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Post edited 1:31 am – June 17, 2010 by marisa

My otherwise darling 4 month old is going through 'the change' (sleep, that is), so we figure it's a good time to start training him. (He used to go to sleep quickly and easily on his own, but no more! Took us 1.5 hours to get him to sleep tonight.) The main habit we want to break is the pacifier. He doesn't always need it to fall asleep, but are now using it more since he has had a more difficult time settling at night. Then, of course, we run into his room many times a night to put it back in, usually during night-wakings/between sleep cycles, I now know (a bad habit we got into when he was much younger – and when it was much easier when he was in a bassinette beside me!). Up to now, I'd know he was hungry when a couple turns of the pacifier in quick succession didn't stop the fussing.

So my question is:

As we begin to break the pacifier habit, and expect that the fussing/crying won't subside easily, how will I know when he is hungry?? Should I assume his regular(ish) schedule will hold (he usually wakes to eat between 3-4:30am)? Basically, how will I know if he's crying because he's missing the pacifier, or because he's hungry? (We were planning to use the 'check and console' method starting this weekend.)