AimeeM Posted February 21, 2013 Share Posted February 21, 2013 I've been nursing, with only a month or two break between kids, for about 4 years. Through the night. I'm tired. Very, very tired. Lol. Flying Baby Monster (aka Marco) is 8 months old (God, time has flown!). He slept nicely until 4 months old; since then, he's had his older brother's sleep habits - as in, they sleep off and on, wake to nurse frequently, and Mom is left banking about 3 to 4 hours of random (not consistent) sleep at night. Any tips for GENTLE night weaning (or partial night weaning - I'm cool with a time or two during the night). I've tried the obvious - dream feedings, trying to rock or pat back to sleep, waiting until the breast is "requested" instead of offering, etc. I have a happily helpful husband who, if Baby Monster would allow, is happy to help at night with rocking, walking, etc. I'm not interested in any form of sleep training or CIO and if those are sincerely my only options, I'll just suck it up and hope that one day, in another 4 or 5 years, I'll be able to sleep, lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nandmsmom Posted February 21, 2013 Share Posted February 21, 2013 With my kids, we had to get Daddy involved. If I went in, they had to nurse. It makes sense, I'm the one with the milk. If my hubby went in, they realized he had no food, and went off to sleep easily. After a week or so of getting only Daddy, they stopped waking up at night. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AimeeM Posted February 21, 2013 Author Share Posted February 21, 2013 With my kids, we had to get Daddy involved. If I went in, they had to nurse. It makes sense, I'm the one with the milk. If my hubby went in, they realized he had no food, and went off to sleep easily. After a week or so of getting only Daddy, they stopped waking up at night. Hmm. I wonder if it would be possible to do over a weekend. I'm not sure Mr. M could do that during the work week - he'd fall asleep in his office getting up every hour through the night, lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seeking Squirrels Posted February 21, 2013 Share Posted February 21, 2013 DD was almost 2 when I night weaned her, but she was very attached to nursing so I was amazed how well it worked. I used Dr Jay Gordon's plan as a base and modified it in a way that worked for us. You pick the stretch of night you want to wean them and slowly cut back. I think we did midnight to 7am. For a few days I nursed her but not quite as long, puling her off instead of waiting for her to let go. The next few nights I nursed even shorter times, not letting her get to sleep. The next few nights I held and cuddled but didn't nurse. The next few nights I comforted without fully picking up. After that I just placed a hand on her back. All just during those weaning hours. Before and after it was nursing as usual. It only took a couple of weeks. He recommends it only for those over a year old. Since you're okay with some night nursings maybe you could pick two 4 hour blocks instead, with an hour or two gap between for baby to wake and nurse. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
delaney Posted February 21, 2013 Share Posted February 21, 2013 I tried the get up and nurse them thing for the first 3 kids then I gave in and pulled them in bed. They roll over and nurse and I go back to sleep. It worked for me and they eventually weaned. Okay, maybe the last one did nurse til age 3 lol :leaving: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AimeeM Posted February 21, 2013 Author Share Posted February 21, 2013 I tried the get up and nurse them thing for the first 3 kids then I gave in and pulled them in bed. They roll over and nurse and I go back to sleep. It worked for me and they eventually weaned. Okay, maybe the last one did nurse til age 3 lol :leaving: Well, that used to be my go-to; if I nursed him in bed he would let me put him back in the crib. Unfortunately, I fell asleep with him in bed the last time I did that and... well, we call him "Flying Baby Monster" for a reason - he launched off the bed and onto the hardwood floor, fracturing his skull. I can't explain another incident with this very rambunctious, very mobile, baby to the doctor, lol. So now I'm sleeping on the floor with Flying Baby Monster in my older son's room. My older son nursed until almost 3 as well, lol. I feel your pain. :glare: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happypamama Posted February 21, 2013 Share Posted February 21, 2013 I've had to mostly night wean my 19mo due to pregnancy, because it's too painful to nurse him for very long, so I've had to have DH cuddle with him (or take him downstairs) some, but I've also started handing him his water bottle (18 oz. Klean Kanteen with the sport top, not filled all the way), and that seems to help. I also do the rocking/walking/ssssshing thing with him sometimes. Your little guy is younger than mine, so he may be genuinely hungry (whereas I think mine is very often thirsty). I have a friend who had some good success with giving her child full-fat yogurt before bed (I do think her child was a bit older, though); the fat helped to tank the child up well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barefoot Explorer Posted February 21, 2013 Share Posted February 21, 2013 Let's see..I night weaned my first baby at about 22 months and my second baby at about 10 months. It was quite hard for the first and fairly easy for the second, so you definitely have