You put the baby to bed, finally get yourself settled in for the night, fall asleep for what feels like 10 minutes aaaannnnnddddd baby is up again. And again. And again. AND AGAIN. Lather, rinse, and repeat all night long. Every couple hours, like clockwork. But let’s be honest..we aren’t falling back to sleep right away after rocking, deep squatting, and getting a whole crossfit workout in with baby in arms to get them back to sleep. So you are up for what feels like (and might actually be) all night long, reminding yourself how adorable your baby is and trying to figure out if you can purchase a caffeine IV from amazon. You’ve asked your friends and family, you have tried all the tips you saw on TikTok, and your pediatrician doesn’t actually have any sleep advice for you. Is this just life now? They’ll sleep someday right? Maybe? Hopefully? Let me put your mind at ease because girl, I got you! YES they will sleep again, NO this does not have to be forever, and NO you did not do anything wrong! Let’s figure it out together..
Why is my 5 month old waking up so much at night
There are several reasons your baby may be waking so often over night. I know, I know..that’s probably not what you want to hear, but the good news is that all these things can be easily fixed with some minor changes and the cause is usually easy to spot once you know what to look for!.Here is a list of some of the most common causes for frequent wakings and we will get into more detail in a minute..
- Hunger
- Discomfort
- Overtired/Undertired
- Sleep environment
- New skills
- Unable to fall asleep independently
How to get my 5 month old to sleep through the night
Seems simple, but all we have to do is eliminate the cause for the wake up. Easier said than done and I know you’re tired Mama, so I’ll break down each potential cause..
Hunger
Unless there is a medical need to feed your baby every 2 hours, they most likely do not NEED to eat that often, but may still be waking out of hunger for other reasons. If your baby did not consume enough calories during the day, they will absolutely wake up hungry overnight and this could easily turn into a vicious cycle where baby starts to get most of their calories at night so they consume less during the day because they ate all night, but now they are up all night to eat because they didn’t eat all day. You see where I’m going with this right? It is very possible that your baby could be in a growth spurt where they do truly need those extra calories so making sure your baby is consuming 24-32oz of milk (breast or formula) during the day is key to eliminating any unnecessary night feeds. Keeping baby on a feeding schedule and logging their intake will help tremendously and if your baby’s nap starts to extend into feeding time, I recommend waking them. Missed feeds will only contribute to that overnight hunger.
Discomfort
A lot of time we are led to believe that once we start to introduce solids to our babies that they will automatically sleep longer stretches. I guess the theory makes sense since food doesn’t digest as quickly as milk therefore your baby is not waking due to hunger as often, but what that statement doesn’t account for is the fact that your baby’s tummy may need to adjust to new foods. Just like certain foods may make you gassy and Taco Bell makes you stay close by a bathroom, your baby may be experiencing some gas, constipation, or tummy troubles.
Teething is also a possibility at this age. First teeth usually start to come in around 6 months, but teething can start as early as 3 months. If your baby is waking frequently, drooling buckets, and chomping on everything.. Teething may very well be playing a role in their all night crib party!
Undertired/Overtired
A 5 month old needs about 12-15 hours of sleep in a 24 hour period and takes about 3 naps a day. If your baby is sleeping more than 3-4 hours during the day and then bedtime is a hot mess, they are most likely getting too much sleep during the day so they simply are not tired enough to sleep at night. At this age, your baby can stay awake for about 2 hours and 15 mins at a time before needing a nap so make sure to keep an eye on the time, watch for sleepy cues, and don’t let any one nap go too long.
Undertired is also not our friend. I’ve heard people suggest that keeping your child up longer during the day will help them sleep better at night and it just simply is not true. In fact, it’s the exact opposite! Good naps make for good night time sleep. That is because skipping a nap or keeping your baby awake too long causes their little bodies to produce more cortisol and adrenaline, sending them into fight or flight mode. Now laying them down to bed turns into meltdown after meltdown and even once you do finally settle them, they will most likely wake frequently and poor night time sleep will negatively impact naps..the cycle of the overtired baby continues. If you have been stuck in that cycle, you know just how important it is to not let your baby reach that point! Now I’m also not saying that you need to be a slave to your baby’s nap schedule. You can absolutely still live your life, but just be sure to watch for your child’s cues so you know when that limit is.
Sleep Environment
This is one that I personally ignored in the beginning thinking it would be good for my baby to learn to sleep through dogs barking, his siblings beating the crap out of each other, and all the other house noises that we tend to tune out during the day. I’ll just leave it at ….that did not work as planned. If we want baby to sleep well, they need to be comfortable and set up for success. That looks like an extremely dark room, as dark as you can get it. Black out curtains are your bestie now since the sunlight will absolutely affect your baby’s wake times. A sound machine to drown out any house noise. Pro tip is to place the sound machine near where the noise is coming from. For example, if you have other children running down the hall you need to drown out, place the sound machine near the door. If you live on a busy street and baby’s window is near constant traffic, place the sound machine near the window. If you have twins, place the sound machine between them to decrease the chances of one waking the other! Make sure you also pay attention to the temperature of the room and dress your baby accordingly. This is especially important when the seasons change. We get stuck in routine, but we don’t want baby to be too cold and we definitely do not want to risk them overheating!
