8.5 Month Old Wants to Nurse Through the Night

DEFINITELY get the book THE BABY WHISPERER. Also helpful: Healthy Sleep Habits, Healthy Child. The Baby Whisperer doesn't believe in letting them cry it out, and the Dr. who wrote Healthy Sleep Habits gives you either option in his book.

And they both cover every issue that you could possibly deal with from birth to age 5 in regards to sleeping and eating habits. These books are life savers. And...I know you are exhausted, been there, done that. But you must flip through at least one of them and find the sections that appeal to you and it will change your situation if you apply it. Both books have advice for nursing/cosleeping, etc.Hang in there! My second one is 5 months old and my firstborn is 3 and I'm tired, but I'm getting more sleep than you, sorry to say it. I'll say a prayer for you!

My 18 month still doesn't sleep through the night. It's our stinkin' western culture that says "You gotta get your child to sleep through the night." If I were you I'd co-sleep, nurse him as much as he wants and if you're sleeping with him, you both can go right back to sleep while nursing. Have the attitude that this is how you WANT it and you'll both be content. It's so bonding for him to get to sleep with M.!

1. Make sure he's full when you put him down.
2. Perhaps consider a bottle of WATER.
3. Wear a tight bra and a turtleneck tucked into your pajamas.

I'm assuming that you cosleep - my son wanted to nurse all night long, too. The combination of difficult access and an easy alternative kind of cut down on the night time nursing.. I don't know that he got more sleep, but I did.

Do you co-sleep?

I find it so much easier to roll over and pop out a boob :o) then I really just go back to sleep while hey nurse. I sleep in maternatiy tanks that have the little shelf bra in them so the boob is easily accessible then when they get older they get it out themselves and I dont even wake up half the time!

It can be frustrating whne you are not sleeping, but really, I try to teach my students, that this is going to be such a short period in their life that maybe going outsied what the mainstream tells us we should do..ie: baby beds, formula..yadda yadda..is not necesarily what is the best thing to do. I always go back to te example of a tribal people, they do not have baby beds and they sleep as a family unit, this way, the babies are safe and the babies feel safe snuggled in by their mama's and they sleep better as a unit. We slept with all of ours until about a year or longer depending on the kid but they all transitioned to thier own bed really well when THEY were ready.

It might just make it easier on you to sleep with baby if you arent already.

K.
Mom to 5 with a 3 month old nursling in the bed!

I actually nursed my son until he was 20 months, and we went through the same thing. In the latter months, I was more of a pacifier at night, and it was just as often as you. Have you tried giing him cereal at night before bed? If he is nursing at night it could be because he is either hungry, or just wants that reassurance. The cereal could help for both. If it is more of a pacifing issue, my husband and I just had to deal with it for about a week while I would hold my son and sing to him or rock him or get him a bottle with a little bit of water in it, and try to sooth him in another way. I too couldnt stand to listen to him cry and the cry it out thing was not really an option in our house. It is hard, but this eventually did work. Start using this durring the day also and talk to him. Although he is young, they still understand so much more than what we think. Just stay firm with him and still cuddle with him to let him know that he doesnt need to "nurse" all the time to get that comfort. Good luck!

Definetly give Tylenol for teething pain at night or any other time. As far as sleeping goes, do what ever you are comfortable with doing. If your child sleeps with you, that's fine. I agree that too many people feel that we have to follow the same guidelines for every child. All kids are different. I've let my kids sleep with me when they needed or wanted to and they are both good sleepers and sleep in their own beds 95% of the time. I personally always put a good night's sleep above all else whether it meant sharing the bed or not.

I hate to say it but I relied heavily on infant Tylenol when my little one was teething. I would start with the homeopathic teething pills and if she was still in discomfort give low doses of Tylenol. Also, you don't mention nursing or cosleeping so this may not be for you.... If burps and gas are not an issue you could try kind of pacifying during the night by side-lying nursing. If my dd or ds get restless I can put them back to sleep without hardly waking up myself and we both will fall asleep while nursing. Don't worry, the teeth will come in eventually. Hang in there! Good luck!

I have a 21 month old who's still nursing and has just recently been giving me more than 4 hours of sleep at a time. Last night I got 6 hours - I was so happy! We did some co-sleeping, and then modified co-sleeping when he was almost 1 (he had a matress in his room that I could fall asleep on while nursing if I wanted to - we were doing a LOT of traveling and ended up this way). Luckily I have my own business, so there's a lot more flexibility when I'm sleep deprived, but it's still tough. You might try to dream-feed him - nurse a bit more just before bed. Maybe some baby tylenol if he's teething still - it might help relieve some of the discomfort for him and give you a bit more sleep. Sorry this isn't much help!

Well, if it makes you feel a bit better my 6 month old still wakes up for a feeding every three hours. I have tried everything. My first daughter started sleeping through the night at 3 months. I think every child is just very different. I would do what you think is best.

hi, my son came out of the womb teething so he never established good sleeping habits that everyone claims are ideal. we planned on having him sleep in his own bed, take a bottle, eat solids, etc., on a schedule but nothing has gone as planned. check out dr. sears website on attachment parenting and dealing with a all nite nurser. bottom line--we were forced to cosleep put of desperation ....I was so tired from his high nursing needs. now I love it! he still nurses all nite and I'm refreshed in the morning.

I agree, if you don't co sleep try the infant Tylenol just one night right before bed and see if it helps. If not, co sleep for sure. I currently co-sleeping and am trying to get my 4 1/2 month old to sleep in her bed. It's so hard to get them out of you bed and so easy for me to keep her in there because I can just give her the breast and go right back to sleep. Good Luck.

I can so relate. My son didn't sleep through the night until he got all his teeth. When he was teethign or going through a growth spurt, he needed to nurse about every hour it seemed some times. I tried everything. Eventually, we just co-slept. I felt like a failure at first (our society says they should sleep 12 hours alone in a crib) and mentioned it to my Dr. Her response? "Yeah my 3rd was just like that so we had to cosleep for the first year or so. Do what you have to to get some sleep."

Whatever works for you and is safe for the baby is what you need to get some sleep right now. You are not going to ruin your child by letting him into your bed. He's too young. What will make things worse is if you're tired and cranky.

I gave my child rice cearl in a bottle the last feeding of a night, 9 p.m. or so, and then if she woke up I mades sure she had dry diapers, and gave her a pacifyer, patted her and she went back to sleep. I don't believe in sticking one in their mouth when they area content, but this sure did get her to sleeping all night soon.