Teaching your baby to STTN?
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Topic: Teaching your baby to STTN?
Posted By: Mrs_B
Subject: Teaching your baby to STTN?
Date Posted: 05 November 2009 at 3:41pm
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At what age do you think a baby "should" be able to sleep through the night 10pm-7am? Do you think some babies need to be taught how to do it? either through CIO, CC or some other method or are you of the opinion they will do it when they are ready?
Corban still wakes twice (on a good night!) overnight to be fed, once between 10-11pm and again around 2am. He goes to bed between 6.30-7pm can take up to 2hrs to settle and then is awake for the day at 6am. We tried CC for 6 nights to try and get him to drop the 2am feed with no success. Plunket suggested limiting the time he feeds, but he packs a hissy fit if I take him off before he is done!  He BF 4hrly and has 2x solid meals during the day.
I am so damn tired.  -------------  
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Replies:
Posted By: Bizzy
Date Posted: 05 November 2009 at 4:16pm
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ah should is hard with babies. I wouldnt expect a 5 mth old to sleep all night, i might think an 8 mth old could but wouldnt be surprised if not. by 12 mths most kids seem to sleep thru but i know thats not with all kids either tho. I dont like CC or CIO, especially not in the wee small hours when it can be cold and dark and quiet...(scary for some adults let alone kids). ------------- http://www.myfitnesspal.com/weight-loss-ticker"> 
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Posted By: Flutterby
Date Posted: 05 November 2009 at 4:39pm
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DS is 7mths old and I am lucky if he wakes only twice a night. Normally it is at least three times. And I ditto you on being so tired.
Sometimes I can get away with getting DS back to sleep with his dummy but most of the time he wants to feed to sleep. Sometimes he actually seems really hungry, and I try to take him off like you do and he also starts getting upset. Every evening I say that I am going to try something different but when the time comes I am just so tired and just want to get him back to sleep as quickly as I can, so use the methods that work. But I am going to try leaving a light on for him tonight as he has learnt to put his dummy back in his mouth by himself, so I figured if I leave a dim light on then he will do that and I won't have to get up to him. Other then that I am just going to leave it up to him. He has done it a few times (slept through) so I know he can do it. When you think about it though, even adults wake up during the night for a drink or loo stop so why should we expect our babies to sleep through every night. ------------- http://lilypie.com">  http://lilypie.com">
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Posted By: AandCsmum
Date Posted: 05 November 2009 at 4:45pm
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Pfft.....to plunket.....
Each baby is so different. My trick is to have a sleep in on the weekend if your DH is kind. I don't make mine get up during the week cause he's the breadwinner. Also going to bed earlier definitely does help. ------------- Kel http://lilypie.com"> 
A = 01.02.04 & C = 16.01.09 & G = 30.03.12 |
Posted By: Tastic
Date Posted: 05 November 2009 at 5:04pm
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ummm not to scare you but
my 4 year old has only started sleeping those hour about 5-6 months ago :/ my almost 3 year old about the same but occasionally will still wake :/ |
Posted By: AandCsmum
Date Posted: 05 November 2009 at 5:12pm
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Oh yeah LOL Tastic....same with my 5yo LMAO who used to "STTN" at 8 weeks old..... ------------- Kel http://lilypie.com">
A = 01.02.04 & C = 16.01.09 & G = 30.03.12 |
Posted By: kebakat
Date Posted: 05 November 2009 at 5:32pm
| Daniel didn't reguarly sleep through the night at that age either. Happened on his own a couple of months later I think. Kinda hard to remember exactly now |
Posted By: Mrs_B
Date Posted: 05 November 2009 at 6:28pm
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Okay so there is a chance it will still happen without me having to do anything as such. I was worried that it was going to be a habit I was going to have to break at some stage and thought it would be easier to do it now than in 6mths time??
and wow what's with all the lurkers that read and never post! lol -------------
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Posted By: HippyMama
Date Posted: 05 November 2009 at 7:14pm
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If a 5 month old baby wakes it's generally for a good reason and not out of habit. Their stomachs are still only the size of their tiny little fists so it would still stand to reason that they will be hungry more often than us adults.
