8 Month Still Waking up 2X a Night

6 months old is a "growth spurt" time for babies. Also at 9 months, and 12 months and so forth, about every 3 months.

At these times, they get hungrier, feed more, and more frequently...so you need to feed him even if that means waking up. They are changing physically, cognitively and in terms of their abilities. Also, teething may start to occur as well, which wakes them too.

It could be that he is also waking due to all the changes they are going through. It is normal, and a phase. I would not do the CIO method, at times like this. It's developmental based probably. Normal stuff.

I know it's tiring..but they all go through this. His sleep/wake patterns WILL change, as they go through growth changes and spurts, and teething and so forth. But, if you keep a constant routine pre-bed and keep it constant... that WILL help them get into a routine.

Both my kids went through this as well...it's temporary, it is a phase and passes. Just keep to your same bed times as well... since that is his routine. As they go through the growth phases, it will subside. Keep in mind, that these developmental changes are not necessarily easy for them either....they have so much to get used to. They grow up quickly and will soon no longer be babies anymore... take heart and offer comfort to him as needed.

As he gets more mobile as well, sitting up, rolling over, pulling up, standing...all of these developmental changes will cause a glitch in their sleep patterns often times. All part of ages and stages and phases. It will wake them. Babies sleep patterns are not static...it will grow and change as they mature as well. Even adults don't have the same sleep patterns since we were kids. It ebbs and flows. BUT, routine and consistency with sleep habits DOES help.... down the road.

There are so many approaches.
My son went through those same sleep changes/patterns as well at that age. But it subsides... now at 21 months old, he does sleep through the night about 90% of the time. But it is not the same everyday. Make sure he takes naps too...over tired babies actually do NOT sleep well.

All the best,
~Susan

First off I commend your husband, he is right to be against the cio method. However, since you are going to do it no matter how he feels, then I hope things work out for you. I just wanted to say that both of my kids woke up throughout the night until age 2, so your son only getting up twice sounds like a dream. Since you said he used to sleep 7-8 hour stretches, could it be that he is going through a growth spurt or teething or maybe getting sick? Seems something might be going on for his sleeping habits to have changed so much.
Best wishes, I hope you get some rest soon!
M.

I had a similar problem with my 13 month old and only recently discovered the solution.

My son started sleeping through the night around 6 or 8 weeks and I was elated. Then he stopped. Then he started again. Then he stopped. And then he only did it sometimes. It was so frustrating and I know exactly how you feel. And I used every possible excuse to explain it: growth spurts, teething, etc. None of these could explain TEN MONTHS of nighttime waking.

When we switched him from formula to organic whole milk, he started to sneeze a LOT and he had a runny nose that never stopped running. But he had no other symptoms. By this time, I had given up trying to get him to sleep through the night. I did a little research and found out that the switch to milk from a milk-based formula may have pushed an allergy over the edge and MAY have been responsible for his nighttime waking.

We switched from cow's milk to organic rice milk and he has slept through the night EVERY NIGHT SINCE. The runny nose and sneezing stopped and now we know he definitely had an allergy to the milk. But his symptoms were so mild that if I didn't do a little internet searching, we would have overlooked it, especially the link to nighttime waking.

It's so nice to get some sleep again! Good luck!

Hi T.: You have recieved some good responses. I am in total agreement with SH and MS They offered you some solid advice. Your husband sounds like he has done some research of his own.You might try feeding him a little cerial,closer to his bedtime,since he isn't drinking that much. Try something other than rice,as sometimes thats harder for them to digest.Patience is a virtue T.. You mentioned you had problems conceiving. Enjoy this time,when your baby will allow you to cuddle and love him... Its funny....When you mentioned your hubby was going out of town,I thought you were going to say,that would give you and your son, some bonding time.I know,you aren't thinking about this now,but Time flies by and before you know it,you will have to chase that lil guy down to get a hug!The best to you and your darlin boy

Hi T., stop getting up with him and he will stop waking up. I have told so many new moms that babies have 4:00 am feedings after 6 weeks, you give them cereal at nght and they sleep throught the night, your 8th month old is manipulating you, and you fall for it every time, and 8 month old should not be eating during the night, try puting a cup of water in the corner of the crib, sometimes they are just thirsty, and they take a drink and go back to sleep, but STOP getting up with a baby that age. Mom for 24 years J.

I have a 6 month old who just slept through the night for the 1st time ever for 3 nights in a row all by himself, now of course he is back to waking up once or twice a night :)....so I don't have any really good advice, since we haven't really done the CIO thing except for a few minutes here and there just to see if he would settle on his own, but I did order the 3-day sleep solution and ended up returning it because it is really pretty harsh, she basically says to let you baby CIO no matter how long it takes, up to an hour or more, not going in to check on them at all....I knew I would never have the heart to do that, so I figured it wasn't for me,, but supposedly it does work (I guess if you break a child like that, eventually they just give up?), it's up to you and your style of parenting I guess, the other issue is that she say's the baby (up to 1 year I believe) has to go to sleep at 6pm and that the bedtime routine needs to start at 5pm, no later, and that just didn't work for my work schedule and day care, we never get home any earlier then 5:45 or 6, and then we need time to feed and bath him, anyway, it's a $ back guarrantee so you can always return it and just pay the shipping....GOOD LUCK to you!