to take personality into consideration, but for both of them the key was (like another poster stated) getting Daddy really involved. I don't remember exactly how it happened the first time, but I can tell you what we did the second time. We cosleep, so what we ended up doing was this: -Wash the sheets so that they don't smell like mama milk. -Nurse baby really thoroughly before bed and then have baby and daddy go through an elaborate ritual of saying night night to Mama and leaving her in the living room to go to bed. Lots of hugs and kisses, maybe a book or two. -Daddy puts the baby to bed and is there to cuddle and comfort when the baby wakes up. Mama stays on the couch. -The first few nights he did wake up and cry, but was eventually soothed by Daddy. This wasn't the crazy hysterical crying of CIO. He was just expressing his disappointment at the new arrangement, but he still had Daddy to soothe and comfort. -After about a week, he started completely sleeping through the night! We were amazed at how easy this transition was. Then I came back to the bed, but I made sure to wear a high neck shirt and sleep with my back to the baby at first. He now is 22 months old and knows that he gets to nurse right before he goes to bed and right after breakfast. The only nursing that has been a challenge has been the one that he asks for at 6:30 when he wakes up. We decided to move this to after breakfast so that I could get another hour of sleep. -In a month we are buying bunkbeds for the boys, and honestly, I am going to miss my little cuddle bug! Cosleeping becomes so enjoyable once they stop waking up constantly, and I am trying to soak it up before it is over... Emily Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted February 22, 2013 Share Posted February 22, 2013 A good supper of solid food, and a regular bedtime; when he wakes, wait and see if he'll go back to sleep before you go get him. If he must nurse, nurse and then put him back to bed. The next time he wakes up, wait and see if he'll self-soothe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
delaney Posted February 22, 2013 Share Posted February 22, 2013 Well, that used to be my go-to; if I nursed him in bed he would let me put him back in the crib. Unfortunately, I fell asleep with him in bed the last time I did that and... well, we call him "Flying Baby Monster" for a reason - he launched off the bed and onto the hardwood floor, fracturing his skull. I can't explain another incident with this very rambunctious, very mobile, baby to the doctor, lol. So now I'm sleeping on the floor with Flying Baby Monster in my older son's room. My older son nursed until almost 3 as well, lol. I feel your pain. :glare: I can see that happening which is why there was a side rail on my side of the bed until they got bigger and then they were between DH and I. Seems most nights we still have a kid between us. :glare: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dustybug Posted February 22, 2013 Share Posted February 22, 2013 ((hugs)) I completely understand. I have been pregnant and/or breastfeeding for the past 7 years straight(and counting!) and I am TIRED. lol I just weaned my 2 1/2 year old and it took months, but I didn't want to CIO or anything either. My DH works overnight so I was all on my own. I just started trying to tell her "Nursies are night-night, we will see them in the morning" and then wait to see what would happen. If she fussed or cried, I tried to comfort her with cuddles, etc. If she calmed down and went to sleep, great! If not, I'd just nurse her and try again the next time. After several months, she finally stopped. But she still sleeps with a hand down my shirt. lol We LOVE this book by the way: http://www.amazon.com/Nursies-When-Shines-Katherine-Havener/dp/0615756425/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1361492004&sr=8-1&keywords=nursies+when+the+sun+shines I reviewed it here if you want to know more about it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carriede Posted February 22, 2013 Share Posted February 22, 2013 With my kids, we had to get Daddy involved. If I went in, they had to nurse. It makes sense, I'm the one with the milk. If my hubby went in, they realized he had no food, and went off to sleep easily. After a week or so of getting only Daddy, they stopped waking up at night. I had a similar experience when DS was 18mo. I plan on doing the same sort of thing with DD when she's that age. To OP, I personally feel that 8 mo is too young to night wean. There are so many developmental changes at that age. I would try to wait until 12 mo. I did 18 with my son, and I probably could have done it sooner (I just feel so bad! Lol). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AimeeM Posted February 22, 2013 Author Share Posted February 22, 2013 I had a similar experience when DS was 18mo. I plan on doing the same sort of thing with DD when she's that age. To OP, I personally feel that 8 mo is too young to night wean. There are so many developmental changes at that age. I would try to wait until 12 mo. I did 18 with my son, and I probably could have done it sooner (I just feel so bad! Lol). Oh I don't mean to entirely night wean. I would be thrilled to just knock it down to nursing a couple times during the night... anything less than every hour, on the hour... lol. I mean, it would be great if he magically started sleeping completely through the night, but I'm a pretty realistic person, lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.