Why Is My 9 MONTH Old Still Wanting a Bottle Through the Night?

I would assume he wants a bottle still because it is habit. We had a radio or fan in all of our children's rooms for noise at night. This helped them to sleep more sound and not wake up to everytime a dog barked or someone got up to go the bathroom, etc. Giving them a bottle in bed will cause bad teeth problems....our oldest son had that problem. If he crys wait to see if he will go back to sleep. If not maybe go in and lay him back down with his blacket or stuffed animal. It will take a little while; but it will become habit. Adults have habits to; many people wake up during the night and go in the kitchen and get a snack, it takes time to break that habit and make yourself go back to sleep without eating. Be patient and know that a few nights of not so much sleep will lead to years of sleeping through the night. Best of luck. C.

Hello T.,

Your child is normal. Your child is also hungry and a light sleeper. Modern man imposed this 4 to 8 hour eating cycle as a standard or baseline for people to follow to ensure that forgetful people feed their children (or themselves) on a regular basis to stay in relative good health.

It is actually ok to eat smaller meals every 2 to 3 hours without turning into a giant slab of beef with no discipline. With that information you can see that it is also perfectly normal to eat more often than our society teaches.

If your baby is waking up through the night it will not harm him to take a bottle.

Please stop comparing your child to other people's children. It is ok to hear their stories and gain insight from the lessons they learn, but always keep in mind that your child is unique. He is going to do what he does. It doesn't matter in the least if your neighbor's child sleeps through the night and is awake all day. I guarantee you there will always be something about your child that they wished their child would emulate.

Your child's sleep schedule will straighten out over time. If not turn his unusual sleep habit into a great asset. Perhaps your baby might be a Firefighter or an Astronaut someday! They are frequently operating on a schedule different than most.

Good Luck!
Angie

T., I can relate. My now 3 1/3 year old daughter was the same way except she nursed through the night. She was also collicky and slep with us most of the time. She actually rarely slept all night until after she turned 3. My first daughter was the total opposite, so this was a very rude "awakening" (please excuse the pun:-)). I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but this may just be the way he is for now. There is light at the end of the tunnel though. Although my daughter is still a very light sleeper, she is now sleeping all night almost all the time and has been for about 5 months......yes I know it's a long time, but we're SO grateful now!

Best of luck to you and just know that you're not alone.

smm

Hey T.!
It is kind of nice to know that I wasn't the only mom that had this kind of baby. My first daughter, was also colicky and did not sleep well at all.
At nine months she was still waking up for a nighttime bottle and so what we ended up doing was at her last feeding before bedtime, we put rice cereal in her formula to make it extra filling. It seemed to help her sleep longer through the night without being hungry.
The problem with colic in babies is that their stomach hurts and cramps so much and they confuse that with being hungry, so they think eating will make it feel better.
I hope that this works for you. Keep me posted. Good luck! I feel your pain.

S. W.

ABSOLUTELY!!! I had one just like that. I was so ready for her to just sleep. I do not know if you feed him right before his bedtime bottle, but I had to wait to feed her until later, then the bottle. Don't feel bad, she slept with us too. She did eventually go to her own bed though. Everyone says that is so hard to break, but it wasn't bad at all. Also not leeting them nap of an evening helps also. This probably is not much help, but I wanted to let you know it will get better.

T.,
My son is 15 months old and he woke up every night for a bottle until he was 14 months old. The doctor kept telling me he was nutritionally alright and didn't need to eat in the night, but that was the only way to get him to sleep through. We tried to let him cry it out and he cried so hard that he vomitted. I didn't know what to do. He was also taking a bottle to go to sleep. He was 14 months old! He was supposed to be broken from the bottle when he was 12 months old. We did that with our daughter no problem, but this little guy was something else. So, my advice is this - your baby is unique just as all babies are. You need to be sure that he is getting enough to eat throughout the day. Also, that he is being held enough throughout the day. it seems to me that boys like to be loved and held and rocked and etc more than most girls. Also, if he's truly hungry at night, I say feed him. If he isn't on a schedule, put him on one that works for both of you. I think a schedule is the best thing. It creates a sense of stability for baby and allows you to know when he is hungry/sleepy etc or when something is wrong. I have seen a couple babies rectify the sleeping situation simply because a schedule (a flexible schedule) was instituted. Also, does your 9 month old get plenty of table foods? he may need more and more of those as his tummy starts to digest things better and milk might not cut it anymore for sleeping through the night. Also, talk to your pediatritian to be sure that your baby isn't in need of that night time feeding. If your doc says you are fine to let him cry it out, do it. Finally at 15 months, I had to ditch the monitor and let him cry it out. We waited so long to start, so it took an entire week (forget the three days everyone says it takes)! After that, he woke up just fine and amazingly NOT hungry! He would take 8 oz. at night and now he doesn't even wake up famished. He wakes up and I have to peak in his room to see if he is still sleeping b/c he just sits there looking around. Go figure. I hope that helps. First, just be sure he isn't growing, teething, or etc b4 you ask him to cry it out. There is that extending the amount of time you wait to go sooth him method as well that others say worked for them. That did NOT work for us. It made him that much madder b/c he knew we were there. that is when he made himself sick. And, I caved anyway, b/c I couldn't wait the 20 minutes or whatever. Good luck!
B.

