Does she want solids already?

[Shanti]

Sara... it sounds to me like she's ready. If you want to start her, then go for it!! They say 6mths approx so that means give or take a few days/weeks... there is nothing exact about 6mths iykwim. As you know, we started DD at 5mths, 9 days we felt she was ready and she loved it! Opened her mouth and swallowed the mash banana and just seemed to know what to do! It was easy. I think you'll find that too.
And DD could sit up really well on her own (a bit supported), had lost the tongue thrust reflex or whatever you call it, could hold a spoon, was watching us eating all the time very curious, etc.... they are good signs they are ready.
It's more work but ALOT of fun!!!!
We are doing spoon feeding because I tried a bit of BLS and she just threw it over her shoulder and the spoon feeding is going great for us so we are sticking with it but soon might try a bit of BLS also.... (steamed carrot pieces etc)

[Visitor8]

Firstly let me say that 2 hourly feeding wasn't normal for Ashton until it was normal... He didn't do it from day one, but here we are 11 months later and he's only JUST started sleeping through. He had 3 months of solids and he was still waking 2 hourly at night. What I would have done to go back to the early days of sleeping 4 or 5 hourly at night.

Why people think that their child is ready when they aren't 6 months old? (this is not aimed at anyone in particular, so don't take it personally hun it's just my opinion as a general answer to a question a lot of people seem to ask)

Common answers

They grab at my food.
Don't they grab at anything you put in front of them? To them it's not the food they want, it's what you have.

They feed more frequently.
Babies often go through a growth spurt close to 6 months, and feed more frequently. This does NOT mean they are ready for solids. Solids are NOT meant to fill them up at 4, 5 or 6 months old, they are a learning experience.

They seem interested when I eat.All babies seem interested at everything you do. They seem interested when you shave your legs (I know Ash does) but it doesn't mean I am about to go shaving him does it?

They started waking in the night.It's known that babies start waking and often feeding more often than normal before big developmental milestones (walking, crawling, rolling etc) and a few of these happen on or before 6 months. Ashton has gone through many wakeful periods and I have linked them all to what he was learning and doing at the time. The first time he started crawling (5 months) was when he also started feeding every 1-2 hours, 24/7. All that brain power and concentration, not to mention the physical excersise of actually crawling was making him a hungry boy. Hungry for booby NOT solids.

Seriously, if your thinking about starting BEFORE 6 months because they are 'ready' just wait. It's only a couple/few more weeks. Those few weeks really do make a HUGE difference to how ready they are INSIDE. Their digestive tracks aren't ready for food so early...

FWIW I started Ash early, at 5 months. He had very little solids before I realised what a big mistake I was making and I stopped them. He didn't start eating solids again until he was 7 months old. He wasn't ready at 5 months, I read all the signs wrong and listened to the wrong people. Sure enough, a few weeks later he was not only crawling but saying his first word and pulling up on the furniture. All a lot for a little bubba and he went on to feed 1-2 hourly for a week or so and then cut back to 3-4 hourly. Growth spurt is probably also the reason he did this.

[Shanti]

Seriously, if your thinking about starting BEFORE 6 months because they are 'ready' just wait. It's only a couple/few more weeks. Those few weeks really do make a HUGE difference to how ready they are INSIDE. Their digestive tracks aren't ready for food so early...

I don't necessarily agree with that statement but each to their own of course.... we started DD at nearly 5.5mths and she took to the food really, really well... she didnt get constipated like some babies do when they're digestive system isn't ready and really loved it from the start. So it depends on each baby..... some babies are ready a bit earlier than others. It's trial and error as to when to start. If DD wasn't taking the food well and had become constipated or diarrhoea etc for example, then I would have considered stopping and starting again 2 weeks later but this was not the case for us.
I don't think 2 weeks would make a huge difference to many babies. JMO.

[Janie]

SJ, just on the BFing overnight, as missymoo said, don't count the feeds LOL. There is no normal when it comes to babies and children, they are constantly changing on us. My DS was about 5-6 months when he decided that feeding numerous times a night was awesome, and that continued until he was close to 2 . I can happily say that we are well past it now though, and it was worth it, because he would have been a night-waker anyway, and BFing meant less time awake for me .

