Q – My baby is 5 months old and everything is ok except sleep. During the night, he always cries, wakes up and then takes about 1 hour to sleep again. During the day he is happy and active and can have about a 2 hour nap every afternoon. I am worried that he lacks something in his body. Could you please give me some suggestions?

A – If your son is healthy and developing normally there unlikely is anything wrong with your son. He is most likely waking because of habit- i.e. he is used to waking at this time and has not learned to settle himself back to sleep at this time. There are several methods for dealing with children that have difficulty sleeping through the night and you might want to talk with your doctor about the one that is right for you and your son.

Dr. Linda Ducholke, a mother of two, has been a successful Family Practitioner with Obstetrical privileges for the past 20 years. The main focus and passion of her practice is obstetrics and childcare.