Sounds more like your 9 month old is developing a habit that will take you a very long time to break. Start now. We gave each of our girls some cereal before bed to help and if they awoke in the night we would use the Ferber method of going in and not speaking, but settling them down and waiting longer to go in each time after and within a week they were not waking in the night.
We NEVER let our kids sleep with us. I value my husband way to much to let that happen. He has needs also and I could not "be" with my husband if my child was in the bed or room with me. It is just wrong. And if they are older and in bed with you, it can be tramatizing. Don't let your child cause you to neglect yourself or your husband by developing bad sleep habits.
Enjoy your baby, but be disciplined.

I can so sympathize with you!!! My daughter is 8 months and wakes up most nights wanting a bottle. I talked with our pediatrician and other moms and no one seems to concered. I am a nurse and I also tell my patients that each child if different. Got to go here sounds off my little one, take care and do what it is you need to do to be a good mommy!

Oh T.! One of my daughters wanted to nurse in the middle of the night or very early or wouldn't go back to sleep until she was over a year!!!!
Good luck, cereal might help....

Mariana Abadie
www.MykidsFirst.com

Hi T.,
When my son was a baby he was the same way - he woke up during the night STARVING.. until I started adding cereal in with his last bottle of the night. Try adding cereal to his bottle and cutting and X in the nipple. You want it to be enough to make him full (and thick enough that it won't drown him when he drinks it!) but not so thick that he can't get it out of the bottle. Follow it up with about 4 oz of milk. This will get him full before bedtime. Make sure you are putting a good diaper on him because obviously he will urinate a lot during the night after he eats that much.
Another piece of advice that I have for you: both of my kids had colic and I took them to a chiropractor for an adjustment. Immediately they both felt better and started sleeping SO MUCH better!
I hope this helps!
R.

He is probably hungry and thirsty. Despite what your friends are saying, more than half of babies are not sleeping through the night at one year. Please check out www.askdrsears.com. They have a ton of accurate information, practical advice and also a sleep forum to compassionately help babies and parents get the rest they need. Good luck!

I have a 10 month old that is exactly the same way so don't feel too bad. The weird thing is he sleeps so well at nap time. I think he could just be a "night person." My son was born at night and I'm sure it's something he'll outgrow eventually. For about 3 weeks when he was about 7 months old he slept all night but then he switched back to waking up about twice a night. Try giving your son only 2 or 4 ounces when he wakes up and try to wean him off of it. That's what I'm doing. I also see that people have told you about having a queit noise going on while he sleeps. It also helps my son when I have the radio on something he likes to listen to, it kind of soothes him and keeps any noise from the rest of this noisy house from startling him and waking him up.

I had two of these babies. However I was breastfeeding. They always woke for a nighttime feeding and they were collicky, especially my first. I personally think he is waking because he's hungry. If it's not a problem just give it to him. This time will eventually pass. But don't expect him to be just like your first son, or ohter babies. Mine babies didn't sleep through the night until they were two. AAGH!:)

Don't feel bad. Babies develop at different paces and the way I see it, he will grow out of it when he is ready. This is temporary- he is only a baby and not only a year old yet. I say don't stress over it. Enjoy him while he is a little cute snuggly bundle of love. You will have plenty of years where his wants will be more difficult than a bottle and his mommy!

