7 Month Old Sleeping Question

my friend who is a pediatrician and a mom to twins did the following:

At 9 months she weaned her son from the bottle by slowly offering less and less formula by the week. She started with whatever number of ounces and reduced it by one ounce each week, and the final week was with water no formula. Her son soon realized that he was just waking up for water and stopped waking up and slept through the night.

You could try this--however, she did not wean from night time feedings until 9 months. Your baby is still 7 months and might just need the food still. You could try adding half an ounce here and there during the day or you could just try weaning and if there are some loud protests, then she maybe actually hungry.

However, if she's just drinking the amount you give her and not wanting more as you decrease the amount in her bottle--she's probably just drinking for comfort. We did this with our son, and that's how we knew he did not need night time feedings anymore. Good Luck!

I don't do "cry" it out- ever. If the baby sounds distressed she needs you- respond to that. If she's fussing, then let it go a couple minutes to see if it escalates or diminishes. If she's waking for a bottle- you should try a pacifier- it's the comfort reflex of sucking she's likely looking for moreso than food. If she's over 11lbs she should be able to make it through the night without feeding.

another good option- white noise- like a humidifier or white noise machine- this creates a "static" in the brain that helps induce relaxation and sleep.

Good luck!

Thats the way both of my children were. My youngest is now 13 months and she now gets up once a night. My son is now almost three and, probably since he was 18 months he was sleeping from 7 until 5. I didnt do any special plan, they just gradually started sleeping longer.

I just kept getting up and feeding them. I would let them fuss a little, and if they didnt go back to sleep I got up. It was easier for me to get up then to listen to them cry. Also, I work full time and they go to daycare, so in some ways I was happy for the extra time with them.

Also - I have also read all of those books and I dont think there is an easy approach that works for all babies.

Our first ped said baby doesn't need to eat during the night at that age. Our second ped said, if baby's hungry, feed her. I just fed my kids if that's what they wanted. I'm of the mindset that feeding little ones when they are hungry helps them to learn to eat when they are hungry and not to eat when they are not hungry. As they get older, they can learn about schedules and waiting for meal time.

I think at that age she probably still needs the feeding once or twice a night. Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child says that until 9 months old it is still very appropriate for them to be hungry, and if your daughter goes straight back to sleep afterwards it makes sense too.

I started weaning my baby from the night feedings at 9 months old and it was pretty easy at that point, and at least I knew he wasn't necessarily hungry. We did it over a few nights though, with my husband taking in a bottle and each night taking in a bit less. Eventually my baby realized it wasn't necessarily worth waking up for anymore, and he slept through. And it felt nice and gentle.

All the best to you!