So my son is 5 1/2 months old. He's EBF and he weighs 19lbs. I was all for waiting to introduce solids. Because EVERYONE keeps saying "you can't over feed a breast fed baby" but I'm afraid as soon as I introduce solid food that's what he will become-overfed! ANd because he's so big, my Ped hasn't said a word to me about introducing solids. (Because at 19lbs what's she gonna say?) I was overjoyed to hear that babies could be sustained for over a year on breast milk alone and was sure we were going to do it! In the last two weeks things have begun to change. THe 1st thing that changed (and this is really the most difficult one to deal with) is the frequency of his night feedings. He's been sleeping thru the night since he was 5 wks old. And by that I mean I got one strectch that was usually 4.5 to 5hrs straight and then he needs to be fed every 1.5 to 2 hrs but we co-sleep so it's not like we really wake up. He feeds on demand thru the day every 1.5 to 3hrs usually. Now his long stretch at night is only 2.5 hours and then he wants to nurse every 45min to 1.5 hours the rest of the night! The 2nd thing that has happened is he's become distracted while eating. I knew this day would come but I didn't realize it would be so problematic. During the day feedings he rips away from my breast constantly to look at stuff and uses my breasts to play peek-a-boo with whoever happens to be around. Even at the night feeding he will suckle than ripp away to suck his own fingers than come back and eat. So my questions are: 1st: Is there a growth spurt that is common at this age that is causing the need for more frequent food? If so how long should I expect it to last? I'm having a REALLY HARD TIME with 6 to 7 feedings a night!
2nd: Everyone I've talked to who introduced solids early did it for this reason. Baby stopped sleeping thru the night. So if it's a phase I don't want to jump the gun. BUT if that's where we are, I'm inclined to introduce some cereal just to get him to sleep thru the night. Now what's the protocol on putting cereal in breastmilk? Can I do that or would I also have to introduce a bottle of PM formula?
Any help would be greatly appreciated!