There is research to show that CIO especially raises the levels of the stress hormone cortisol in little babies brains, and overrides their 'fight or flight' response because they begin to understand that no-one is coming for them. This is one of my favorite articles by one of my newest favorite authors in terms of baby / infant / child behavior: "http://blog.babesinarms.com.au/2009/09/04/the-language-of-tears/" - The Language of Tears
------------- Mama to two earth walkers & two angels. Remember, you are not managing an inconvenience; You are raising a human being. ~ Kittie Franz Next Slingbabies! Meet - Friday 4th May !! |
Pinky McKay wrote:Posted By: AuntieSarah
Date Posted: 05 November 2009 at 7:16pm
I agree with the others, all babies are different! My son used to STTN about half the time until a month ago (when we went on holiday, then went on holiday again, then got sick  ). If he woke and wanted milk I'd feed him, it didn't seem to make any difference to wheher he slept through the next night or not.
I think they just do it when they are ready.  it is hard being so tired! ------------- http://lilypie.com">  http://lilypie.com">
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Posted By: lilfatty
Date Posted: 05 November 2009 at 8:21pm
They probably just let out a *sigh* and turned around and walked out. They didnt see the need to write the emotion down before leaving.  ------------- Mummy to Issy (3) and Elias (18 months) I did it .. 41 kgs gone! From flab to fab in under a year  http://www.femininefitness.co.nz/category/blog - LFs weight blog
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Posted By: Babe
Date Posted: 05 November 2009 at 8:52pm
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Jake was STTN regularly by 10 weeks.
At about 5 weeks he decided he wouldn't go back down after his 12pm feed til 3am but after 1-2 nights of that I'd had enough so put him back to bed and let him cry (which was all it was - he never got distressed) and after a max of 8 minutes the first night he was asleep til his next feed and after the 2nd night doing that he went down like a dream. I'm aware there are people that wouldn't agree but just for the record I'm sharing what I did so please don't bag it! I used Babywise with him and will do it again with Tyler. Jakes still a great little sleeper unless hes sick. Anyway different strokes for different folks I think. I get severe depression when I don't get enough sleep - something to do with my serotonin levels so its incredibly important I get my babies sleeping well early on. -------------   
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Posted By: myfullhouse
Date Posted: 05 November 2009 at 8:59pm
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I have done a bit of reading on this lately and it is common for babies up to 2yo to wake at least once in the night. This made me feel better as Jack has only slept through a handful of times and he is 2.5yrs! ------------- Lindsey 
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Posted By: AandCsmum
Date Posted: 05 November 2009 at 9:17pm
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Babe, I did the leave for 5 mins thing. I still do, but you know the difference in I'm going to cry to sleep or I'm going to just cry hard out within the first min.
Re the lurkers....maybe they were hoping for the miracle cure LOL ------------- Kel http://lilypie.com">
A = 01.02.04 & C = 16.01.09 & G = 30.03.12 |
Posted By: Mel&Kel
Date Posted: 05 November 2009 at 9:52pm
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My little girl doesn't sleep through the night and she is almost 9 months. She wakes about 3 times cause she has rolled over and is trying to sit up... little miss!!!
