Middle of the night issues (long)...

kjsmith9

The past few nights we've gotten zero sleep between roughly 1:00am and 5:00am... I'm trying to figure out why...

We've alternated between swaddle and no swaddle, sleeping in the RnP and co-sleeping, waking to feed every 1.5 to 2 hours during the day and waking to feed on her own... I just can't figure it out!

She sleeps well during the day without issue, and typically falls asleep at the breast within 5 minutes of finishing eating.  Literally, the only time she cries during the day/evening is 1) when she's hungry, and 2) when she needs/has her diaper changed.  I consider myself lucky to have a baby that doesn't really cry during most hours of the day, but this 1 to 5 timeslot is driving us crazy!!  

She doesn't cry inconsolably the entire time she's awake - sometimes she's just awake and looking around, she'll nurse here and there, and cry intermittently (but when she does cry, she *screams* at the top of her lungs).  

I was about to pull my hair out this morning and gave her gripe water for the first time - she's been sleeping since 5 minutes after I gave it to her (about 4 hours ago), and DH said she hasn't spit up in that time either (which is crazy for her - she spits a lot but never looks uncomfortable with it).  

Soooo here are my questions: Should we just keep trying the gripe water at night?  Should I give it to her immediately before or after I BF when she wakes up around 1am, or wait until she's crying (would it prevent the episode if I gave it to her first)?  What is the difference between gripe water and gas drops (I didn't know which to use this morning so I just picked one).  

Also, what are the chances that this has anything to do with my diet?  I figured issues with food sensitivity would make her uncomfortable at any/all times of day with BFing, not just a 4 hour slot in the middle of the night... but who knows.

Sorry this is so long, thanks for any help!