Feeding as part of bedtime routine

[katkin21]

I’ve been reading about pre-bedtime routines for my LO (4 months). It’s been suggested to me that we feed at the start of it, before bath, massage etc, as he has a strong association between feeding and sleep which has left me having to feed him to sleep throughout the night (7+ times) even when I know he’s not hungry. We’ve been doing it for a couple of days now and, whilst it has helped, it just feels a weird way of doing it. Does anyone else feed at the start of the routine?

It's a great theory isn't it, and it's what all the sleep books say... It depends how well your baby gets off to sleep on their own. It wouldn't work for us. Mine is not one of these babies that you pop in a cot 'drowsy but awake' - she doesn't appear to have that setting! So, we feed to sleep. It works, she sleeps, I would spend 2+ hours rocking and patting a crying baby otherwise.
We do this either with boob or a formula bottle, luckily both work, I guess that's the key to meaning it's not just me that can get her to sleep. We're 10 months in, she wakes once or twice a night, sometimes goes all night. If she wakes I try and rock back to sleep sometimes, but quicker and easier to feed.
At 4months she was probably waking 4-5 times. So either 4-5 times of an hour or 2 pacing the floor with her getting more and more upset, or 4-5 times feed to sleep - no contest!
Yes I suppose it's perpetuating the sleep association, but I just feel like since the association works (and it's supposed to, especially breastfeeding, both the comfort they get from the act of feeding and the content of the milk) it makes sense to use it as a tool for now.

I agree with everything pp said. I certainly couldn't do it when my son was 4 months old. Also, when he started to become very nosy and reject naps I was very happy to have that sleep association as I could always count on a bottle! Even now at 2 years old he has his milk in bed (brush teeth after). I have never once fought him to go to bed because he's so excited to have his milk.

I don’t think it’s a problem having milk before bed. But it is when it’s during the night. I mean you’re only four months in but I bet you’re exhausted up that much. I’d try doing anything other than feeding during the night to settle him. You’ll be knackered to start with but the less you feed in the night the more he should take in the day which is obviously preferable

Oh and for some reassurance my son self weaned off night bottles by 9 months.