Maybe try slowly reducing the amount of liquid given in the night. It may truly just be a habit that he needs to cycle out of! Also, he probably has gotten use to sleeping in bed with you and hasn't learned to self soothe. I am not one to have my kids on a schedule or anythng like that but when it comes to bedtime - their bed is their bed and my bed is my bed. If we need to snuggle for few minutes that is ok but they go right back into their own bed. If need be put on "noise" - music whatever and just see if it works!

T.,
I think he is still hungry. Talk to your doctor about his diet. What is he eating, is it still just a bottle? You need to read about ages kids need to sleep in their own beds. I went through the eat and sleep thing. My son would wake up starving and my doctor told me to put some oatmeal in his bottle and I cut the slit in the nipple slightly more and would give him this at night before bed. He was sucking down those bottles like crazy before the oatmeal. Now, sleeping with him helps now, but a problem later, you will have to gradually get him in is own bed. I kept my son in my bed with my husband and I until he started to walk and then I put him in a toddler bed and he started getting up and coming to my room. It took forever to fix this prob. I had to deal with this for years. good luck.
D. e.

My son only started sleeping through the night when he was about a year old. He would absolutely NOT go back to sleep unless he had another nursing session or a few ounces of formula. Most of the time I would just nurse him again, but sometimes I would give him a sippy cup. My son started on a cup at 6 months, so I didn't worry about giving it to him since it wasn't going to leak out in his mouth and sit there all night. I know that some moms think you shouldn't give anymore milk/formula, but that is the only thing that would get him back to sleep at 3 in the morning. My son just started sleeping through the night a couple of months ago all by himself; I didn't change anything. I think it is something they can grow out of, so you might just wait a little while longer before trying to wean him off of the middle of the night bottle. Just my opinion.

What are you feeding him other than his bottles? By 9 months babies are ready for mashed fruits & veggies and definitely cereal, baby food cereal that you mix with formula usually. By 6 months, I would give my son a big bowl of warm cereal every night before he went to bed. He would wake up early the next morning hungry but at least he was usually sleeping through the night.
Also he may become a heavier sleeper as he gets older. My son used to be a light sleeper, but now that he is almost 3, he sleeps heavily especially at night.
Also, is your son crawling or trying to walk now? Make sure he gets enough activity during the day and don't let him sleep as much during the day. Then hopefully he will be ready for a good nights sleep every night.

Because you keep giving him one :)

If it helps all to get sleep, then let him have it. My 22 month old still likes his bottle at bedtime only just until he dozes off. Some nights all he does is hold it while we are rocking and reading, but as soon as he is out I take it away before I lay him down. The paci is also a good friend of his, even though most nights it gets spit out and picked up at various times.

Do you think your son could be going through a growth spurt if he seems so hungry? Or maybe he needs more to eat right before bed. You didn't mention his feeding schedule, so maybe an extra bottle or 1/2 bottle right before bed would help. Also, have you tried a white noise machine? We got one for our daughter when we moved her out of our room when she was a baby and it worked really well for the transition. We also use it with our son.

I am not sure I have any real advice, but I have the same problem. You are not alone! My son, now 17 months, is not a very good sleeper either. He still wakes up once each night and won't go back to sleep unless he nurses! We have tried my husband going to him (this only makes him scream more) and also tried to let him cry it out, but then he wakes up his sister (3 years old, and a very good sleeper!) and I have to get them BOTH back to sleep. There are some nights that he sleeps through, but only once or twice a week.
He had very bad reflux when he was a baby. In order to keep him from refluxing at night after he nursed and to get some sleep, I propped myself up with pillows and he slept on my chest so that he was elevated. My husband thinks him sleeping with me for so long (until he was 7 months old) is the reason he still wakes up and wants me.
I have no idea what to do either, but I am confident that he will not be doing this forever. I am okay with getting up with him because he will only be little once and I don't want to miss any of it. It won't be long before my little boy (who adores me now) will ask me not to hug or kiss him in front of his friends, and want me to drop him off a block away from school. So, in my mind, the times I spend with him, cuddling him, comforting him, are precious . . . even if it is at 3 a.m.! Hang in there. He won't still need you all night when he's 18!

