6 month old still waking up at night to eat

DS is on alimentum and has reflux. He has never eaten a ton at a time during the day. So he would always wake up in the middle of the night and eat pretty much a full bottle. I kept with it bc I knew he was hungry. Now hes 6 months, eating solids, drinking more (still not a ton compared to my DD). We started to offer him less during the night and he even will take less than that sometimes. So I know he doesn't "need" the middle of the night bottle anymore.

So how do I cut him off the bottle completely and finally get him to sleep through the night??

I have done the Ferber method with my DD but she was sleeping through the night by 6 weeks but started waking up around 7 months so I did it to get her back to her normal sleeping through the night.

This kid I can count the nights hes slept through on one hand.

Any advice or btdt experiences I would appreciate.

Re: 6 month old still waking up at night to eat

When DS was 6 months old, I was in sleeping hell. We did CIO and it helped tremendously! Every time he gets sick or is teething though he regresses. He is now 19 months old and I usually still hear him cry at least once a night - usually he fusses for 1-5 minutes and then passes back out.

I definitely know CIO does not work for every baby though. My sister is currently dealing with my 9 month old niece who is a terrible sleeper (she did not respond to CIO at all).

Good Luck!

Re: 6 month old still waking up at night to eat

How much is he eating during the day? How many ounces and how much solid food?

I'd say you have 2 options.

Both start with upping calories during the day to ensure he doesn't need to eat at night. So let's say 25+ oz of formula and 3 solid meals. Offer food until he refuses it (ie: don't say, I'm only giving 2 ounces of solids per meal).

Then option 1: CIO. But I wouldn't do Ferber because it takes longer and often upsets the baby more. Just decide you're no longer feeding between 10pm and 6am (or whenever) and let him cry when he wakes up. Chances are he'll cry a few mins and fall back to sleep.

Or option 2: Decrease night bottles, eliminating 1 bottle at a time. This can take a long time. So let's say his first wake up is usually midnight and you offer 6 oz. Tonight only offer 5oz. Then decrease it until he's no longer waking for that bottle. Then move onto eliminating another bottle.

Personally? At 6 months I'd do option 1. I have a 6mo and when she wakes up I let her cry. She's not a great sleeper, but she's getting better. DS sttn at 11w and I never looked back. This time around, it's not as easy so I have to help her get there.

6 month old still waking up at night to eat

Just because he is waking doesn't mean he needs to eat. That being said no matter what I did my DS didn't sleep through the night for many more months!!!

My DS would take a bottle if it was given to him but be fine if we didn't give him one.

Re: 6 month old still waking up at night to eat

My BTDT experience you don't want to hear -- neither of my girls were ready to sleep through the night at that age. With or without food. Sometimes time is the best answer.