4 month check up

Ok so I am new to the June club.

My baby was born June 12 at 11:51pm. He was 6lbs 1 oz and 18.6 inches in length. We had a speedy deliver, he was born 30 minutes after getting to the hospital by a nurse. Doctor just didn't get there in time! No time for drugs or anything! Ouch!

He had his 4 month check up last week. He is know 12lb 10 oz, 23.5 in length and in the 3rd percentile for all measurements. He has been rolling over now for a couple weeks. I am trying to decide what to do at night. Every thing I read says that they should be able to sleep through the night now and not be fed. I am BFing him, if I go all night then it is quite painful. He has slept through the night many times, but sometimes I want him to just wake up in the middle of the night so I won't hurt so bad. Any of you have this problem? 

Is it different because he is a boy?  My 4 month old weights 12 lbs and 24 inches and is in about the 30% for both.  She rolls over and wakes up about 2x at night to feed.

 I say either wake him up to eat or pump. I no longer breast feed but I give her a bottle at 2 am and 6 am

 I think different people define 'sleeping through the night' in different ways, and that can cause a lot of angst for a mom of a new baby.  For me, I define sleeping through the nights as 12 hours of sleep with no wakeups.  I don't think a 4 month old baby is physically capable of this yet.  I find that many moms who brag that their child sleeps through actually only means from 11pm until 5am or something like that. My 4 month old is breastfed and normally goes somewhere between 6 and 9 hours between feedings at night.  Since he goes to bed at 7pm, this still means I get up in the night with him - usually once in the middle of the night, then once for another feeding at dawn, after which we go back to sleep till 7 or so when my other kids wake up.  I think this is pretty normal for this age.  If you're baby's sleeping more than this, lucky you!  As for the engorgement - it should go away after a couple of days - you could always hand express a little of it to ease the pain so you can go back to sleep.  Either that or make yourself go an hour longer each night before waking him up so your body can slowly learn not to produce as much milk at night.  Good luck, and welcome to the Born in June club!

Mochagirl:

Since he goes to bed at 7pm, this still means I get up in the night with him - usually once in the middle of the night, then once for another feeding at dawn, after which we go back to sleep till 7 or so when my other kids wake up. 

That is exactly our schedule Mocha! It's great too! I put Kayla in bed with me to nurse so I always get lots of sleep.

Welcome to our club. Sounds like you have a little guy!

Mochagirl, you are right, everybody defines sleep through the night differently. I put him to bed between 8:30-9:00 and he usually gets up between 3-4am. My alarm clock goes off at 5:30 to get ready for work. I would love if he would sleep until at least then! But I count my blessings he only gets up once to eat.

Sugar, I have always been scared to put him in bed with me. What if he rolls over and then gets smuthered by the covers? How do you prevent that? Yes he is a little guy. Both my boys are in the 3 - 5%. You would think I never fed him! LOL!

Sugar*:

Mochagirl:

Since he goes to bed at 7pm, this still means I get up in the night with him - usually once in the middle of the night, then once for another feeding at dawn, after which we go back to sleep till 7 or so when my other kids wake up. 

 

That is exactly our schedule Mocha! It's great too! I put Kayla in bed with me to nurse so I always get lots of sleep.

 

I bring Ryan into bed with me at dawn too, and we fall asleep together while he nurses.  It's sooooo much easier with only one baby - I could never do things like that when my twins were babies!

makelifeeasier:

I put him to bed between 8:30-9:00 and he usually gets up between 3-4am. My alarm clock goes off at 5:30 to get ready for work.

Just curious - does he stay in bed after you get up for work?  The only reason I'm asking is that if you're only putting him down from 9pm until 5:30am, that's not enough sleep for him.  I think it's wise to always aim for a 12 hour block of night sleep for a baby (I still aim for that amount or slightly less with my 3.5 year olds too!).  A baby who isn't well rested sleeps very poorly - sleep begets sleep, even though it may seem counterintuitive!

Oh, and as for how to sleep in a bed safely with a baby....I used to freak out about how to do it safely too when my twins were babies.  With Ryan, I find the safest way is in the crook of my arm, either on top of the sheets, or with the sheets pulled down safely below him.  The mother instinct will never let you roll on top of your child - but it is wise to never attempt to co-sleep if you have any drugs or alcohol in your system because that can make you sleep too soundly to be safe.  All that being said, I'm not comfortable enough with co-sleeping to do it all night - I find I never fall completely asleep just sort of doze, because I am aware that I have a precious little guy in my arms.  That's why I only bring him into bed with me at dawn.  I do know lots and lots of moms, though, who co-sleep all night every night, and they swear by it!

Mochagirl:

I find I never fall completely asleep just sort of doze, because I am aware that I have a precious little guy in my arms.

That happens to me. Sometimes I put Kayla back in her bed so I can relax better.

For his first month, I slept on the sofa with him in my arms. We both slept better since he would go 3-4 hours at night. Thought that was pretty good for a bf baby. Now he falls asleep about 7pm and he either wakes up or I wake him up between 8:30 -9 to eat. He goes in his crib, then when he wakes up between 3-4am, I put him in his swing until 6:30am. I know that is probably a bad habit, but I just want to make sure he is going to stay asleep until then. We have to be out the door to go to daycare and work by 7am. It throws my nursing schedule off if he wakes up before 6:30am. I am not too concerned about rolling over him. But now that he rolls, I would just be scared he would rollover in bed and get stuck between a sheet or a pillow. Although you are probably both right, I probably wouldn't completely fall asleep if he were in my arms. And honestly since I had my first child, I don't drink much or at all anymore. I just can't imagine having a hangover and having to take care of a child. I just don't know how people do that. Not worth it in my opinion.

 I know a lot of people believe in the 'dream feed' - where you wake your baby up before you go to bed to nurse in hopes he'll sleep longer.  That sounds like what you're doing.  It's never worked for me.  I find he wakes up at the same time regardless of whether or not he nurses before I go to bed.  In fact, all of his longest sleeps (7pm-4am) happened once I completely dropped that habit.  It might be worth a try for you - if he doesn't wake up on his own by 9pm, just let him sleep - he might surprise you and still sleep just as much or more!

Oh, and as for the swing thing - if that works for you, I say go for it with no guilt!  I know many twins moms whose twins slept nowhere but in their swings for the first year of their lives! 

You know you are probably right. When I wake him up to fed him, he doesn't eat very well. If he wakes up on his own, then he will eat well before I put him back down. I guess maybe I am doing it more for me so I don't hurt so much if he goes for a longer stretch at night. I will have to try just letting him sleep and see what happens.