Do you feed baby during the night?

[Puppydogg1]

Hi all!

May be a weird question but just wanted to check other opinions!

My little boy is 6 months and is EBF.
When talking to a friend today it came up that when her LO of a similar age wakes up she just pops dummy back in, rocks baby back ton sleep and puts back in cot.

However when my son wakes up I do the same asI did when he was newborn, change and then feed him, every time he wakes up.

My friend says this is unnecessary and I Dan just settle him back to sleep without feeding, and I'm making a rod for my own back by feeding each time he wakes.

Should I be feeding him each time? Or just settle him back to sleep?

[NameChange30]

Interesting, thanks.
I didn't always feed at ~5am, DC would go back to sleep if one of us (usually DH) held him and didn't put him down again! But it was obviously easier just to bring baby into bed and feed him so we could all snooze until a more reasonable hour.
Compared to BF on demand through the night, I counted it as night weaning, but you are right that technically it wasn't full night weaning if I still fed around 5am.

[3WildOnes]

@NameChange30 I also think it is a bit confusing when people talk about not night weaning before 12 or 18 months. Some people consider that keeping one feed and others feeding every hour or two.
In lots of the Facebook breastfeeding groups I am in they seem to think any restriction of night feeds before 12 or 18 months is cruel. I skeep trained my youngest using a stay and support approach at 12 months and was told it was still cry it out because I wasnt giving her wlhat she wanted, which was to feed every couple of hours, despite me being there comforting her the whole time. I think this is quite an extreme view!

[NameChange30]

Yeah, what can I say, some people are twats, especially when it comes to breastfeeding, sleep and sleep training! So judgy it's ridiculous.

[NameChange30]

It makes me angry actually because when parents are on their knees with sleep deprivation, their physical and mental health are suffering, they just want to do the best for their baby without having a breakdown, and people pile on the guilt, with little to no scientific basis for these hysterical claims that they are traumatising their child or some such nonsense

[Megan2018]

Totally normal to feed at night, I think withholding it is cruel. I still feed 16 month old DD at night if she needs it (she sleeps through sometimes but one wake up is still common).

HV’s mainly spout utterly outdated nonsense which is why extended BF rates are so shit here.
BF isn’t solely for nutrition

[NameChange30]

[Bluebelltulip]

Completely depends on the child. My DD fed in the night until 2, bf until 8 months then formula or milk until 2. She would not go back to sleep with a feed. My DS has slept though since 9 months and is bf, now 13 months. I don't think I've done anything different just responded to what they as individuals need. It's not unusual for my DD to still wake in the night at 4 years old but only needs a cuddle now, no milk.

[Catwoman123]

I FF both mine and they woke through the night until past age 1, no wonder I didn't enjoy the baby stage as much as others . I just thought it was normal to feed if they woke. No-one ever told me to wean them off it until age 1. They're only 5 and 6 so it wasn't that long ago

[3WildOnes]

@NameChange30 I completely agree!