Never off the breast!!!

[brilaunt]

Hi! Just wondering if anyone is in the same boat as me?
My bf 9 week old is NEVER OFF THE BREAST! Even when she isnt hungry , she wants to suck suck suck!!! She won't go to sleep on her own, she needs my breast to send her to sleep which I don't mind but I'm worried that I may be making her completely dependant on me and that she won't be able to self-soothe at all. Have even tried a dummy, she looks at me with complete distain when I put it in her mouth and always spits it out even if she is already half asleep!!! Any suggestions/comments much appreciated!

We were last year. Tis very knackering but gradually got better for us. They change their habits all the time.

Your baby loves you and probably just wants to stay close to you. Don't worry about making her completely dependent on you, she already is, that's normal for a baby!

But feel free to vent, I still remember not being able to go to the loo, eat warm food, get the phone etc etc. Take heart that you are doing a wonderful thing by being there for her (but also dp / granny can take a turn to let you have some freedom).

Around 3 mths he got more interested in the world, plus their stomach is bigger, sucking more efficient and awake more in the day.

How long are her feeds? If she's taking more than about 10 minutes for a full feed (ie completely emptying one breast) at 9 weeks then her latch may need looking at. Other than that, don't worry about forming dependency habits - counter-intuitively, keeping them as close as they want to be kept actually boosts independence!

I remember this so well. I'd read all these books about feeding every 2 hours and looked down at my DS thinking - 2 HOURS would be amazing! I've since found talking to other mums that it's normal for EBF babies.

It gets better, a lot better but some babies are sucky babies and my DS always wanted to suckle more than bottle fed babies until weaned.

Didn't make him any more clingy than others (now 14m) but did have to teach him to settle himself around the 6 month mark which involved a bit of crying.

Given time over again, I'd still do the same thing - feed whenever, watch DVDs, go out to friends houses where feeding can continue, eat cake, cuddle baby lots, sleep whenever humanly feasible, survive and enjoy when possible.

Always thought I was a "cute little baby" person but actually the stages from 6m to now have been fantastic.

Just keep going, you're doing a brilliant job.

babies dont just "take" dummies, esp bf babies - you need to persevere - keep offering dummy when baby isnt grisling or fussing - put some milk on it - ultimately if this has been going on for more than a week then I would personally hand baby ver to someone for say 2 hours after each feed for a few days. If baby is slurping all day then they will never be properly hungry for a feed and therefor enever take a decent amount in one go, so they will always be hungry.

btw i exclusively bf all mine

Blimey, I wouldn't start a dummy habit if you're breastfeeding! It'll make your milk supply drop off no end. Neither of mine went for two hours between feeds at this stage. I'd stick with what you've been doing - it sounds like you and your baby are both doing well.

i disagree with Octavia
it's plenty normal for a 9 week old to spend more than 10 minutes on the breast. that is not indicative of a latch problem at all, esp if there are no other signs that baby is not taking enough milk (ie, not enough wet/dirty nappies, poor weight gain etc)
the breast is never completely empty.. they make milk pretty much constantly and a baby can feed and feed and feed and still be getting milk

I would also disagree about dummies resulting in weight loss or problems feeding, esp beyond the 6 week mark,

op your baby sounds very normal! it's fine for her to feed to sleep, she is still tiny. obviously it's hard to say fully without knowing how long she feeds for and how often, but breastfed babies do feed little and often and that is ok.
I would agree that if you do want to introduce a dummy you may need to persevere. also never try and make her have it (once she is using it) if she doesn't want it- always offer the breast if she seems unhappy with the dummy. you don't want to inadvertantly miss feeding cues.
She will be able to self-soothe eventually, but now is too early imo to be worrying about it :)

Hi im in exact same position as op! Starting yesterday my 7 week old suddenly got really about keeping on sucking after feed ! Shell start getting pset immediately when she drops the nipple but hasbecome too lazy to look for it herself. Im not sure it makes sense but im wondering if shes compensating for her newfound competence- she just started being happy in swing and crib during the day for 10-15 min streches...
Is all this normal? Should i nip this in the bud by handing her over to dh? Does she really need me or isthis he beginning of a bad habit?
Its 6 now and shes been on for an hour and a half almost constantly...

Wow i must be tired- meant independence. Sorry for missing words and typos, im in shutdown mode

possibly a growth spurt at that age

you should find tht if you go with it and feed on demand that it'll be over in a few days because your body will start producing the extra milk she is wanting.