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Infant feeding

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

Original poster

3 month old nursing to sleep

11 replies

Bunnychan · 08/09/2013 20:42

Hi
My 3 month old is a fantastic sleeper and often goes 10-12 hours through the night. She's exclusively breastfed and feeds well during the day, often cluster feeding in the evening.
Lately, she's been getting sleepy during some of her feeds and ends up going straight into a nap or sometimes being nursed to sleep at night. Am I creating a problem? She does self settle too but will she end up wanting nursing to sleep more often? I'm worried but then I'm worried to wake her if she won't go back down?

OP posts:
hettienne · 08/09/2013 20:46

Isn't this what all babies do? I didn't think they could stay awake on a full stomach!

I don't know the answer really - both self-settling and sleeping through is very unusual in a baby so young, especially a breastfed one. She might want to feed to sleep all the time, but if she still sleeps 10-12 hours does it matter? Generally I would just go with the flow, and don't try to fix a problem until it actually happens (it might never happen).

Be warned though, there is commonly a sleep regression at around 4 months when even previously good sleepers start sleeping poorly. My DS was an 8 hours a night baby until 18 weeks when suddenly he started waking every 45 minutes!

learnasyougo · 08/09/2013 20:53

the books will all tell you this is a problem. I have a one year old who nursed to sleep st that age and we also panicked (thanks, books). mine slept worse than yours, though. He would wake 4-9 times a night (yes, 50 minute sleeps! all night!)
anyway, as they get older, they do learn. After some time, he didn't fall sleep on the boob and iy was back rubs or touch. now he can fall asleep without anything. You are not breaking or ruining your baby by nursing to sleep. Not all cultures sleeo train.

bundaberg · 08/09/2013 20:55

nooo it's a great thing! imagine, always being able to put your child to sleep when you need to! relish it :-D

Thesebootsweremadeforwalking · 08/09/2013 20:56

It is only a problem if you feel it is. I shamelessly fed DS to sleep for as long as he would, and he was still capable of self-settling at night after a feed. I am now doing the same with DD! She too will self-settle after a night feed, in a dark quiet room.

mrsmartin1984 · 08/09/2013 21:51

It seems to be the new piece of advice. Don't put them to bed asleep and get them to self settle. In reality milk makes them drunk and a good feed sends them off to sleep. What are you supposed to do? Wake them up and then try and get them to sleep themselves? It won't always be that way

shelly81 · 09/09/2013 13:28

They don't stay little for long enjoy it :)

Mystic73 · 09/09/2013 13:45

Go with what feels right for you and your baby. I breast feed my son until recently...ten weeks ago and he is two and a half. Since he was born he never slept right through...only when he turned two. For me and him it was the greatest comfort that he would instantly feel calm and safe when on the breast. For this reason I was ok with him feeding on demand and for comfort when he was upset or anxious. It's a personal thing, but don't get too wrapped up in books, trust your heart and own judgements. Good luck :-)

Hawkmoth · 09/09/2013 13:50

Mine will only fall asleep by feeding in the day. She's eleven weeks ish. She self settles at night very well and is often babbling away when I fall asleep! I am beginning to accept that naps are hugely different, and more difficult, than her big sleep.

Wallison · 09/09/2013 13:54

Isn't breast milk supposed to put them to sleep? I mean, I thought it released sleepy hormones.

I wouldn't worry about it at all. My son also slept for 12 hours from three months old, and always fell asleep on the boob. I worried that I was 'creating a rod for my own back' as they say, but what could I do? I could hardly not feed him, and nor can you not feed your baby. In the end, he was still nursing just for one feed a day at bedtime and still feeding to sleep. I was always apprehensive about what would happen when I stopped bfing, and when he dropped that final feed I was in the horrors but put him in his cot anyway, and he went off to sleep like a dream. All of that worrying had been for nothing, so based on my experience I would say do yourself a favour and don't worry about it.

Original poster
Bunnychan · 09/09/2013 15:35

Thanks ladies. I don't mind it so much but everything I read seems to make it out like its a terrible thing to do. It's only started recently that's why I felt so unsure; its not all the time but I was worried it would become so. Her latest thing is clamping down and pulling really hard, sliding off, smiling at me, grabbing my clothes when she doesn't feed to sleep. Think I prefer her going to sleep, it's less painful lol x

OP posts:
Samsean · 09/09/2013 16:01

I wish wish wish my LO would feed to sleep Hmm currently it is endless walking around and rocking they settles her, and she is getting heavier!

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