Sleeping Through the Night - Bloomsburg,PA

Sounds like he's been through a lot. His body is probably still healing and adjusting. I have read that cereal doesn't fill babies up more than milk or formula. Formula has more calories and such, so I would tend to agree with some of the women that 8oz might work better to fill him. (My neice is a year and still doesn't sleep through the night) He might like the comfort of having you close more than he is hungry. Try to give it to him a little longer, it is only temporary. I realize that you're busy and tired, but the time will come when he sleeps through the night and you'll miss the quiet, peaceful times that the night feedings give you.

My daughter hasn't had the same health issues as your son. However, she is 8 months old and takes four 8oz. bottles and 3 solid meals a day. If your son seems to be eating too frequently, it may be that he isn't getting a full feeding....try spreading out his daytime feedings to every 4 hours (it will be tough at first). It took us a LONG time to get into our current routine, but it is perfect now. She has bottles at 6am, 10am, 2pm, and 6pm, and solids at 8am, 12pm, 5pm. She naps twice a day and goes to bed at 6:30. I read somewhere that at this age, they should be averaging 28-32oz. a day divided into 4 feedings and 2-3 solid meals (you didn't mention if you were giving him solids). It may take a while for your son to get up to the 7-8oz. feedings because of his health issues. I also found that the better my daughter sleeps during the day for her naps, and the earlier I put her to bed, the more likely she will sleep through the night.
Good luck,
J. W

Hi A.,
I would check with his doctor(s) to see if an appetite surge is normal after surgery--after all-his little body is probably still healing. It's only been 2 weeks!

It seems like he is making up for lost time and is also healing. You could try to squeeze in extra food during the day so maybe he won't need it at night, but I'd call his doctor and explain his eating pattern and see if it is something they would expect.

I know in the U.S. there is pressure and an earlr expectation of the myth of "sleeping thru the night". Some easy babies do , indeed fall into that pattern. There are at least 2 dozen books out there that confirm that you are not alone, though.
Some by Dr. Sears have done studies in sleep labs and confirm some babies don;t do this for awhile.
Please consider co-sleeping, esp since you have a baby already stressed by his heart.
gotta go!

Ya have to wake him up when he falls asleep to get him full enough for the night. Is he eating food yet? That might be the problem.. he might just need food. Also if you eat right b4 bed you get hungrier during the night. right? I know I do. Maybe you should feed him an hour or more b4 bed with the cereal. I'm just throwing out suggestions. I've never had this prob. Goodluck!

Hi, I don't know anything about holes in the heart. My son has no such issues. However, he did have big problems sleeping through the night. Up until he was 5 months he was waking about every 3 hours to eat (really more like snack). At 5 1/2 months I was so exhausted we tried the cry it out method. It worked for us & by worked I mean he only woke once during the night b/c he really was hungry. At about 7 months we started giving him yogurt & cereal at 7:30pm, followed by his bottle at 8pm and bed time around 8:30pm. He would then sleep until about 6:30am. Now (he's almost a year) he sleeps from about 8:30pm til about 7:30am w/or without the yogurt snack. (He still gets his bottle). the only time he wakes during the night now is when he is teething.
My suggestions to you would be to give him more solid food during the day. He should be eating 3 solid meals & one or 2 solid snacks at this point. If he is not eating that much, then he may actually be hungry at night. Also, I wouldn't rush this. It is possible that his body is still working hard to recover from the surgery, he may need more calories than he can get during the day right now. Also, you should talk to his doctor & see if they have any recommendations. Maybe he's not getting enough protein or carbs or something. They might be able to tell you what he should be consuming.
Good luck

My son was born with major heart defects and had to had his first heart surgery when he was 8 days old and the second when he was 12 and a 1/2 months old. The early days were more difficult as far as feeding. We had to have him on a continuous feeding pump through the night to help him gain the weight. He had to have a feeding tube (NG Tube) it was placed up his nose and down into his stomach. Also, the feedings during the day whatever he did not finish in the bottle I had to feed thru the tube. I don't know that it is the case that he would need that, however, we did mix his formula to a higher calorie content so that what he did drink gave him extra calories that he needed since his heart and lungs were working so hard and burning thru all the calories. Ask your doctor about the higher calorie formula and maybe getting with a dietitian to help. We had one that really helped so that my son gained the weight that he needed to gain. He is now 21 months old and doing great. I could not ask for any bigger blessing than his amazing recovery. Please if you need any other help or want to get together send me a message and I would love to get together.

Up the bottles to 8oz. He should be getting more than 4oz.

I say feed him. give him a couple of months before you make changes. then you can start working on sleeping through the nigh. I can imagine how you feel, my daughter was underweight adn I was feeding around hte clock until 18 months. I think he needs a little more food/attention right now and another few weeks is survivable. Good luck.

Hi A.! I really don't know what kids with major health issues go through, but at 8 months old I know that all three of my girls and the babies I have taken care of since then all were taking more than 4oz of formula at a time...with or without eating. Try offering him more formula first, before giving him any ceral at bed time. Maybe if he filled up with formula (which I think is better than ceral) at bed time he would sleep more. Also at 8 months old he has developed the habit of waking in the night which is something else entirely. Watch his naps durring the day (unless his meds make him sleep that is) and get him on a schedule that has him up early and to bed around 8 or 9pm. We put our girls to bed at 9 from the beginning because my hubby never got home before 6pm. Good luck and best wishes

My son also had open heart surgery, at 6 months old, to repair a hole in his heart (AP window). And just like your son, prior to surgery he needed to eat constantly to account for all of the calories his body was burning working to pump the blood through his heart. This did continue even after his surgery and all of his doctors advised us to continue to feed him on demand, even if that meant during the night. He needed to catch up on weight gain, and his body still needed the extra calories while healing. It only took a few months for the night feedings to decrease and by the time he was one, we could count on a solid night's sleep. So I would advise to just be patient. Of course it won't hurt to take the advise of others to try more solid foods during the day and before bed, but remember that because of his ordeal his needs are still a little different than the average 8-month old right now. If you are still concerned, I would discuss his feedings with your doctors.
Good luck to you and I'm glad his heart is well now! :)
(BTW my son is now three...still sleeping through the night, so there's hope in sight!)

I agree with Amy's post, if you put a little cereal in his bottle it helps to fill his tummy. You just need to make the nipple hole a tad bigger. I know this is controversial though...he is old enough...

Have you tried mixing infant cereal with his bottle? A friend of mine did that for her son and it worked after about the first week. good luck!