Don't feed him & let him cry (7 month old)

[Young_Mommy89]

So yesterday was ds's 6 month checkup (he's late on it bcuz he was late to his 4 mo for shots), he's 7 & 1/2 months old. Anyway the two pediatricians that I LOVED have moved far away & we weren't seen until over an hour after my appt. The dr seemed rushed & I expressed how ds doesn't seem to sleep well at night lately (he had been waking 1-2 times to eat recently).
The dr told me, "Don't feed him. Feed him right before bed (I do) & if he wakes up let him cry. He does not need to eat at night nutritionally speaking"

Wtf? He's a baby & he gets hungry I'm not going to starve my child.
Btw, he's 19lbs & 29in long he's 50th percentile for weight & 75th for height so he's not overweight

[aimhawk]

My son is a year today and still occasionally wakes up at night to feed. Every child is different, but a lot of children do this. It isn't a big deal, just makes you tired. It is also usually worse when they are going through a growth spurt or teething.

[pipsmommy]

I followed this advice and had wonderful results. After 1 night my daughter slept though the night, was better rested and had no issues with hunger or being undernourished.

[Kmary]

Well being a pediatrician, he could start by being up to date on current feeding practice recommendations, or he could offer possible causes (growth spurt, teething) and give options.  There isn't necessarily anything inherently wrong with what he said, but it's a bit old school.  But, OP, that's why it's good to ask questions but ultimately go with your gut instincts, which obviously is to feed when hungry even if it's at night. 

Quoting silverdawn99:

i guess i dont see the point in getting mad at him

you are the one that brought it up to the pedi

what is he supposed to say?

[Young_Mommy89]

He is teething

Quoting aimhawk:

My son is a year today and still occasionally wakes up at night to feed. Every child is different, but a lot of children do this. It isn't a big deal, just makes you tired. It is also usually worse when they are going through a growth spurt or teething.

[Paperfishies]

The pediatrician sounds like a douche.

[ebbierowe]

While nutritionally there may be no need apparently your baby needs something ...what I did with my little one was as she got older when she would wake aat night to eat I would give her a little less each time....foe example I would 6 oz for a few days and them drop to 4 then 3....

She woukd go back to sleep no matter how much I fed her eventually we got down to me just going in and reassuring her and she wpuld go back to sleep

[Gwynyth]

That's ridiculous. Not feeding him if he gets hungry will make him cry more!

[Momyplease]

What is he supposed to say? maybe ask about the baby's feeding history. ~~~~~

Quoting DonnaPinitonya:

The doctor is supposed to take the time to ask about the feeding schedule and eating history and suggest age appropriate HELPFUL answers. 

This is a new doc to this baby that passed mom and baby off with out regard. 

Quoting silverdawn99:

i guess i dont see the point in getting mad at him

you are the one that brought it up to the pedi

what is he supposed to say?

[TheMeanestMom]

Have you read "Healthy Sleep Habits Happy Child"? It's a great resource! I have three kids under the age of 4 and that book has been a godsend for me and my littles. It gives a lot of facts and talks about a lot of different sleep training methods. Honestly if your baby is getting enough to eat before it might be that he is waking up out of habit and not hunger. Food is the ultimate reward for us humans and so if he wakes up and cries and is given food it's easy to turn into a habit.

Have you tried "tanking up" method? With one of my babies it worked really well. The other two not so much. But basically feed her a lot leading up to bedtime. For example with my baby girl she would normally eat every 4 hours during the day. To tank her up before bed I would feed her every 2 hours starting at 4 and bed was at 8. Sometimes I'd feed her at 7 and again at 8. You could try that.

Does she go for long stretches during the day without eating? her long stretches should be at night by this point. Maybe try giving her some water and a paci and that will let you know if she was really hungry.

[ahappymommy]

 Well he's not suppose to say Dont feed your baby! What kind of doctor tells you not to feed your baby?

Quoting silverdawn99:

i guess i dont see the point in getting mad at him

you are the one that brought it up to the pedi

what is he supposed to say?