stopped.

My youngest son Carter, he was a little older than 3 weeks before I noticed him missing a night time feeding.

They say you shouldn't feed cereal to babies, but I did with both of my kids. Not a full bowl or anything, just a little taste of it. And they turned out just fine.

Don't worry, soon enough you will be able to enjoy a full night's rest.

Hang in there!!!

Answer 9

I started when my daughter was just born to feed her every 3 hours during the day, feed her her last bottle at 9-10pm and put her to bed in her crib. She never slept in our bed or in a bassinette and it has worked out great. Even when she was a few days old she would sleep 5-6 hours at a time, and right when she turned 3 mos old she started sleeping through the night. We usually don't put cereal in her bottles but will sometimes, and when we don't she will still sleep through the night. She knows her bed now and can also put herself to sleep :) Be patient and she will get there!

Answer 10

On average, the magic number is 13 pounds.
Usually when they weigh that and are stimulated enough during the day to tire them out and they have a routine at night then they are good anywhere for 6-10 hrs depending on the baby.
My son started sleeping through most nights around 7 weeks but of course some nights he is up to feed but I noticed that happens if I fed him too early which sometimes isn't a choice-he wants to eat at 7 or 8pm. Try to make the last feeding around 9-10pm (or 11pm if they only sleep the minimum)