It is a serious question to all the breastfeeding mums out there. I am so tired and desperately need to know when this is going to change. So my little girl is 16 month old and I still breastfeed her to sleep. I let her fall asleep on me (even though I know I shouldn’t!). If I put her down “awake but drowsy” (like all the sleep books tell you to do) she just screams her head off and I simply don’t want to leave her to cry. So I pick her up and feed again until she falls asleep on me and then transfer into her cot. She is currently a nightmare at night. She wakes up every 1-3 hours and screams. If my husband tries to rock her she screams even louder until I feed her to sleep. From 2-4am I usually give up and bring her to bed and we cosleep until 6-7ish. It is so exhausting not to have evenings or nights to myself. When is she going to sleep through? Do I need to stop breastfeeding altogether so that we can all get some rest? I do want to continue breastfeeding for as long as she wants to do it. When did your breastfed toddlers start sleeping through? Do you let them fall asleep on you? Can you offer any advice or hope please? Being sleep deprived and under the weather at the same time is not great!
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Breasted 16 month old toddler - will she ever sleep through the night?
astarismum · 27/10/2023 11:58
8lue8irds · 27/10/2023 12:00
This probably goes against what everybody else would say, and it is definitely not the solution you're after, but have you thought about cosleeping?
My son was exactly the same and refused a bottle even when I went on strike. I breastfed him to 3 which I'm glad about (easy life as I found the bottles such a chore with my others). but obviously this solution is it for everyone.
Autumn1990 · 27/10/2023 12:06
I do cosleep a bit as well sometimes I get out of bed and leave her and go and sleep in a different bed. Sometimes she will wake up and come and find me, other times she’ll sleep through.
Autumn1990 · 27/10/2023 12:05
I fed my first until 2 years 9 months and my second is 3 and still not weaned.
Both we only waking once or twice at that age and my second usually slept through.
I found that they had to eat enough during the day to not be relying on me at night. Breast milk is quickly digested so if they’re hungry they then walk up wanting more.
Make sure she eats plenty throughout the day and has a good dinner and supper before bed. When she wakes first give her some food before you feed her. My eldest would have an Ella’s pouch of stew. My youngest prefers crackers and give a drink. Then I feed back to sleep.
Three year old often wakes once in the night but not every night.
Pastaf0rbreakfast · 29/10/2023 20:04
I always fed to sleep. Just laid down to feed and then rolled away. Any night wakes after I’d gone to bed, I brought him into our bed and fed as often as required.
At about 15-17 months night wakes went from 1-3hrly to once or twice a night. This directly coincided with us limiting daytime sleep.
At about 23 months he started sleeping through about 50% of the time, was still feeding to sleep at bedtime and any night wakes.
At 25 months he stopped feeding to sleep at bedtime and we cuddle instead and listen to audiobooks. He now sleeps through about 70% of the time and wakes once for water/cuddle the rest of the time.
Everyone is different but they do sometimes just surprise you with what they’ll suddenly start doing.
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