How much does he eat? Is he downing a full 8oz bottle or does he only drink 2-4 oz and go back to sleep? If this is the case try reducing the amount you give him a little each night. Then once you are down to only 2oz replace it with water. He will loose intrest or at least my son did. Then all I had to do was to give him a binki and he would go back to sleep. It should take about a week.
Good Luck

I know how you feel. I am a mother of a 10 mth old and he still wakes up somewhere between midnight and 2 am. He also acts like he is starving to death. My husband get s up with him and puts him back to bed. My husband and I both go to work before dawn so it makes for a very short night. Our doctor says the same thing that he should sleep through the night--NOT!! There are nights that he does but those are few and far between. We have done the same thing as to putting him in bed with us--but I'm like you what can you do??? Our son's are alike--hehehe

Some babies are just hungry, mine was. You might want to try to feed him more during the day so that he gets the calories and nutrients that he needs. I finally made my baby go cold turkey at around 10 months.
Also, getting him to sleep through the night was a struggle for me as well. I sat a chair in his room, facing away from him next to his crib(no eye contact but he knew that I was there) and would sit in it while he cried and squirmed himself to sleep. It was really painful at first and I would get up at times to pat his back and tell him "Night, night" but I wouldn't talk to him, only shush him. Finally it took him less and less time to go to sleep. They say to lay your baby down when he's drowsy, not asleep, so that they can learn to go to sleep on their own. Unfortunately, my husband got the horrible cold that is going around and my son now has a litle bit of congestion which makes him wake up at night now.... Two steps forward and one step back.... We'll get there again.

Hang in there! My son was the same way but with a little work it gets better, until he gets sick!! Ha! Ha!

Take care,
G. H.

T. I am sure you have gotten a lot of advice about this from friends and family already. I will give you my advice and hope it is something new to try and see if it will help. I remember what it was like because one of my three children just seemed to NEVER sleep night or day. So here are my pointers. First of all if he is truly hungry try giving him something substantial to eat before he goes off to bed. Think of it this way if you are hungry yourself you will not sleep well and may need a midnight snack, so he is doing the same thing. Have you tried cereal before bed? Some suggest cereal in a bottle before bed. It may be just enough to help him sleep but not to heavy of a meal that will upset his tummy. Also if he is a light sleeper then you may want to try a couple of these tricks. Have you ever heard of a sleep sound machine? You can get them at wal-mart and they are just little machines that look similar to an alarm clock but have buttons to choose different sounds like ocean waves, music, heart beats, stuff like that. Something mild making noise like that in his room may sooth him to sleep and help keep him asleep. Also I would normally ask if he sleeps well during nap time in the daytime. Because if he sleeps well during the day when there is noise in the house maybe that is what he needs at night too. Another thought is to try putting something in his crib with him that smells like you. I know that may sound strange but it may be enough to keep him soothed while he sleeps. I hope this works for you.

Well, my 6 year old son didn't sleep through the night until he was 4 years old, and has just now been consistent with sleeping through the night. He just is not a good sleeper. He even stopped taking naps at about 2. Have patience, eventually it will get better. I don't have any advise to offer as nothing worked for my son. I tried no naps, bedtime snack, absolute quiet in the house (which I am sure you know is near impossible to manage). He just was not a sleeper. Even now he only sleeps about 7 hours a night, but he doesn't get cranky and does well in school so I don't worry too much. Other things that have worked are late baths, just before he goes to sleep, "down time" meaning, soft reading, listening to music, something that requires no physical movement, just before bed time. Good luck!

before you put him down give him cereal. this usually makes them sleep all night.

I am the mother of a determined 11 month old. It was not until about two months ago that I started to get any sleep either. Same problems as you, she slept with us from the time she was born because I could not bear to be apart from her, stand the thought of her being cold or lonely. But there comes a time when it is time for mommy and baby to have some time apart.
She would wake repeatedly throughout the night, it would take me an hour to get her back to sleep, only for her little sleepy eyes to pop back open as soon as her head hit the mattress in her bed.
Finally, I took a shirt that I wore to bed two nights in a row that smelled of me, I put in her bed with her, and I know that this sounds cruel, but I would rock her until she fell asleep and put her to bed. If she woke when I layed her down, I would kiss her, tell her I loved her and that it was time for her to go night, night. Then I would leave the room. The first week, she really put up a fight for about an hour. When she would wake in the night wanting a bottle (which is a habit and comfort measure for babies at this age) no matter how much I wanted to I let her cry it out. I cried silently in the other room!
After about two weeks she is now a great sleeper in her own room! We are presently working on nap time!
Hope this helps!