She goes straight back to sleep though, my husband never sleeps through the night, always gets up to pee or eat chocolate so I guess I can't expect Eva to sleep through the night if daddy can't. I haven't fed her during the night sinced we moved to formula though. We still do a DF as DH loves doing it and getting to feed her. ------------- Mummy to Eva born 11 Feburary 2009 and Charlotte born 18 April 2011 |
Posted By: fattartsrock
Date Posted: 05 November 2009 at 10:13pm
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my 4.5 year old has only been sleeping through the night on a rgular basis for the last 10 months. I saw every man and his dog about Jakes "problem" (it was really my problem, not his, since he didn't seem upset about it, lol) and most of the professionals said that CIO is stressfull on everyone and kids just aren't really hardwired to sTTN till they reach almost school age, so I guess that means all children are different. I certainly found that by not getting angry (IE giving in to the fact that I would be woken by him at the very least once, and often for long periods of time) and let him have a drink, cuddle etc mean tless stress and upset all round. Plunet certainly say no they don't need it, but I think under one, yes they do, and over one, if it helps make the gettign up easier to give them a drink, then do it. You have to do what is easiest for your family and you.
Whatever you do, don't "buy into" that societal and coffee group pressure to haev a baby that STTN, it really isn't the be all and end all. And I would think its entierely normal for a 5 ish month old baby to wake at least once during the night and need a feed, too. If anyone asks (and don't they make you feel bad if the answer is no, they don't sleep through the night??) just nod and whatever. Its not worth hearinghtier story about how their baby STTN by 4 weeks or whateever bullsh*te they are spouting, cos its only going to make you feel worse and less adequite... Yoiua re doing a super job, and this too, shall pass.... xxxx ------------- The Honest Un PC Parent of 2, usually stuck in the naughty corner! :P |
Posted By: cuppatea
Date Posted: 05 November 2009 at 10:13pm
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Spencer was sleeping through at 4 months and consistently sleeping through by 6 months, I can count on one had the number of times he has woken in the night since then. Kyle however is still up twice a night at nearly 10 months old. Different kids need different things, is my theory anyway. Plus if he seems hungry I would say that he IS hungry.
Plunket like to pigeon hole, and i normally say ignore them, although I made a post myself the other day after seeing them so I know that it's easier to say ignore them than it is to actually ignore them 
As for the miracle cure, have you seen the treasures ad? Apparently if you use their nappies you all get a good nights sleep. I've been wearing one but so far it hasn't worked  ------------- 
 
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Posted By: fire_engine
Date Posted: 05 November 2009 at 10:16pm
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LOL, I'm a lurker - I'd try to formulate a response and couldn't put my words together so I'd leave ...
Um, I think 5 months is pretty early for STTN. Daniel started STTN at about 6-7 months but he had a dreamfeed till about 11-12 months. If he didn't have the DF then we'd definitely feed him during the night. He used a dummy (and yes I know I bagged them in another thread, yes, I'm a hypocrite!), and we had about 6 weeks of DH getting up, sticking the dummy in till he learned to fully STTN. Now if he wakes, we know he's either got an ear infection or will get sick in a few days. I know lots of mums who have found it's quicker to give them a quick feed than to do the whole getting them back to sleep without a feed palavar, and you need to do what works for you. We're lucky that we have only rarely needed to do CC (I struggle with it but it does work for us) but at that age, I'd do TLC and get DH to help as much as possible. ------------- Mum to two wee boys |
Posted By: weegee
Date Posted: 05 November 2009 at 10:17pm
Just so I don't add to the lurker count - I agree with Bizzy, Jeszika, fattartsrock and HippyMama 
LOL cuppatea! ------------- 
Mum to JJ, 4 July 2008 & Addie, 28 July 2010 |
Posted By: fattartsrock
Date Posted: 05 November 2009 at 10:17pm
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lol cupptea..
(and sorry about all my typos!!! brain goes faster than fingers and cna't be botherd to edit - only edited before to add in some more) ------------- The Honest Un PC Parent of 2, usually stuck in the naughty corner! :P |
Posted By: Ella1
Date Posted: 05 November 2009 at 10:25pm
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Remember STTN, officially means sleeping a 5-hour stretch. So if your wee man does 2am-6am, thats 4 hours already , you are almost there.
