5 FAQs About Night Feeds & Sleep

In this blog post I would like to answer some FAQs I get a lot about night feeds and sleep. When it comes to night feeds/weaning, every child will be different and there is no right or wrong way of doing it, I am a big advocate of the uniqueness of the sleep journey of the child and the whole family. So there are general recommendations, but you can always choose to do what works best for you as a family.

Let’s go! 

1- When shall I drop the night feeds?

This will be different from one baby to another, and you will need to check with your doctor about this, as it is based on weight and overall growth rate. In most cases, if we have a healthy baby, they will be on 1-2 (in some cases 3) feeds by 4 months and they are ready to drop the feeds by 6-9 months. 

2- How do I know if my child is hungry or not? 

It’s all about whether the baby has a full feed or just 2-5 minutes feed. A hungry child will have a full feed and will wake up fresh and happy to take the full feeds of the day the next day.

3- Shall I wake up my sleeping newborn baby at night? 

Yes and no! Again this goes back to the recommendations of the doctor and how many feeds the baby needs in 24 hrs, and at night. As a general rule, as long as the baby has gained birth weight, there is no need to wake the baby up and let him/her stretch on her/his own. Most babies are ready to take long stretches for night sleep by 6-8 weeks.

4- Can I keep the night feeds and do sleep training?

Yes, you can! We can do sleep training starting 4 months and a baby can stay with 1-2 feeds way longer than this, its a matter of organizing the night to make sure that the child is getting what he/she needs. 

5- How can I drop the night feeds or do complete weaning?

There are many ways to do this, I highly recommend the gradual approach for decreasing the number of feeds or for complete night weaning. You can start by decreasing the time (if breastfeeding) or decreasing the amount (if in bottle). When you reach the minimum amount, you can start your sleep training process by picking a response you are comfortable with and sticking with it. Here are some tips for sleep training too.

Here is how I can support you through this:

If you want to decrease the number of night feeds or do a complete night weaning and don’t know from where to start, book the sleep coaching program with me and let’s do it together through a personalized plan for your baby and with daily support for you.