Weaning - Lincoln,MA

Could you just keep nursing her in the AM so you can sleep again for a few hours? My kids, once they found they got food quicker from a bottle, gave up the rest of the feedings in about a month. You could also try giving her a bottle at that time: feed her in her room and put her back in the crib. Keeping her hungry at that early hour is obviously not letting her or you get more sleep. Funny that the bed time feeding was the first to go. Both my girls gave up lunch nursing first, then morning feeding (they got a bottle) and the last to go was the night time nursing which gave us both cuddle time. Good luck.

Have you tried giving her water instead of giving her you? I'm not one for much advice because I had a very tough time weening my son, now 22 months and still trying to wean from one more bedtime nursing, but we've gotten him to accept water at nite most of the time now. I think they're so used to getting up to drink, that they just need soemthing....just a thought

Hi there. I think a couple of things are going on here.

First off, your DD is simply used to having her belly full at that hour, so now she craves it. Just how you get hungry at lunch time and dinner time each day.

She also is probably going through a lighter stage of sleep at the 4am hour and does not know how to go back to sleep without you.

So if you want things to change, you need to teach her differently.

I would start with weaning her from the boob first, then teach her to sleep in her own space.

Does she take a bottle? Or a sippy cup? Give her that instead. YES, she may protest and not ever go back to sleep and keep it up for a week or so, BUT if you do not give in, she will learn to go without the boob.

Once this is going ok, then start giving her the bottle/cup in her OWN space. Just comfort her in her own cot - and again, she may really protest for several days. Once she gets used to that, dilute it with more and more water over time and less and less milk.

It will take a couple of weeks - but remember, you are changing things on her (possibly for the better as you will BOTH get more sleep) - what you are doing now is all she knows, so be patient, consistent and persistent.

Good luck!

Hi V.,
I was in the same position a few years ago and what I found worked was to get up with my DD and try to hold her off until 5:45-6:00 and then I fed her breakfast to replace the breastfeeding. It took her a long time to start sleeping later than 5:30-6:00 but it was worth it for the weaning process. Good luck and be strong - I know how tough it is in those wee hours of the morning when it would be so much easier to just breastfeed her. Good luck with weaning and returning to work and hooray for you for breastfeeding for so long!!