I sincerely hope that your DD is just going through a stage, but didn't want you to be disappointed if solids don't help her to have less feeds overnight , Good luck hun, and enjoy this new, fun, stage!!!

[Heaven]

Oh bloody heck, this better not be normal now!!! No way I can cope with her waking this often for the next yr or more!! I need sleep and I doubt she actually needs this many feeds over night. On a positive note, we got a 5hr block of sleep last night! Although probably because she was up most of the day bc we were out.
I don't want to just start solids to make her sleep longer though, I'm just a bit worried that she's feeding more bc she needs some solids or something.

Why people think that their child is ready when they aren't 6 months old?

Probably because they seem so ready! DD seems to be showing all the signs and yesterday I tested out how her sitting was going and she sat up on her own for 5 mins, so now it looks like she meets all the requirements that you're supposed to, she just isn't 6 months yet!! That's why it's so confusing.

I also don't understand why at 6 months every baby is suddenly ready? With everything else we're always saying 'every baby is different, they all develop at their own speed', but not with being ready for solids?? Wouldn't some be ready earlier and some later? For example in the first post in the baby-led solids thread the poster started her DS on BLS at 5m 1wk because she thought he was ready and he seemed to be and ate a lot early on (she commented that he had eaten a whole pear at one time). On the other hand some babies like yours Mel don't start eating much until over 7 months. So every baby is different. Do we go by the signs they're showing us or by their age?

And do they take into account when the baby was born? e.g. one baby may be born 3 wks early while another is 2 wks overdue. Does that effect when they're ready at all?

Anyway, those are all the reasons that confuse me and I still don't know what to do, LOL. I will wait another week at least (until she's 5.5 months) and then reassess.

[AliBaby]

Heaven I am completely with you.

Shanti- I think you are right. Thank you for posting about your DD.

I am at a loss to know what to do. But let me tell you this. I honestly dont think it is "normal" for babies of 5-6mths to be waking every 2hours overnight demanding to feed. IMO of course.

I fed Ashlyn 7 times last night between 7pm and 5:30am!! I mean that is just ridiculous!! This has been going on for a couple of weeks now. A growth spurt is apparently only supposed to last 48hours of unsettledness apparently. So I really dont think it is that. I even rang Tresillian (which is a sleep school in Sydney) and they said she should be dropping down to one dream feed at this age!! We are nowhere near that!!!!

I am going to ge thaat ABA solids book that you girls were talking about and I am going to give it a go. ITs either that or I will do a formula feed at night because we cant go on like this.

I am also over people in my real life (not on here) saying "just bear with it, its whats best for her". Is it really best for her if we are both not sleeping at night???

Sorry for my ramblings, I am just extremely tired I just wanted to let you know that you are not alone.

[Janie]

Guys, I think you are all right to listen to your mummy instincts. As long as you are making an informed decision, I think you should feel confident in what you're doing for your babies

SJ, the only way we got through was cosleeping . But I can promise that it doesn't last forever, I can see the light now LOL.

[Nai]

Heaven - I was thinking about DD1 and DD2 and DD1 started solids at 5m3w - but she was born 2weeks early. DD2 started at 5m1w but was born almost on her due date so adjusted dates they both started at the same time.

[Shanti]

Heaven & Ali I know how you feel.... last few nights DD has woken quite a few times unsettled and the only way to settle her seems to be to feed her to sleep which I don't mind doing but lately it's been too much!! And up until a week ago she was a great night sleeper!!!!! so this is all out of sorts for her!!
Last night she woke about 6 times so we ended up at 430am bringing her into bed with us... it was the only way i could get some rest.... and she's on solids too!!!! (has been for a month now!!!) so must be a growth spurt I think.... or teething of course. She fed 2hrly last night!!!
I'm sooo tired it felt like we had a newborn in the house again last night!!!
Big hugs to you all. We just have to remember that like everything, it passes....

[MantaRay]

Ali, TBH I don't think that the information you got from Tresllian was right. Many babies need to feed in the night at that age and beyond. However, I agree with you that every 2 hours is a lot. I remember reading some of your other posts about this but I can't remember all the details. Have you tried to feed more often during the day? Or spoken to the ABA helpline? There are probably some things you can try to reduce the night feeds.

