Bed sharing/ non stop nursing help!

PhoenixBritt · November 2013

Hi! My daughter is almost seven months old. She was breastfed exclusively until we recently began solid food. She was a great sleeper until about four months. We bed share and she wants to nurse all night long. She's up almost every hour and nothing gets her to sleep besides nursing. We have a good bedtime routine and i read The No Cry Sleep Solution but i haven't seen any improvement. I'm so exhausted but i can't do CIO. Any suggestions are welcome

Myaflowers · November 2013

My LO is 9.5 months and went through that at about 7 months. She was cutting a lot of teeth during that time, so I'm not sure if that was it. Sonetimes tylenol before bed helped, though. It has gradually gotten better over the last 2 months. Hang in there!

Emerald27 · November 2013

Is she teething, or growing, or trying to crawl? Sometimes restlessness and frequently disrupted sleep can be associated with these things.

Also, what foods did you start her on? And have you noticed any changes in her dirty diapers? ...beyond the usual becoming more solid... Maybe she isn't tolerating one of the new foods well.

How is she during the day? Does she nurse this frequently during the day, and is she a happy or a fussy baby? How many naps does she take?

Try to make your room as dark and unstimulating as possible (maybe even blackout curtains), and when she wakes, don't really engage her beyond popping the boob in her mouth. Try to help her understand that nighttime is for sleep.

Hopefully that will help too.

Hang in there, mama! The great thing about infant sleep is that if you don't like what's going on, it will change soon. The unfortunate thing about infant sleep is that if you like what's going on, it will change soon.

PhoenixBritt · November 2013

No sign of teeth yet but she is trying to crawl! We have only introduced a few veggies but I will keep that in mind. She nurses every 2-3 hours during the day but is a terrible napper. She really won't nap longer than 20 mins unless I sleep with her. She is however, the happiest baby and doesn't appear sleep deprived at all. Thanks for all your advice!

Eyates17 · November 2013

My son does exactly this! He is 14 months and has woken up every hour since birth. He is down to one nap a day but does not seem sleep deprived. I won't let him nurse all night anymore but he is still awake every hour. We won't do CIO and are at a loss at what to do! Help!!

ReeceFamily · November 2013

DD is like this, too. It varies from week to week, but I'd say on average (at 9.5 mos) she nurses every 2-3 hours at night. She is in daycare, so I think some of this is her being shifted to more night nursings since she doesn't get any boob at daycare.

Here's the ubiquitous reference to Kelly Mom...I always feel better after reading her advice!

https://kellymom.com/parenting/nighttime/sleep/

MommyPhoenix · November 2013

Okay....I had to re-read the starting post to make sure I wasn't reading my post from a couple of weeks ago! I wrote about this EXACT same thing! I was "Down In the Dumps" as my post declared but the lovely AP family here talked me down

I don't have a steadfast solution for you @PhoenixBritt but I can offer an update on our situation:

My daughter has been waking throughout the night every 1-2 hrs since she was 4 mos...she's almost 9 mos. It was (sometimes still is) driving me batty. A couple of days after my post, I caved and bought the No Cry Sleep Solution (I say "caved" because I am sooo sleep deprived and had read sooo many books pre/post pregnancy that I swore I wouldn't read anymore books!). I read it, began to implement some of the solutions (Pantley...etc.). Although we just started a week ago, I found myself fighting it; Fighting what appeared to be the natural need of my daughter. I think I just realized, she NEEDS this right now. Be it teething, stranger anxiety, mastering crawling/standing skills...I think she just needs to nurse throughout the night for nourishment for her appetite but also for comfort to give her security through all these amazing changes her little self is going through. I am still trying some soothing techniques with DD (Pantley's Pull Off is not really what we need - DD will unlatch and roll over to sleep once she's nursed full - It's getting her to sleep longer than an hour or two at a time that is the issue). We need to work on transitioning from one sleep cycle to the other without the need of Mommy's boobies

I've decided her continuous sleep (as well as mine) is more important at this time....I may regret this by the time January comes along when I have to return to FT work, but here's hoping DD will take to some gentle soothing between wake ups, adapt to less comfort nursing and not get angry with me when I don't give up the boob immediately! :P I'm hoping this will resolve itself gently. I can't imagine continuing the hourly nightly nursing sessions before a full day's work, 5 days a week!

Good luck to you all who are in the same boat!

MommyPhoenix · November 2013

ReeceFamily said:
DD is like this, too. It varies from week to week, but I'd say on average (at 9.5 mos) she nurses every 2-3 hours at night. She is in daycare, so I think some of this is her being shifted to more night nursings since she doesn't get any boob at daycare.

