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won't sleep without niplle in mouth.... help i'm desperate.

10 replies

6inchnipples · 04/06/2009 17:36

my dc3 is 8 and a half mnths and is going thru a phase of not sleeping unless latched on. Also biting and scratching me in middle of the night. Ive been coping ok til now but after last night (7th night in row) i want it to end so desperately i'm considering stopping b/f. My other 2 only started to sleep thru once they stopped b/f.

Any advise/ personal experience of this.

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belgo · 04/06/2009 17:48

My ds is about the same age and we're going through this as well. The last few nights I've refused to feed him more then once every three hours, and he's been crying in between. Dh and I have been taking turns in holding him. Last night he slept better. I really cannot be feeding him constantly through the night, but I don't want to stop bfing him.

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wem · 04/06/2009 20:56

dd is 7 months and this evening she won't settle for more than 5 mins. She falls asleep instantly if I feed her and stays asleep as I put her down in her cot, but wakes up crying 5 mins later. The last couple of nights she's been waking hourly, think I might go crazy if it carries on like this for the rest of the night!

Sorry, not much help to you, but you're not alone

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Turbomouth · 04/06/2009 20:59

Is a quick switch for a dummy an option?

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6inchnipples · 04/06/2009 21:41

Thanks for replies.

My other 2 dc did this too, dc1 i fed til 14mnths and even at that stage he was still regularly feeding in the night/needing a nipple to sleep. He refused a dummy. I started giving him bottles of milk when he woke lookin for a breast which led very quickly to him needing a bottle to get back to sleep if he woke in the night. Didn't break that habit until he was around 2. Only then did he sleep thru.

Dc2 also did this and when i made the decision to stop feeding her at night around 9mnths (i knew she wasn't hungry as had offered a bottle feed in the night which she refused) she very quickly weaned herself from the breast during the day. She had a dummy from around 6 weeks so easy enough transition. Slept reasonably thereafter altho still very attached to dummy at 2 and a half.

Dc3 refuses dummy. Have offered 1 many times which she'll hold and chew but not suck. Not sure how to stop this bad habit as when i cuddle her in she wrestles with my top trying to get to my boobs and often nips and scratches at me and then i start getting crabit/annoyed/desperate/pissed off/resentful of dp sound asleep in spare bed and generally foul mood.

Going to try only feeding sitting up to see if that helps, so she is not lying down asleep latched on iykwim.

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expatmom · 06/06/2009 11:50

Could it be teething? My 9 mo DD recently did this and although it has not stopped completely (ie she still almost always wants to feed in order to drop back off to sleep after waking), it does seem to have improved once three new teeth showed up at once.

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ches · 07/06/2009 03:53

Definitely sounds like teething. Ibuprofen worked well for DS, paracetamol not so much.

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6inchnipples · 07/06/2009 23:03

My dd will not take anything orally during the night unless it is delivered via a breast!! I have been using paracetamol supps which i got in france when on holiday and all kids got a bug, Was a bit about using them at first but they've been a god send.

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HH11 · 08/06/2009 11:15

New to mumsnet and glad I am not alone. My 8 month old had been a "sucky" baby from the start and we have just started "co-sleeping" as she was waking up almost hourly and would only settle with breast. Since been bed-sharing she wakes up much less but still likes to be attached to me but I am getting loads more rest. But not sure what to try next - not convinced any of the options given so far will work - when she doesn't get what she wants she will just keep crying. I was just thinking of perservering and hoping she will grow out of it. But is this wishful thinking? Any thoughts/suggestions?

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HH11 · 08/06/2009 11:15

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6inchnipples · 08/06/2009 20:19

hi hh11 my ds didn't grow out of it. i had to wean him off at 14mnths. He wasn't to hard to weaen but i was sad i had to stop bfing to get him to sleep. He is nearly 5 now and still says random things like ' oh i wish i was a baby so i could sleep in your bed and have booby milk all night'.... yip weaning him off was the right decision!!