i had the same problem with my son he's now 6 months and sleeps right through the night. the problem i had was that the formula i was giving him didnt fill him enough to satisfy him. experts tell to to feed on demand. i think this is rubbish. babies dont always know their feeding limit this can lead to the baby being sick and feelin horrible. therefore u have a grumpy baby that wont sleep. try and set ur own routine. it is hard but it will work i promise u. as for the crying thing its a personal choice. i did it and it works wonders. its hard and u feel like the most cruel person in the world but it pays off in the long run. other people can give advice but ur the mum and only u can decide. swaddling really does help it may seem like ur not doing it right but you'll get the hang of it. u can buy specail blankets that are shaped for swaddling and they can really help. try putting a blanket on the bed and laying the baby on the blanket. tuck both arms at the sides and wrap really tightly. it helps the baby feel secure. but please dont cuddle the baby to sleep or allow the baby to fall asleep in ur bed. it'll start a habbit thats really hard to break. babies may be small and innocent but they can really take over. and like BellaBoo said try and sleep when ur son sleeps. its amazing what a 10 min nap can do. Good luck. u can do it. xxxx

My son *hated* being swaddled. He couldn't stand having his hands bound. So we learned to swaddle him with his hands free. If we left his legs out, he would jerk himself awake.

I suspect your son has his days and nights mixed up. You *can* get him on a better schedule, but you have to be patient because it takes some time. Start with not letting him sleep as much during the day. You just have to try to keep him up as much as possible and start adjusting his schedule. Eventually it will get to the place that you want it.

BTW, 7-8 ounces per feeding is a lot for a newborn or even at two months. Most babies don't drink that much per feeding, although there are some that do. The key is to remember that every baby is different. My son is 10 months and still can't or won't drink more than 6-7 ounces per feeding. His tummy just can't hold 8 ounces.

I agree that a pacifier is a great thing if they have a strong need to suck. If he spits it out, have you tried different shaped pacifiers? I had 5 different brands and two different nipples (latex and silicone) that I took to the hospital so I could see which would be his preference. My son will *not* take a silicone pacifier, period! So we use the latex Mams.

And I wouldn't hesitate to let him cry it out for small stretches of time like 10 minutes to see if he needs to release some stress in order to fall alseep on his own.

Hope this helps and congratulations on your wonderful new bundle of joy! Hugs, Star (Mom of 4 boys)

Try wrapping him up in a recieving blanket. I had to do this with my son ( who was three months early) It has something to do with them feeling like they are still in the womb.
Let me know if it works.

He doesnt eat 7 or 8 ounces he eats 3-3 1/2 ounces, not sure where u got that from. He's not that big of an eater lol by the way he is sleeping a little more at night just still not wanting to lay flat on his back swaddled or not.

My daughter is not 4 and a half months old and is doing great at night. It wasn't as easy at first, I was going thru the same thing as you. Don't let him just cry, I don't beleive in this method at all. At this age, if he is upset, he needs you there to comfort him. I usually take my daughter a bath before bedtime to help her relax and sleep. When she was being extra difficult, I would take her clothes off(leave her in her diaper)take off my shirt and hold her to my chest. Something about that body heat that helps them out. Start from there, put him down after he's been sleepin on you chest for about 15 minutes before you put him in his bassinett. But be patient!

The only thing that I can add to this is DO NOT buy more than one large box of diapers at a time. You never know when they are going to go through a growth spurt. Even as a newborn. I wouldn't buy more than one small box of newborn diapers. They grow really fast at first.

I definately don't believe in letting them cry it out. They get themselves so worked up, i can't bear to see it. I'd suggest a pacifier-dummy-whatever you wanna call it. Babies have this instinct of wanting to suck on something, we found a dummy to be a godsend!! And they're way better than waiting for your child to find their thumb...at least you can wein them off a dummy later..you can't take away their thumb, it rules out the orthadontics part later in life!! If that doesn't work. try swaddling, but if he wriggles it out (i just read that) leave his arms free, or get one of those sleep bags. otherwise, try maybe co-sleeping. I know when my daugher won't fall asleep on her own, i lay her down in my bed with me, and i think the feeling of having me close, and the steady calm breathing soothes her and she'll fall asleep and i can put her into her own bed. I find this alot better than nursing her to sleep of letting her fall asleep in her vibrating chair...because i don't want her to get used to that, id rather she can fall asleep by herself. Otherwise, have you tried one of those 'sounds of the womb' cd's? they soothe the babies. Try keeping him up during the day (you'll have a crappy day i can assure you) but he'll tucker himself out and hopefully sleep at night...it will take a couple of days but that should switch his days and nights back to normal. Not sleeping at night is bad for you!! its hard establishing a routine with a baby who doens't have a natural one, but it'll happen eventually. I'd just try keeping him up during the day, feed every 3 or 4 hours, bath in the afternoon to calm him down followed by a nice big feed (as much as he'll take) and he should be nice and settled, tuckered out, and sleep well...also try baby massage after the bath. Get a lavender bath lotion and a lavender massage lotion too..Lavender helps baby sleep. GOOD LUCK!!

i used one of those swaddle wraps with my daughter because she wiggled out of everything else, that was the only way she would sleep. Gas can cause him to not want to sleep. I agree with using a wedge to prop him up or even using a car seat.