Here's the ubiquitous reference to Kelly Mom...I always feel better after reading her advice!

https://kellymom.com/parenting/nighttime/sleep/

Love this! NEEDED THIS! I've bookmarked this for future encouragement, thanks for sharing

PhoenixBritt · November 2013

MommyPhoenix said:
Okay....I had to re-read the starting post to make sure I wasn't reading my post from a couple of weeks ago! I wrote about this EXACT same thing! I was "Down In the Dumps" as my post declared but the lovely AP family here talked me down I don't have a steadfast solution for you @PhoenixBritt but I can offer an update on our situation:

My daughter has been waking throughout the night every 1-2 hrs since she was 4 mos...she's almost 9 mos. It was (sometimes still is) driving me batty. A couple of days after my post, I caved and bought the No Cry Sleep Solution (I say "caved" because I am sooo sleep deprived and had read sooo many books pre/post pregnancy that I swore I wouldn't read anymore books!). I read it, began to implement some of the solutions (Pantley...etc.). Although we just started a week ago, I found myself fighting it; Fighting what appeared to be the natural need of my daughter. I think I just realized, she NEEDS this right now. Be it teething, stranger anxiety, mastering crawling/standing skills...I think she just needs to nurse throughout the night for nourishment for her appetite but also for comfort to give her security through all these amazing changes her little self is going through. I am still trying some soothing techniques with DD (Pantley's Pull Off is not really what we need - DD will unlatch and roll over to sleep once she's nursed full - It's getting her to sleep longer than an hour or two at a time that is the issue). We need to work on transitioning from one sleep cycle to the other without the need of Mommy's boobies I've decided her continuous sleep (as well as mine) is more important at this time....I may regret this by the time January comes along when I have to return to FT work, but here's hoping DD will take to some gentle soothing between wake ups, adapt to less comfort nursing and not get angry with me when I don't give up the boob immediately! :P I'm hoping this will resolve itself gently. I can't imagine continuing the hourly nightly nursing sessions before a full day's work, 5 days a week!

Good luck to you all who are in the same boat!

Thanks for your response. It's reassuring to know my baby isn't the only one doing this! It's good to know it's normal because i can't take another person telling me to just give her formula. Also the kellymom article was a great reminder

MommyPhoenix · November 2013

A great read

https://www.breastfeedingbasics.com/articles/night-waking-will-i-ever-get-a-good-nights-sleep-again

jackersCU · November 2013

MommyPhoenix said:

Okay....I had to re-read the starting post to make sure I wasn't reading my post from a couple of weeks ago! I wrote about this EXACT same thing! I was "Down In the Dumps" as my post declared but the lovely AP family here talked me down I don't have a steadfast solution for you @PhoenixBritt but I can offer an update on our situation: My daughter has been waking throughout the night every 1-2 hrs since she was 4 mos...she's almost 9 mos. It was (sometimes still is) driving me batty. A couple of days after my post, I caved and bought the No Cry Sleep Solution (I say "caved" because I am sooo sleep deprived and had read sooo many books pre/post pregnancy that I swore I wouldn't read anymore books!). I read it, began to implement some of the solutions (Pantley...etc.). Although we just started a week ago, I found myself fighting it; Fighting what appeared to be the natural need of my daughter. I think I just realized, she NEEDS this right now. Be it teething, stranger anxiety, mastering crawling/standing skills...I think she just needs to nurse throughout the night for nourishment for her appetite but also for comfort to give her security through all these amazing changes her little self is going through. I am still trying some soothing techniques with DD (Pantley's Pull Off is not really what we need - DD will unlatch and roll over to sleep once she's nursed full - It's getting her to sleep longer than an hour or two at a time that is the issue). We need to work on transitioning from one sleep cycle to the other without the need of Mommy's boobies I've decided her continuous sleep (as well as mine) is more important at this time....I may regret this by the time January comes along when I have to return to FT work, but here's hoping DD will take to some gentle soothing between wake ups, adapt to less comfort nursing and not get angry with me when I don't give up the boob immediately! :P I'm hoping this will resolve itself gently. I can't imagine continuing the hourly nightly nursing sessions before a full day's work, 5 days a week! Good luck to you all who are in the same boat!

This made me tear up because I have a 6 month old girl who loves to comfort nurse and I have such a hard time with Pantley removal. It made me tear up because I am so tired, but I love my DD so much that I am willing to take the time to comfort her without completely stopping comfort nursing. You spoke to my heart this morning, so thank you so much.

MommyPhoenix · November 2013

jackersCU said:

MommyPhoenix said:

Okay....I had to re-read the starting post to make sure I wasn't reading my post from a couple of weeks ago! I wrote about this EXACT same thing! I was "Down In the Dumps" as my post declared but the lovely AP family here talked me down I don't have a steadfast solution for you @PhoenixBritt but I can offer an update on our situation:

