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Infant feeding

Get advice and support with infant feeding from other users here.

Stopping night feeding a toddler - help!

3 replies

clarequilty · 25/06/2013 12:40

Posting in here as its more a weaning issue.

How have you got a nightfeeding toddler to stop? I should be able to answer my own question as I did this with my eldest! But this one is more mad for it and feeds more often in the night.

She?s 22 months with good understanding and speech (though that won?t make her less upset, will it!) A good night is a 10-15 minute feed to sleep in her bed, with a waking at 11pm -12pm, at which she comes into my bed. Usually a waking at 5am and another feed at 7am before getting up.

That?s a good night. A bad one is an hour of thrashy feeding and nipple tugging and sitting up asking for water (yeah). Coming into out bed at 10pm and feeding every hour or so. It depends on tiredness. Much of this is chomping, not feeding. And I find the playing with the other boob with sharp finger nails sometimes excrutiating.

I want to stop this farrago.

I have tried Jay Gordon several times but it got tantrummy by day 6 each time and I caved. I also think the child can?t understand why you feed them to sleep at 7.30pm but not at 3.30 am. I think she was genuinely baffled and got Really Angry.

With my eldest I stopped the night feeds at 24 months after seguewaying her out of our bed into her grown up bed. I just fed her on the bed, read stories and cuddled her to sleep. It was a bit painful. She was really upset, and I felt like a real shit, but at least I was there comforting her. That night she slept through. Next night she was still upset but slept through again. By night three it was easier. Still had to be present for her to go to sleep but that trailed off by age 4.

I should note my youngest ?can? go to sleep without boob. Sometimes when she?s too thrashy I tell her no and roll over and let her thrash about and fall asleep. This can take ages.

But also complicating this is that I nap her in a carrier often feeding her to sleep (and walking around looking like a wally with a huge toddler strapped to my front with a nipple in her mouth). But she seems to be dropping/moving her nap, which makes me think I can do this now.

I guess I?ve answered my question. But wondered if you?ve got any experiences or advice to share, or if you think this approach is too harsh considering the rod I have made?!

OP posts:
eagerbeagle · 25/06/2013 21:55

No answer but you could be me so watching this space. The scratchy nipple twiddling is the worst....

Beamur · 25/06/2013 21:59

Could you start by stopping the feeding to sleep at naptime? Rather than at bedtime which is bound to be more fraught.

High neck tops so that boobs are out of sight.

Rhinopotamus · 26/06/2013 21:38

My DS2 (22 months) is very similar- feeding to sleep still and waking once or twice a night. I co-sleep from about 3am and he is slowly getting better at settling himself, but is still inconsistent.
DS1 was also not a great sleeper, but we did have more success with getting him to sleep better at around 18 months. My husband had a week off work and basically took over. He put DS to bed and then went to him everytime he woke. The first night was tough and DS needed a lot of cuddling and rocking back to sleep by dh. By the end of the week he had stopped waking in the night and has remained a good sleeper ever since.
We have tried this with ds2 but with no luck. Just wondered if you could try something similar with your dd. I'll also be interested to see if anyone has any other ideas!

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