Bottle weaning has turned it's ugly head!

missw22

I know this has been talked about over and over ,but I am becoming very desperate for some help or advice. I tried the cold turkey route first and he would never calm down when I tried to put him down for a nap, he would just cry which left us both a big mess. We are open to the CIO method ,but how long do you let your child cry before you step in? I would go in if he had been crying for more than twenty minutes and try to comfort him ,but it just starts the whole process over again. I then tried just slowly getting rid of one bottle at a time and even just having water in the bottles ,but it still has the same outcome of him crying hysterically. I just want these bottles gone, it is strictly just a comfort for him. He drinks plenty of milk during the day out of sippys and cups.

Squirrel29

I told myself I would let DS cry for up to an hour and I thankfully never had to go that long.  The first week or two without his prenap nursing sessions were the hardest, he would generally cry for 45 to 50 minutes.  A few times I went in at about the 50 minute mark and would rock him and by that time he was so exhausted that he just fell asleep but for the most part he did it himself.  It was a really taxing two weeks but he was about 14 months old and I really wanted to stop nursing and did not want to just switch to a bottle and form another habit to break so I did it cold turkey and now nap and bed time are so easy it was totally worth it. 

luckylauren14

I just took the bottles away from DS on Thursday.  I started cutting them out - first the second, the thirs 3rd and he was only on 2 bottles (morning and a 1/2 hour before bed).  Last Wed, he drank an entire sippy of milk for the first time around dinner.  Then, the next day, I gave a him a sippy of milk in the morning.  He was fine with it, so I put all the bottles away and only sippys now. 

My point is, he'll let you know when he is ready.  I was freaking out at first too, but then I realized that many moms BF their children til 18 months and I figured bottles were the same.  He'll be fine if he is still using a bottle the next couple of months.  Remeber, he won't be going to college with it!

Dreamsicle23

I wouldn't put a time limit on it - either commit to it or not.  If you give him the bottle after he cries for 20 min/ 30 min/an hour, that will just teach him he'll get it if he's cries long enough.

D.Smith

Dreamsicle23:

I wouldn't put a time limit on it - either commit to it or not.  If you give him the bottle after he cries for 20 min/ 30 min/an hour, that will just teach him he'll get it if he's cries long enough.

 

Agreed