Night weaning or partial night weaning

[KD0706]

DD2 is just a few days away from her first birthday.
In most ways she is what society would call a 'good' baby. Very contented in the day etc.

But her night time sleep just seems to get worse. She has on three separate occasions gone a few weeks of only waking once a night. But for the past six (ish) weeks she has been waking two or three times a night for a feed (she was also waking in the evenings but I sorted that out about a week ago by pushing her bedtime back about 20 minutes).

I've kept on hoping she will just sort herself out. But now I'm feeling I need to give her a helping hand.

She is offered one breastfed in the day, which she takes about 50% of the time. She has good bedtime routine, culminating in bath then feed in darkened room. She usually goes down awake, sometimes grumbles a little but generally takes herself off to sleep. Virtually never fed to sleep.

On a good night she will sleep 7.30pn through to about 1.30, when she wakes looking for a feed. Then she will settle again usually awake after her feed. She sleeps for 2.5-3 hours before waking again looking for a feed.

She won't take a feed first thing in the morning but does eat a good breakfast.

She eats fairly well in the day I think.

She has a good daytime nap.

I'm thinking of maybe trying to just feed her once overnight. So, do I just decide for example that I'll feed her at her first wake up and not again. Or do I set myself a rule that I won't feed her until a certain time?

I don't actually mind feeding her once in the night even if technically she doesn't need the nutrition of it.

Thanks for any thoughts, hints or tips.

[KD0706]

Well, I'm completely screwing it up tonight. I've been trying since 10pm to settle her without a feed and have given up and am now feeding her. That means tonight is likely to be a three feed night.

I will be up in the morning with my toddler who doesn't nap and I just need some sleep. I feel so useless.

[Gintonic]

You could check out the jay Gordon technique for dropping night feeds - I can't remember all the details but a google search will throw it up.

I found sending my DH to settle LO back to sleep was the key, as if he saw me he automatically wanted a feed. We set aside a week when DH was on holiday to cut out the night feeds one by one.

HTH

[KD0706]

Thanks very much. I will have a look.

I think a lot of the advice is aimed at older babies who feed to sleep. Which doesn't apply to my baby.

I will look at Jay Gordon over the weekend. But my interim plan for tonight is to just offer one side at each waking.

I think she's wise to me though as she's sleeping soundly still at the moment, no replay of last nights hoo ha. Fingers crossed for a good night. I really should be tucking myself up in bed to make the most of it

[5madthings]

As she isn't having ,such milk in the days she may well need the milk at night tbh.

Sounds like she us 'reverse cycling' Google it and kellymom may have good info.

Is she distractible during the day? Can you feed her somewhere quiet and distraction free?

[5madthings]

kellymom.com/bf/normal/reverse-cycling/

[KD0706]

Thanks 5madthings
She eats her solids so well that I hadn't really thought of her needing more than a couple of feeds in a 24 hour period.

I'll make a conscious effort to increase daytime feeds, and see how that goes. I have an older daughter so we are out and about a lot. Which makes for lots of distraction for baby. Plus (and I know this is daft as she's not even one yet) I'm feeling a bit self conscious about feeding outside the home - not least because she's often distracted, popping on and off, making my milk spray everywhere etc!