New Skills
At this age, your baby is learning SOOO much. They are probably grabbing at everything, banging toys together, babbling, and blowing raspberries. At this age they may be rolling and they may be getting pretty good at it. Some babies are even sitting up independently now and showing beginning signs of crawling. With that being said, IT’S EXCITING. Your baby is pretty proud of their new skills so sometimes…they wake up frequently to practice. Talk about commitment!! To lessen the midnight training sessions, make sure you are offering plenty of time to practice their new skills during the day. Limit the use of containers to allow your child to explore freely so come bedtime, they are tired and ready to take a break instead of feeling like they finally have the space to practice the new tricks they’ve learned!
Unable to Fall Asleep Independently
This is the most common reason for frequent night wakes and although it is not hard to improve, it does require more than just turning off the nightlight and adjusting the temperature. The first few months of your baby’s life they cycled between REM and non REM sleep, that’s it. Around 3-4 months their circadian rhythm begins to mature and they start cycling through different stages of sleep just like we do. Between each cycle of sleep, your baby will wake slightly much like we do, but we have the ability to fall asleep independently so we most likely don’t even notice. If your baby has not learned this skill yet, when they wake between cycles they are going to need help to get back to sleep. Imagine you fell asleep in your warm, comfy bed and then you woke up in your backyard. Shocking right?! That’s exactly how your baby feels when they fall asleep snuggled in your arms and wake up alone in their crib. Up until this point they have relied on you rocking, feeding, bouncing, ect to get them to sleep so when they wake between cycles they need that same support to get back to sleep.
I feel like this one can be controversial for some because lots of people don’t believe in “sleep training” or think that all “sleep training” is leaving your baby to cry. I’m sure you can tell by my quotations that I do not love the term “sleep training” and that’s simply because to me, that term sounds like we are trying to create little baby soldiers who do what we want, when we want. “Sleep training” is not a punishment or manipulation to get the behavior you are seeking, it’s simply teaching your baby a new skill. Just like we help them to roll, walk, or talk. We are teaching them to fall asleep independently so they are able to get the best, more restorative sleep and feel like their best selves every day. You can absolutely help your baby learn this skill while still meeting their needs and honoring your own comfort level and it in no way means you can never rock your baby again! They are only little for so long and I believe a balance is absolutely achievable.
What is a realistic sleep schedule for a 5 month old
I mentioned earlier that at this age your baby needs about 12-15 hours of sleep in a 24 hour period and can stay awake for about 2 hours and 15 minutes at a time. All baby’s are different, so while the wake window does hold true to MOST babies, make sure you are taking your child’s individual needs and ques into account. The ideal bedtime at this age is between 6:30pm and 8pm and their last wake window is generally the longest. And remember, putting your baby to bed later does not mean they will sleep in later! Here is a sample schedule of what a 5 month old sleep schedule that you can use as a guide..
How many wakes should a 5 month old have
At this age, it is still completely normal to have overnight wakes! There is no magic number of when your baby should be sleeping through the night. Some suggest night wakes and overnight feeds can come to a halt at a certain age, some say when they double their birth weight. Each baby’s needs are so uniquely different that I can’t give an exact number and I would never tell you not to feed your baby. I will say, if your baby has been gaining weight steadily and consumes 24-32oz of milk during the day, expecting 1 wake up/overnight feed is still realistic. I would expect that wake to be in the early morning hours after a long stretch of sleep so if they are waking 2 hours after they initially fall asleep..well, they probably aren’t actually hungry! This is not to say that if your baby wakes up twice or not at all that it is incorrect. I can’t say it enough, all babies are different! If you are unsure about whether you should still be feeding your baby overnight, your pediatrician is always your best reference. Aside from you, they know your baby’s growth best and can give you the safest advice on when it is ok to reduce feeds!
About The Author
Hi! I’m Alisha! I am a wife, mom, step mom, fur mom, and Certified Sleep Coach at Tiny Transitions. My whole journey with pediatric sleep began when I had my baby because who knew you have to teach a baby to sleep!? I didn’t at least. Don’t they just like….sleep when they are tired?! HA, insert my FOMO baby and we were spending so many nights and naps rocking and bouncing to try and trick him into getting some sleep. This led me down a rabbit hole earning my google degree in Pediatric Sleep, but there was SO much contradicting information out there and I knew I couldn’t be the only one who felt that way. I chose to become Certified through The Institute of Pediatric Sleep so I could help families take the confusion out of their child’s sleep. I bring an empathetic, gentle approach so you can feel confident in both our journey together as well as the results. If you feel as though you could use some help with your child’s sleep, I am always available for a call! You can book me through Tinytransitions.com/Alisha. I can not wait to meet you and your little one!