Everybody always seems to assume that babies have to sleep 7pm-7am. Don't get me wrong, that would be lovely, but I've met very few babies who do that. |
Posted By: Freesia
Date Posted: 06 November 2009 at 6:15am
I had to come in just to see what STTN meant
My nearly 22 month old still generally wakes up once a night. She has always been a pretty poor sleeper no matter what we've tried (except CIO but I can't do that) so we've just resigned ourselves to the fact that she isn't a great sleeper and she'll grow out of it one day in her own time. We have had a couple of spells where she will start to sleep through for a few days, but then she'll get sick or we'll go away and she'll fall back into her usual waking. She's definitely better than she was and now usually a quick drink of water and a tuck in is all she needs to go back to sleep and that's easy enough for us. -------------  
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Posted By: blondy
Date Posted: 06 November 2009 at 8:03am
Just so I'm not a lurker too  I wanted to add that there is a difference between waking at night, and really wanting to feed (and at 5 months, I'd say that he's most likely hungry).....and waking at night at the same exact times every night, but not wanting to feed, so it is more out of habit than anything else.
DD slept through by herself at 4-5 months, but then we had major allergy dramas and were often up with her all night, and she only started sleeping through again at 12 months once all the health issues were sorted (and still not the 12 hours - more like 10.5-11). For her it was habit (you could predict the time almost to the minute she would wake every night, but didn't want to feed etc). In the end we did use CC (and CIO to a certain extent), but only because she did the "I'm frustrated and don't want to go to sleep" cry - if she was really upset, we stayed with her. I was soooo anti-CC/CIO, but in the end it was what worked for us, and all of us are happier for it (especially given we had about 7 months of her being up anywhere from 3 times a night to hourly on the bad nights). Having said all of this, 5 months really is too young to expect STTN. I think part of the problem is that the parents that are vocal about STTN had great sleepers for babies (and love telling everyone!) and by far the silent majority are parents who are still up multiple times a night until a lot longer!
edit to make (slightly more) sense! -------------  
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Posted By: tibby
Date Posted: 06 November 2009 at 8:21am
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As you know, Oliver doesn't sleep through the night. He slept really well between 3-4 months then it all went pear shaped. Often he wakes 1.5-2hrly.
We are now using CC if he wakes earlier than 3 hrs and usually he only cries for a few mins then goes back to sleep. This is hard to do but we HAD to do something and fingers crossed with the intro of a DF of formula, he is now only waking once....well the last 2 nights anyway lol! I have friends whose babies STTN and others who don't so they are all different. Big hugs to you as l know it is exhausting x |
Posted By: jano1
Date Posted: 06 November 2009 at 9:13am
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Lol cuppatea!
My girl started STTN at 5.5 months- we didn't do anything differently but she did practice for about a month beforehand. She is still sleeping really well 3 months down the track but we haven't had teeth, rolling or crawling to deal with so am expecting things to go downhill shortly. I don't have any advice but agree with everyone else here, there is way too much emphasis on getting them to STTN so early. If you can have a lie in once a week, it makes a big difference. Is he waking for food or does he not know how to get himself back to sleep? Does he have a cuddly to help self settle? |
Posted By: palomino
Date Posted: 06 November 2009 at 12:21pm
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*sigh*
drats no magic cure... Lol im pretty happy where we are. some nights he will sleep through. some nights he will wake once. some nights he will wake 5x. No different to me really! i rarely sleep the whole night so would never expect him too. |
Posted By: Babe
Date Posted: 06 November 2009 at 12:49pm
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Oh yeah when I say Jake was STTN at 10 weeks he'd get a feed at 10 or 11 and sleep through til 6 or 7 so it certainly wasn't 12 hours more like 6!!! And he was a big placid baby which helped alot
He's definitely gone through patches where he's tried to get up at night to play etc LOL I remember when he was about uhm 9 months old he'd scream and cry and wail until he was allowed in the lounge (at 2am in the blasted morning  ) but he didn't want a feed, nappy change, et he just wanted to get up! I tried everything and got so shattered coz I was a single mummy at that stage that I ended up calling my now DP in tears and he came over the first night, put me in bed and stayed with Jake til he feel asleep playing then went to work but the second night he put his foot down with Jake after putting me to bed with earplugs this time and that was the last night we had a 2am wakeup LOL I decided then that he was good daddy material
Hope you find something that works for you guys anyway -------------
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Posted By: palomino
Date Posted: 06 November 2009 at 12:51pm
| awww what a sweet guy babe! |
Posted By: Jacobsmumma
Date Posted: 06 November 2009 at 1:22pm
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Oh bugger, I lost my post!! Oh well it was probably too long anyways, hehehe.
