Okay so my daughter is 11 1/2 months old... And in order for her to sleep (naps and at night) I need to nurse her till she falls to sleep otherwise she will cry and cry and she will not take a sippy cup to comfer her to sleep. Yes she eats her meals perfectly and I give her juice in a sippy cup after dinner.. but she won't take a sippy cup to make her go to sleep. It's incredible to watch her come to me and start pulling my shirt up (telling me she wants milk!) to make her go to sleep. I want to stop this habit somehow especially since I'm going back home in two weeks and want her completely off the breastmilk to whole milk. Help please!
I would try nursing her until she's sleepy and then putting her down. If (ha! I mean when) she doesn't go to sleep I would send your husband in to settle her. If I go to my son in the night he wants to BF but if my husband goes in he just wants hisblanki and a little pat on the back. You really don't want her to switch from needing you to needing a sippie cup because then you're going to have another fight on your hands later. I wouldn't wean her now unless you have to. Going back to work is stressful for both of you and BF is a great way to bond when you get home. When I went back to work my son had no problem napping for the baby sitter (they're pretty smart and know when BF isn't going to happen) but as I said he only go BF until drowsy. As far as the pulling on your shirt it's really about manners not BF. If you're daughter was playing with her food you woudn't quit feeding her, you'd probably correct her and stop ttemporarilyif needed. My son knows that I don't BF in public and never even asks to know. All this being said if you're sure you want to wean try giving her milk with her meals to get her used to it (mix with cchocolateif you have to, the end justifies the means). I'm in the process of weaning my 18 month old son but we're going very slowly and just cutting out BF, down to 3 times per day, 2 when I'm working. Good luck!
well i'm afraid the only answer is the hardest one. If you want her to stop nursing, you have to stop nursing her. That means shortening feedings until you can't shorten them anymore, and then stopping altogether. It only takes about two days for things to become a routine for children this small, so if you are firm and stick to your guns it shouldn't take more then a couple of days to get her to go to bed without nursing. But you have to mean it. You can't say no and then give in in thirty min. If you are really ready to stick it out, Good Luck!
You can just shorten the feedings, gradually getting shorter and shorter. (But when you stop, put your shirt down and continue to hold and rock her. Read her a story or put on a lullabye cd. Offer her a lovey. Be consistent and try not to give in.
You might try disappearing for a night and let daddy put her to bed. (Do this on a weekend in case she has a wakeful night)
You could try a bottle instead of a sippy cup.
try this:
reduce the amount of time spent feeding
be sure to dedicate at least 2 weeks to this method
increase cuddling and reading and such together
don't set dead lines for yourself, just go by your best judgments
don't abruptly stop, but gradually move into the change
most important, keep your calm no matter how difficult it can be
the rest of the steps will come as naturally as developing the milk to give. you and your nursing child have a bond that supercedes any instructions the outside world can give, so just trust in that.
Gradually change her over to baby formula. Just make sure there are no soy beans in the ingredient mixture.
Read the "No Cry Sleep Solution" book. There is a 5 page chapter on this. it's very helpful
I laid next to mine at bedtime and if she started demanding to nurse I would put my back to her. I also created a new bedtime routine of kissing her forehead and patting her on the stomach, saying I love you, and read a very short book. Lucky for me with the lights off she went to sleep in less than 5 minutes on her own no sippy. We also slowed the feedings for at least a month then just picked a day and stopped. It helped reduce the amount of breastmilk I produced. I would offer the whole milk and spend that time holding her, so she doesn't loose the comfort she feels when nursing. It's been 3 months for me and mine told me just the other day she wanted to nurse. So it does take time and the memory is still there.
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