3.5 Month Old and Bizarre Night Wakings

My son is 5 1/2 months now and we went through a similar issue with him at about 3-4 months. It doesn't last forever, if he was a good sleeper before odds are that he will get there again so hang in there. You may want to try feeding him more before bed time. Get a bed time routine too and maybe try to put him down for the night a little bit later. We have supper, then tubby time then I feed him and he goes down about 8 or 8:30. (Mine is also EBF!) I found that he would cluster feed when he was about that age, meaning he wanted to eat every 30 minutes or so for a few hours at night and that definitely helped him sleep longer! I would not recommend cereal yet, but I'm sure others will suggest it. Most peds now don't recommend cereal until 6 months. Although mine did say that if he ate good all day and still seemd hungry at night that a little cereal wouldn't hurt, but every baby is different and yours needs to be ready for cereal. Don't put it in a bottle!

Mine now eats a little cereal between feedings at night just because he seemed ready for cereal. My first born son though was not ready for cereal until he was 8 months old so don't worry if your baby is not ready!

Hang in there it definitely gets better. On a lighter note you may want to check out the book Go the $%^& to sleep. It's a very funny look at what we parents go through, it's an adult book but written in rhyme almost like a childrens book. It definitely helps to know you're not alone!

Talk to your pediatrician about any problems like acid reflux. Perhaps your babies' tummy hurts when he is lying down. Don't take suggestions from other people, especially about feeding your son early.
Good luck.

Did he recently get vaccinated? Sometimes that can cause these kinds of disruptions. At best, vaccines can trigger an immune response but they can also sometimes give a version of the disease, so he may be "under the weather" and feeling bad. Also, some children are harmed by vaccines, and they can't explain that their head hurts at 3-4 m/o and can only cry.

You can also bring him to bed with you at night - that will probably help calm him down, and will not wake you up as much as getting out of bed does; in fact, you may even be able to fall asleep even if he is awake! (as long as he's not crying or active). Check out Dr. James McKenna for more advice and tips on cosleeping, if you're worried about it.

Make sure you start a routing with him during the day. Getting enough stimulation and starting him on a napping schedule might help you out at night as well. I have a 3 month old and we are starting to get him on a good morning and afternoon napping schedule. With a few cat naps as well because they are still little. I agree you may be putting him down to early. If you think about it he is sleeping really well because from 7 - 2 is 7 hrs. By then they are ready for more stimulation and feeding and then down for a nap. Adjusting his schedule by 2 hrs might get him to sleep while you want to at night.

Does he have any fussy periods during the day? I was thinking maybe reflux. If he is eating an laying back down maybe it is promoting some reflux and making him uncomfortable. Seems odd that he would be awake for a couple of hours at night for 3 weeks. My kids all slept for 12 hours at night when they slept through the night. Have you ever read the book Healthy Sleep Habits, Healthy Child? It is a wonderful book and I highly recommend. When my kids began their sleep schedule at night they would go to bed around 6 pm and sleep until 6 am. I would talk to the doctor for some more advice. Good luck, I hope he starts sleeping well again!