To cut a long story short, my little man has been sleeping through the night from 9wo and he's nearly 20wo. Our night time routine starts at 5pm with a bath/massage/bottle and by 6pm he's fallen alseep. DH wakes him at 10pm for his last bottle/nappy change then he sleeps through from 10:30pm till 6:30am. I'm enjoying this while I can as I know it can change, but fingers/toes crossed it won't. He's showing some signs of teething at the moment so perhaps this could all change. Since 9wo he's only woken about 5 times which is when I started giving him some mashed banana thinking he was needing more but he now only gets some when I'm having one, so only a few times a week. Jacob used to get really sleepy at 5/6pm so we just went with this and kept this as his bedtime. Goodluck, I hope you find something that works for you xx |
Posted By: Babe
Date Posted: 06 November 2009 at 1:41pm
Yep hes a ledge 
Him and Jake have the greatest relationship but Jake definitely knows when Daddy is putting his foot down lol I think its awesome! TaniaS I think a good routine thats based around the babys own cycles is often (OFTEN not always) the key to good sleeping sounds like you guys have got a good thing going!-------------
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Posted By: Jacobsmumma
Date Posted: 06 November 2009 at 1:48pm
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I agree Babe, baby leads the way, Mummy follows I should have also added that Jacob's the king of catnapping during the day, he wakes up after each sleep cycle, so he's probably just knackered by then!
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Posted By: AandCsmum
Date Posted: 06 November 2009 at 9:45pm
Marisa...you're supposed to put them on the kids not yourself!!! ------------- Kel http://lilypie.com">
A = 01.02.04 & C = 16.01.09 & G = 30.03.12 |
Posted By: AandCsmum
Date Posted: 06 November 2009 at 9:48pm
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Christ....the things we forget....I remember Alia once she was I think around that real playing age wanting to get up & play in the middle of the night! I'd fall asleep on the couch watching her!
See ladies....WE FORGET in the end  ------------- Kel http://lilypie.com">
A = 01.02.04 & C = 16.01.09 & G = 30.03.12 |
Posted By: cuppatea
Date Posted: 07 November 2009 at 8:07am
Oh so that's what I've been doing wrong -------------
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Posted By: mummyofprinces
Date Posted: 07 November 2009 at 12:10pm
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LOL Marisa!!!!
I have come to the conclusion that its more important that a bay learns to self settle than STTN. There is huge pressure to get your baby to STTN, which I find a bit crazy. We have a couple of baby's in our coffee group doing 7pm-7am but Jake certainly isnt one of them! Most nights Jake will wake go doewn about 7pm and ay slep thru til 3ami-5am or he may wake 5 or 6 times until that time when he wants feeding. o ccassionally he mAy even do 2 night feeds. I am shattered and that really doesnt help with PND but I have let it go. I cant force him to sleep and DH & I both have nights when didnt STTN but we know how to settle ourselves... once Jake learns that (and it may take some time for that to hapen) then it will be as good as him STTN! I reckon just go with Corban for now hun, he is still so little and its perfectly normal for him to be waking! -------------   
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Posted By: crafty1
Date Posted: 07 November 2009 at 2:16pm
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Yes this STTN is abit of a myth for sure. I was lucky and had one of the ones that loved to sleep and did STTN early - at 4 months i decided he didn't need the food in the night and so stopped feeding him in the night then. TBH he had already mostly dropped those feeds and i was just doing it cos it was an easy way to get him back to sleep. Saying that when i stopped feeding him he stopped waking at all and we were all happy for awhile. La la la...
