My daughter is 6 months old, breastfed and sleeps in my bed. All she wants to do is use me as a pacifier to get herself to fall asleep and stay asleep so she's "nursing" all night long. I've tried putting her in her crib, but whenever I put her down, she wakes up and cries. I've tried giving her a real pacifier and she won't take it. How can I get her to sleep in her crib and how can I break her of her nipple addiction- all without losing too much sleep myself?
Thank you everyone for your suggestions. They are absolutely valuable, but better yet, I am relieved to hear that it's a common thread amongst moms and babies. I especially liked the advise about warming the crib. My darling is currently in her co-sleeper next to my bed, sleeping soundly. I'm going to try my best to put her back into it when I'm done nursing and eventually get my butt out of bed and her into the crib. It'll be tough; she is just so yummy to cuddle with. Thanks again.
I've recommended these before: Gerber Soft Silicone Center pacifiers, they look like a big button with a handle..these are the only pacifiers my daughter would take (she is 7 months now) and she always wanted to be at the breast too..you can find them at target and drugstore.com.
I've also heard the Soothie pacifiers may work too, but they are available only at target and the hospital.
My daughter is almost 9.5 months (7 adjusted, she was a preemie) and is also a nipple addict! She co-slept with me which I didn't mind, but my husband had enough! So, he said she had to go in her room in the crib. She was still waking up every 3 hours or so at first so I ended up putting a futon mattress on the floor in her room. I'd go into her room and nurse her in the middle of the night instead of bringing her back in our bed. I'd make sure she was sound asleep before moving her. Also, the first few nights I put a heating pad on her mattress to get it warm for her. Obviously, remove the pad before putting baby down! Eventually she slept for 6 to 8 hours in a row! Also, we tried to buy a mattress that was similar in firmness to ours! Now she seems to sleep pretty well in the crib except lately she's waking again but I think due to teething!
P.S. She also doesn't like the pacifier- I think that's common w/ breatsfed babies.
I think that over the weekend you will probably have to just have go cold turkey. Now is the age where you want to get them able to go to sleep by themselves. It might be hell and you might have to listen to her scream for up to even an hour! But down the line it will be well worth it.
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hi Jennifer, i have the same story with my 11 month daughter, honestly can't really give you any advice about breaking nipple addiction- IT IS AN ADDICTION though, this is all they know and its very comforting and relaxing, though i think you can break it when you stop breastfeeding (i'm sure it will be very hard). The only thing i was able to do is when my daughter falls asleep at my breas(and sleeps for a few min), i would put her in the crib (i'll have a blanket or a thin pillow underneath her body, so she wont feel my hands as much, also another regular pillow against my body and hers ( so she wont feel me) just as i carry her into her crib, when i put her down i would remove the reg.pillow - most of the time she'll will not wake up, but wakes up at night to eat again then i take her back to bed, but at least she'll sleep there halfof the night. i gave up on trying to put her to fall asleep on her own, she just won't! and she also does not want pacifier- why would they want the rubber thing- when they have the best stuff! Good luck, i hope someone gives you better advice:)
I don't know how much help I will be. My daughter is 14 months old and is a fellow nipple addict. I agree with what one of the other moms said, this is all she knows and it is her world. I cosleep with my daughter and actually enjoy it. She is just starting to not nurse as much at night time (unless she's teething). I read the book "The No Cry Sleep Solution" book by Elizabeth Pantley (http://www.pantley.com/elizabeth/newsletters/sleepbookann.... She is a wonderful author who is a breastfeeding/cosleeping mom. She has wonderful ideas on how to help your baby sleep at night and alone or to continue cosleeping. I would definately advise reading this book.
Hello,
This might not be what you want to hear but my now 2 year old son used me as his human pacifier for 13 months. I NEVER had time to myself or a bed to my own.It is so satisfying to them to feel your body heat and to suckle at the same time. My advice to you is to quit cold turkey. Buy some earplugs and get a routine. It sucks! (Literally :) But after about a week or so she will go to her crib and learn to fall asleep w/o the breast. However,now you will have to deal with engorgement due to her continual suckling that she no longer needs, your breast will swell. That too should go away in about 1 week or so. Well, thats my experience. Good Luck!
I've had a hard time with my daughter too, who is now 14 mos. and still sleeping in our bed, and up until about 3 mos ago, she would still nurse every few hours and I wasn't getting much sleep.
Some things you can try - wear a bra to bed so your nipples are less accessible. At some point, the need of nursing may be surpassesed by the comfort of it, so making it less accessible will (eventually) discourage and wean her from doing it so often through the night. Just make sure she's getting enough food during the day and gainining an appropriate amount of weight, and know that you'll need to be patient - this could take a few sleep deprived days, or a few weeks, or even a month or two, but it will eventually help.
Also, you did not mention if you have a significant other/spouse/parent/partner with you or sharing the bed with you and your daughter, but if you do, you might consider letting your partner take her to bed and sleep with her or put her in her crib, while you sleep somewhere else. This is a process that would also take some time - from a few days to a few weeks. Your partner would want to establish some sort os sleep routine - like, she nurses with you, and then your partner takes her to your room and cuddles her, and maybe reads a book or plays music, or gives her a nice warm bath, and then puts her down, and stays with her until she falls asleep, and comforts her when she wakes up. This also requires some patience and commitment, but it is much less harsh than letting her "cry it out", because she is not being abandoned and even though she won't like it, she will still be with someone who loves her.
I couldn't get my hubby to cooporate with that last suggestion, so our "little trouble-maker" is still in bed with us. But it was at about the same age where I was getting really burnt out, so I understand. There are other suggestions at www.askdrsears.com, so if these don't work, you might want to give that a shot :)
Good luck!
Have you tried different shapes of pacifiers. She may not like the shape of the one your giving her. Try to find some that are shaped like nipples. Their out there. Also, I kind of went through the same thing. My son wouldn't sleep for the first month unless he was touching me. We had set up our Pack and Play like a bassinet next to my side of the bed because I was nursing. Every night after he fell asleep I'd move him into it. If he woke I'd move him back to our bed. It took a week or so but I finally got him to sleep there. This way he could still hear my breathing and be reassured. Then he slept there for a month. After that I tried putting him in his crib, in his room. That went a little more smoothly. It took him less time to adjust. You have to do the transition slowly or you'll get nowhere.
