Milk as a comfort

[steben]

DD has been hit and miss on sleep front for months - few nights through, the awake in the night but usually if wet/uncomfortable/too hot/ill. We get to the stage where we do not give her any milk before 5 (she 19 months ) then she teethes or is ill and we fall back on it.

We still give a morning bottle because if she wakes between 5-6 and has her bottle she usually goes back until 8! I guess what I am asking is does anyone elses DC still need milk in the night as a comfort thing and should I worry if it is only an occasional thing?

I still drink milk in the night and I'm 30.

It's fine. It's occasional and you're adapting to her needs at any given time. Sometimes as an adult you need to get up and potter/have a drink/read/have a cuddle. It's fine for us and we're not children. We all have changing needs and responding to a child's needs is never a bad thing imo.

Thanks FeelMyWraith - i suppose I am just comparing myself to people who have dropped night bottles at 12 months and feeling guilty! Pointless I know

Want to bump this as also concerned that health visitor will complain about us still using bottles?

Well I still BF my 3 year old in the night. I have not informed my HV of this, therefore she has not had the chance to complain Is there any particular reason you are seeing a HV? It's not compulsory . My only worry here (and I don't know much about bottle feeding so I could be wrong) would be for your DD's teeth.

Hi steben, my DD is 18 months old and breastfed before breakfast and last thing before bed. However, if she wakens in the night I generally feed her. Have tried not to in the past and TBH its been more hassle than its worth - my DD sleeps all night most of the time but will occasionally waken, like your DD, when she is unwell, wet or, more commonly when she is teething. If it was every night my reply may have been different but if its only occasional I wouldnt worry about it...your right to be a little worried about the bottles - have you tried cups etc?

DD is 2.3 years and still has milk in a bottle for comfort whenever se can't fall back to sleep. Her teeth are fine. :)

Have tried cups but she gets herself into a right state and short of letting her cry it out - which I am reluctant to do I am not sure. She clearly doesn't need the milk because if she did then she would drink it from the cup. She is fine with her cups for drinking water during the day. Seeing health visitor for 18 month check...

You still don't have to see her but if you do then you could just lie through your teeth I started doing this to certain people when DD1 was quite young, everyone else seemed obsessed with her sleeping through the night even though it didn't affect them at all so I just used to say that she was sleeping through to avoid people telling me that I was getting her into bad habits, making a rod for my own back, yada yada yada and all that shit.

This is true lies may be best bet...