Then teething and colds etc etc and you realise that they never really STTN consistently and you have to be prepared to get up pretty regularly for the first few years. We have weeks at a time where we don't have to get up at all and then he'll be up a couple of times a night for a week. He's now 18 months. He does make a lot of noise in the night and cries sometimes but we only get up to him if he really winds up - you can tell the difference. Do what you gotta do should be the number 1 rule of parenting i think - i hate it when people try and make others feel bad if they let their baby cry. For god's sake you could do a hell of a lot worse and if it works and they start STTN as a result hallelujah. People seem to forget that the mummy has to get some sleep too to be a good mummy - well i do. Good luck to you hun, i know lots of babies who were sleeping through the night at that age so it is possible, but babies are all so different and i'm not sure you can make them do what they won't do. Can you express and get hubby to do a few nights getting up? ------------- http://lilypie.com">  
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Posted By: kandk
Date Posted: 07 November 2009 at 4:33pm
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My DS has never really slept through, apart from the odd random occasion when he was sick (weird, I know). However just the other week he just kept on sleeping, and now more often than not he will go down at 7.30, wake for a late night feed around 10 or 11 (just before my bedtime) and go through till 7. I call that SSTN!
But honestly, I can't say that I did anything to make it happen. I tried various techiniques earlier, but clearly he just wasn't ready, and came to it in his own time. ------------- http://lilypie.com">  http://lilypie.com">
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Posted By: Huggles
Date Posted: 07 November 2009 at 6:56pm
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I hear ya on the tired remark! Samantha wakes every night about 11pm then 3am. I have tried CIO and CC however i feel that she will sleep through when she is ready. I have however started offerign water then a small milk feed to see if i can push these feeds out. Everyone ie: Plunket say you MUST stop feeding her through the night. Yeah I would love to however if they want to come help in the middle of the night no problem!
I do hope you get a bit more sleep and enjoy being mummy |
Posted By: Babe
Date Posted: 07 November 2009 at 7:28pm
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I remembered a system my aunty used - if her baby was waking at 3am for a feed she'd set the alarm for 2.30 and feed then and not feed again til the usual time round 6/7. After 3 nights of that she'd pull it back to 2am and so on. Seemed to work? She got longer and longer patches of sleep and baby got use to longer gaps between feeds. HTH -------------
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Posted By: linda
Date Posted: 07 November 2009 at 7:55pm
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I also had to see what STTN was. As far as lurking goes, I see that if you are not logged in you can still access the topic but you can't post but it does add to the lurker views. Maybe there are a few people that haven't got 'ohbaby' log ins but still read up on what people are saying....which goes to show that you really don't know who is viewing what saying.
With having twins plus two older kids we worked on getting the twins to sleep through the night as soon as they good. We always did the dreamfeed at 11pm but from about 9 weeks they did not have a feed until 7am. Can't really say sleeping through as they do wake through the night for a dummy or a play but resettled very quickly. We also have the twins in our bed should they not settle which is something we would never have done with the older boys. The older boys had a very strict routine and are brilliant sleepers. It will be interesting to see if the twins are the same as we are not as strict with them. ------------- http://lilypie.com"> 
Alex 6 and Harry 8 |
Posted By: kiwigal
Date Posted: 07 November 2009 at 8:30pm
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I don't have any sleep issues mine are great sleepers. DD has been sleeping all night since she was about 2.5 months old she goes down 7.30-8.30ish and wakes up about the same time. If she is awake a lot earlier I give her a bottle and she might go back to sleep for another hour or two. |