SJ, you are right, it is confusing and there is no magic switch that turns on when they are 6 months. The guideline says 6 months because that is the age by which most babies are ready. Also, no solids are needed before then, at least for a fully bf baby, so it is considered better to delay solids for a baby who is ready before 6 months than to inadvertently start a baby who is not ready on solids before 6 months. Does that make sense?

I think the thing to be aware of here is that starting solids is unlikely to help the night wakings. So if that is your only reason for starting early, then it's probably best to wait a bit. If however all your instincts are screaming at you that she is ready, then you need to make a call based on what you know.

[Janie]

:yeahthat:

[AliBaby]

THanks MR

I really dont want to hijack Heaven's thread but I have tried everything I can think of.

I rang the ABA and they told me to add a few more feeds in the arvo. So I now feed her at 4:30 (when she wakes from arvo nap), 6pm (after her bath) and then 7pm (just before bed).
I have also done the co-sleeping thing but it doesnt help I thought it might be making it worse.
So now I have bought a mattress and am sleeping on the floor of DD's room.

I think you are right about night wakings not being the only reason to start solids and as Shanti said too, her DD's sleep has regressed int he last week and she is on solids so its not the be all and end all answer but I am out of ideas and she is showing all the other signs that Heaven mentioned as well.

Its so hard being a mummy sometimes. You just want to do whats best and sometimes you feel torn as to what is right for your baby.

[Heaven]

Thanks MR, helpful as always! I definitely am not wanting to start solids just because of the night wakings. I'd rather put up with it for longer and do what's best for her. It's just that the night wakings and increased feeding combined with everything else makes me think that she's ready for solids. I did want to wait until 6 months but like you said it's not just like a magic switch goes off and she's ready and maybe I should go by what she is showing me more. She seems very ready. I'm also going to do BLS and trust her instincts that if she really is ready she will eat and if she is not ready then she won't.

Ali and Ren- I'm sorry you're going through the same thing, the night wakings aren't fun!! I'm fine with DD needing to feed at night but I really don't think every 2 hrs is neccesary!! LOL.

[Janie]

Just remember (as I know you know, sometimes we all need a reminder), that feeding during the night isn't always about food

[Shanti]

I love getting up to my DD for that 3 or 4am feed... it's special time for us bonding and it's so quiet and peaceful.... I agree. But it is hard when they start waking more often than what we are used to because you want to know why they are!?!? lol I think we've been spoilt in our house because DD usually sleeps 7-7 and only wakes once around 3am! Those night wakings aren't just about food it's also sometimes they are waking more because they want more cuddles perhaps they dont' feel they had enough during the day that day.... is that right girls? Is that sometimes why babies wake more often in the night too?

Sara & Ali - you both know your babies the best... follow your instinct. What is it telling you is the right thing to do here? You know best. If you do start solids and let's say it turns out she wasn't ready... then you can stop straight away.. try again a week later.... that's what I would do anyway.

[Sammiejane]

Just thought that i would throw in another 2 cents worth

MJ's night wakings got worse AFTER starting soliids and it took loads of readjustments and making sure that she wasnt eating too close to dinner.

RE the constipation bit that someone mentioned... BLS babies rarely get constipated as they are eating a very wide variety of foods, not tonns is afctually going in anyway and they are still having LOADS of milk to keep their fluids up.
MJ has NEVER been constipated, and TBH i put it done to the fact that she never had rice cereal/farex or anything else that was 'enriched' with iron...

Heaven, do what you feel you need to. If your instint is saying feed, start, especially if you are going down the BLS pathway as you will not be 'feeding' your child, she wil;l be doing herself and if she TRUELY needs the food she will eat it... iykwim forget about the spoon and see what she does

[Heaven]

Thanks Sammie. I'm thinking about giving her some food to try in another week.

[Sammiejane]

cool... start with veggies cut into a handle shape, so sticks of steamed carrot, broccoli and sweet potato. Fruit is probably too hard for her to hold to start with as it is too slippery.
Good luck with it all.