Middle of the night bottle?

DD is 5 months and still wakes once a night for a bottle, around 3am. She then goes back down for a few hours, lately she's been sleeping till 7/7:30am, which is great.

How will I be able to tell when she no longer needs that bottle and is just taking it out of habit? I know with nursing, she would only nurse for a few minutes if it was for comfort but from what I know (and saw with DS) a bottle is so easy that they will take it if offered whether or not they actually need it.

DS self weaned off the night bottle around 5/6 months but I just don't see DD doing that on her own...

Re: Middle of the night bottle?

LB, have you read the 12 hours by 12 weeks book? It has a new name and I have the book at home, but am blanking on the name.

Basically it suggests that you gradually decrease the amount in the nighttime bottle until eventually they don't get any and sleep through it.

Something like say she's getting 3 ounces right now. Tomorrow night you give her only 2.5 ounces, same for the night or two after. Then you only give her 2 ounces for a couple of nights. Then 1.5, etc.

If for some reason she takes less than what you offer her, the next night you offer how much she drank. So say you are offering 2 ounces, but she only drinks 1, the next night you only offer 1 ounce and then decrease to .5 ounces after a few nights.

Makes sense?

Re: Middle of the night bottle?

I'm not sure the answer to your question, but at DS's 6 month appointment, the doctor asked us if he was sleeping through the night. I said no, he was still waking for a bottle. The doctor told me that he was waking out of routine and to stop giving him that bottle, he doesn't need it.

So, I'm not sure if that applies to only a 6 month old, or if it was possible to do at 5 months.

Is she drinking the entire bottle at 3 am? If she's sucking it down, i'd say she needs it. If she is sucking it for about 2 ounces, then falling to sleep, i'd say she is just waking out of habit.

Re: Middle of the night bottle?

Thanks Yesi, I'll check it out! That method makes sense.

Re: Middle of the night bottle?

What time does he go to bed? I asked my ped the same question at DS's 5 month visit. DS would go to bed at 8:00 and some days he would sleep until 6:00 - 6:30 AM and other nights he would be up any where from 3:30 - 4:30 red-faced and screaming for a bottle! He would always take the whole bottle and go right back to bed.

My ped said that because he was sleeping for 7.5 - 8.5 hours before waking for a bottle, that I should give him the bottle in the middle of the night.

Now at 6 months, he rarely gets up in the middle of th night and its usually because he's teething.

Re: Middle of the night bottle?

She goes down around 6/6:30pm, so she is sleeping for at least 8+ hours before waking usually.

Re: Middle of the night bottle?

Posted by headoverheels


I was thinking by 6 months she wouldn't need it, of course I am hoping she gives it up before then

Re: Middle of the night bottle?

DS is 4.5 months old and DS was waking for a bottle at 330 and DOWNING 6oz. I told me ped and she said its out of habit he doesnt need it. So 2 days he woke up for his bottle and I refused to give it to him....ever since then he hasnt woken up for a bottle and goes from 930pm-730-8am without a bottle.

Re: Middle of the night bottle?

DS is 9 months old and still wakes up some nights for a bottle. I tried to decrease the amt and that didn't work. He would just wake up an hour or two later screaming. He was obviously hungry. Now he gets up at least 6-8 hours after he goes to sleep. He only does it once or twice a week now...But he is also teething.

Re: Middle of the night bottle?

jack is strange, sometimes he wakes for a bottle at 4am (like last night), other nights be doesnt wake until 630-7

Re: Middle of the night bottle?

ETA: Sydnie always went to bed at 7.

As you know I gave Sydnie that 4-5 a.m. bottle until she was over a year old. I felt like she needed it. Once she went to 6 a.m. a few times I stopped giving in. On the other hand, I KNOW she would've survived me stopping it long before 14 months

Most people would stop at Izzie's age but I'd give it to her just a little longer, till she's on more solids, maybe 7-8 months.

Message edited 8/17/2010 1:44:59 PM.

Re: Middle of the night bottle?

Re: Middle of the night bottle?

oops

Message edited 8/17/2010 1:44:38 PM.

Re: Middle of the night bottle?

I struggled with this (and posted about it) when DS was almost 4 months and still waking around 3AM for a bottle. Ped said he didn't need it but then a brilliant poster on here reminded me that there is no way the ped or anyone else could tell me for sure that DS wasn't hungry so I kept giving it to him and he sucked down the entire thing. But then one day at 4 months, he stopped waking. He decided he didn't need it.

If your DC goes down at 6-6:30PM, I'd say she needs it. She's going about 8 hours without it and she's still little. Babies stop drinking when they've had enough.