My daughter has been waking throughout the night every 1-2 hrs since she was 4 mos...she's almost 9 mos. It was (sometimes still is) driving me batty. A couple of days after my post, I caved and bought the No Cry Sleep Solution (I say "caved" because I am sooo sleep deprived and had read sooo many books pre/post pregnancy that I swore I wouldn't read anymore books!). I read it, began to implement some of the solutions (Pantley...etc.). Although we just started a week ago, I found myself fighting it; Fighting what appeared to be the natural need of my daughter. I think I just realized, she NEEDS this right now. Be it teething, stranger anxiety, mastering crawling/standing skills...I think she just needs to nurse throughout the night for nourishment for her appetite but also for comfort to give her security through all these amazing changes her little self is going through. I am still trying some soothing techniques with DD (Pantley's Pull Off is not really what we need - DD will unlatch and roll over to sleep once she's nursed full - It's getting her to sleep longer than an hour or two at a time that is the issue). We need to work on transitioning from one sleep cycle to the other without the need of Mommy's boobies I've decided her continuous sleep (as well as mine) is more important at this time....I may regret this by the time January comes along when I have to return to FT work, but here's hoping DD will take to some gentle soothing between wake ups, adapt to less comfort nursing and not get angry with me when I don't give up the boob immediately! :P I'm hoping this will resolve itself gently. I can't imagine continuing the hourly nightly nursing sessions before a full day's work, 5 days a week!

Good luck to you all who are in the same boat!

This made me tear up because I have a 6 month old girl who loves to comfort nurse and I have such a hard time with Pantley removal. It made me tear up because I am so tired, but I love my DD so much that I am willing to take the time to comfort her without completely stopping comfort nursing. You spoke to my heart this morning, so thank you so much.

@JackersCU *hugs* Hang in there Mama. I'm sure your daughter loves you dearly for all the snuggles and comfort nursing you provide her. Last few nights, DD has wanted nothing but snuggles - I usually shimmy over and away from her in bed once she falls asleep, but lately she has to have me right there, body to body (she even threw out her little arm and leg over me after she unlatched to make sure I stayed right by her!). We slept that way for most of the night and I actually got a couple of 2 hr straight periods of sleep, which is more than what I've had in a row in a long while. These amazing little bodies are going through so much, I'm not going to fight it anymore. Maybe if I get a bit more rest, I may be in a better mindset to try some gentle sleep training, but for now we are sticking to soothing techniques. Priority #1 for me is sleep for both of us.

Take care of yourself as well as your LO. Sleep when she sleeps, nap when she naps. That's the only way I can catch up on rest...all else can wait.

kmc217 · November 2013

I am lurking over here but was going to post this exact issue this morning. My DS is extremely high needs and a terrible sleeper. He hit 4 months and can no longer sleep unless my nipple is in his mouth. He is so restless. I am so so so tired but nothing else soothes him. I am glad I'm not alone and had pretty much already come to the conclusion that this is what my baby needs.

PhoenixBritt · November 2013

I wanted to give a quick update..the other morning DD woke up at 3am and would not go back to sleep and was super fussy. My husband noticed later that TWO teeth popped up over night! The sleep hasn't improved but now i understand why she's been nursing non stop!

MommyPhoenix · November 2013

PhoenixBritt said:
I wanted to give a quick update..the other morning DD woke up at 3am and would not go back to sleep and was super fussy. My husband noticed later that TWO teeth popped up over night! The sleep hasn't improved but now i understand why she's been nursing non stop!

Aaah, makes sense, baby teeth! There's more to come!

Extra cuddles and cold, wet wash cloths for LO to gum!

Last night, was the first time in a very long time, that DD slept for 4. HOURS. STRAIGHT....holy crap! I can't remember the last time I slept for that long, undisturbed! I woke up with her nestled right up against me and checked the clock to see it had been 4hrs since she fell asleep...with NO boob! But the down side is that just before this, she woke up an hour after bedtime crying...she had poopy diarrhea which I only discovered because it squished out of the side of her diaper and into my hand..yuck. :-& Then when I went to pick her up to change her, she threw up in my long ponytail and all down my back....in our bed. I guess dinner didn't agree with her. Nothing I could do but rub her back and comfort her while she finished throwing up on me *sigh* She was a happy clam after we cleaned her up though, babbling away, clapping her hands and crawling all over me. I couldn't get her settled until well after midnight.

Anyway, the night before, DD had a straight 3 solid hours of sleep and intermittent wake ups from there on. Last night it was a straight 4 solid hours...the similarity here was that she slept nestled up against me the whole time. I'm thinking stranger anxiety must be peaking for her which would explain her more restful sleeps when she's cuddled right up against me. Whatever works to get more sleep!

jackersCU · November 2013

Just a quick update as well: since I posted, I have been rocking DD to bed and night or sending in DH and she's been sleeping better. Still wakes up throughout the night, but we've gotten a couple 3 hour stretches over the last week. Hang in there momma's!!!!

MommyPhoenix · November 2013

jackersCU said:
Just a quick update as well: since I posted, I have been rocking DD to bed and night or sending in DH and she's been sleeping better. Still wakes up throughout the night, but we've gotten a couple 3 hour stretches over the last week. Hang in there momma's!!!!

Hooray for 3 hr stretches!!! Who'd of thought only 3 hrs straight of sleep could be celebrated?!

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