Can't cope anymore

[sammyjayneex]

My baby boy is 8 months old. He's breastfed. He has 3 meals a day but still wakes up every few hours at night to be breast fed. He can't settle himself to sleep and I have to breast feed him at least 3 times before he will even consider sleeping. He's now next to me screaming his head off. I can't cope. He does this every night, he falls asleep on breast then half an hour later he wakes up and I have to breast feed him to sleep and if the milk isn't fart flowing constantly from my breast all night ( like at letdown) he will scream constantly. He refuses the dummy now point blank and spits it out. He won't sleep in his cot and I have to have him in my bed all night and I can't sleep properly. I wake up in my pain in my back Because if it. He can scream for hours and will never give up. I'm so tired and fed up!

[sammyjayneex]

I've tried everything tonight. I've tried rocking him to sleep, singing to him. Gave him teething gel. He don't sleep!!!
I can't put him to breast again tonight because he's bit me 3 times and it hurts ( he has two bottom teeth and has just cut a top one) arggg feel so stressed

[mrslaichaoui]

Have you discussed with your Health Visitor? Sorry you're feeling this way but it will pass!! Maybe express some before bed time and offer that? Once baby knows you're not gonna get boobs out every time he might not bother! Good luck!

[Scrumptiouscrumpets]

The teething is definitely an issue here, but the feeding to sleep is an even bigger problem. It may seem like a step backwards, but you need to stop feeding him to sleep. It isn't really working anyway, seeing as you have to feed him three times! Feed him before you put him down. Make sure he is 100% awake when you put him in his cot. Then insist with the dummy, pat his tummy, put on white noise, stroke his cheek, cuddle his cheek into a muslin - whatever it takes to calm him down. Keep going until he's asleep. When he wakes, do the same routine. Do this for naps, become and night wakings.
The important thing is consistency. You need to be absolutely consistent, don't cave in and feed him to sleep, even if he won't go to sleep for an hour or more. Not only will it reinforce the need to feed to sleep, you will also have put your baby under a lot of stress for nothing.

[notagiraffe]

Would you consider mixed feeding? Giving him a bottle at night, so he learns not to associate need for food with need for a breastfeed? If night feeds were always bottles and day feeds breastfeeds might it help? Also, it would mean that someone else could have him for a night, so you could catch up on some sleep.
I feel for you. There's a tipping point of exhaustion. If you are ill with tiredness, you can't function.

[sammyjayneex]

Thanks everyone!

I think last night I was having a meltdown because i couldn't settle him and it seems like it could be his teething as well as being too used tonne feeding him to sleep. I think he doesn't know how to sleep alone. I have considered mixed feeding now he is 8 months old and I bought some formula milk so I might give him a bottle feed like suggested. He's just learnt how to crawl and before bed i sat in the floor with him to let him play with his toys and have a crawl and he seemed to get tired so I fed him then put him in his cot to sleep and he's sleeping so I think it tired him out. Thanks for all the suggestions I wil be trying everything

[sammyjayneex]

Well I think I spoke too soon. He woke up after half an hour screaming. It's so tiring