T. try feeding him pudding before he goes to sleep at night, that helped my son. B.

Feeding my daughter cereal right before bedtime helped so much it was unbelieveable(the very first night she slept 7 straight hours). She still has such a high metabolism at age 12 that she still eats oatmeal right before bed to make it through the night. Try the baby cereal and see what happens.

Good luck,
D.

Babies are still growing so fast at 9 months. People who say there kids are sleeping through the night at this time are not the norm. If he acts hungry feed him, his body and brain need so much energy to develop, I would think it is normal for him to need to eat a little bit at night if he wants it for another 9 months.

Hmmm, my kids were still on bottles well past 1. If you want him to sleep through the night I would suggest feeding him something filling (like cereal or oatmeal) before he goes to bed. I know they also tell you not to do it but we did and it worked fine...we put the cereal in the bottle with the milk and used a larger nipple or made the hole a little larger. Give it to them right before they go to bed...make a little routine with rocking or reading while they are drinking it...brush his teeth and but him down...should be good for the night....Good luck. L. P.S. if that doesn't work.... give him a bottle with water...won't harm the teeth and should fill him up. Could be he's more interested in the attention than the bottle...

More protein in is daily diet may help. Protein helps a person feel full longer and fat helps control blood sugar. Of course too much of either is harmful too.
When my little one woke up at night I made sure he ate every 3 hours during the day. For one, he couldn't take a long nap that way and for another he wouldn't be as hungry at night.

Hi T.,

First determine if he's waking b/c he's actually hungry or b/c it's out of habit. You can do this by feeding him 3 solid meals and 3 bottles during the day and really fill him up before bedtime. Then, once you know he's full and if he's still waking you can be pretty sure it's out of habit. Try this, then...set your alarm for one hour before he normally wakes up for his bottle, then jostle him so he slightly wakes up and leave him to go back to sleep. Do this for 3 nights. It sounds crazy, but it works, it throws him off of his schedule and after the third or fourth night he should sleep thru. We did this with my 10 month old son who had NEVER slept thru the night and it actually worked. Good luck!

To give you some comfort, my youngest, who is now 8 years old, would wake in the middle of the night for a feeding until he was at least a year. My two older sons didn't get to nurse that long. Every child is different. Another thought, how many naps does he get during the day? Could it be possible that he is getting too much sleep during the day? I remember that my boys would have to sleep less during the day then they would sleep better at night. I am not sure at what age this was, but it is something to think about. I hope this helps.

T., I have been a nanny for 12 years. It has been by experience on getting the babies to sleep through the night to have a routine. You should never let your little one fall asleep to a bottle. They will wake up looking for it and associate it with sleep. Secondly, try making a routine. feed, bath, diaper check, book or sing, then put to bed in crib, tell him or her night night, if you have a mobile turn it on( recommend one that only sing song.. no lights..and will go off on its own) then step out(shut the door.leave night light on). I am not saying family beds are not okay. I use it in a crunch myself, but if he is a light sleeper when you move or your husband he is awake again. He needs to learn his own sleep place.now I am not saying he or she won't cry the first couple of nights. Give them something in bed.. a lovie of some sort to help sooth him. My son is 6 months and I work full time nannying a 4 yrs old, plus he goes to work with me. I need sleep. He needs sleep. I did these thing as I have done to other kids and they all sleep through the night. I have to wake mine a 4:30 am to breastfeed but he goes right back to sleep awake. When they are crying make sure to sooth them with a soft voice a rub on their chest.. after you have waited 5 or 10 minutes( it can be repeat) don't pick them up to rock them. They will look at you a the soother again.. I promise it works... It is a little of the DR. Ferber method, but not as harsh..

Remember it is HEALTHY for a baby to cry... They will not cry all night They can and will stop on their own.mine cried for a bout 45 minutes the first night. I went in the 4 times in that time period. Then he awoke ever hour but he quickly went back to sleep. The second night he slept through.

babies that are sick is different but when they are well get them back on routine.

I hope this helps..
C. and Roger 6 months

I have an idea for you and it worked for me. Just try putting a fan (a box fan or something) in his room (not directly pointing towards him) to help with the light sleeping. The sound from the fan will drown out anything else so noises won't wake him up. Sometimes my babies would wake up in the night and want a bottle just because a sound woke them up not because they were starving.

Sounds to me like he is a very light sleeper like my girls were. The sound of a fan will lul him to sleep and keep him sleeping. Try it.