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Nursing to sleep doesn't work anymore...help?

srbronsonsrbronson member
in Toddlers: 12 - 24 Months
So, my 15 month old has pretty much always nursed to sleep. The past month or so, she now does one of two things - 1) gets super drowsy and almost falls asleep, then stops nursing, pushes away so that she can roll around / flail / talk / say hi and otherwise refuse sleep or 2) hold my nipple in her mouth while staring off into space forever, while obviously tired. At first I thought this meant she was just ready to go to sleep on her own in the crib, but, au contrere, she can fight sleep there for two hours or more. Rolling around, playing, giggling, smiling, being devious. And she screams if I leave the room. I'm wondering if low supply or slow flow might be playing a role as sometimes she will wait until I have another letdown 20-30 minutes later before she'll fall asleep. So, what to do? Pump to increase my supply? Try to sleep train? Has anyone else had this issue? The refusal of naps and sleeps are driving me bonkers! Thanks!
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Re: Nursing to sleep doesn't work anymore...help?

  • PhieryBFlyPhieryBFly member
    My babe did this too but after about a week, she started to nurse mostly to sleep and then suddenly flop over on her belly and be instantly asleep. I nurse to sleep on my bed and then move her to her crib (near the bed) when I go to bed. I would imagine its more of a development thing rather than a supply thing.
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  • homebirdhomebird member
    I mean ... it's kind of late now, but nursing to sleep is a bad idea. I did it with my first and it was a fight for about a year to get her to sleep without nursing or eating.

    I would try to start a new routine with her. Maybe nurse, bath, jammies, book/song, rock a little and lay her down drowsy. She's probably going to fight it at first, but decide how you want to handle the crying. 

    Some people walk away cold turkey and let them CIO. I personally can't handle that, and would go in at regular intervals to pat, shush, soothe, etc. It could take a while for her to go to sleep for a week or so, but she'll get it eventually. Consistency is key!

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  • ss265ss265 member
    homebird said:
    I mean ... it's kind of late now, but nursing to sleep is a bad idea. I did it with my first and it was a fight for about a year to get her to sleep without nursing or eating.

    I would try to start a new routine with her. Maybe nurse, bath, jammies, book/song, rock a little and lay her down drowsy. She's probably going to fight it at first, but decide how you want to handle the crying. 

    Some people walk away cold turkey and let them CIO. I personally can't handle that, and would go in at regular intervals to pat, shush, soothe, etc. It could take a while for her to go to sleep for a week or so, but she'll get it eventually. Consistency is key!

    This! We changed up DS's routine around 12 months and moved his night time bottle to earlier in the routine so that he didn't associate milk with going to sleep. This also allowed us to brush his teeth before bedtime which is important since milk right before sleep can lead to cavities.

    We did offer milk when he woke up, for the longest time, until maybe around 18 months (which totally defeats the purpose of teeth brushing) and honestly, I wish we had stopped the night time bottle a lot earlier. Once we did, he started sleeping through the night and has done so, ever since.

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  • opheliainwadersopheliainwaders member
    homebird said:
    I mean ... it's kind of late now, but nursing to sleep is a bad idea. I did it with my first and it was a fight for about a year to get her to sleep without nursing or eating.

    I would try to start a new routine with her. Maybe nurse, bath, jammies, book/song, rock a little and lay her down drowsy. She's probably going to fight it at first, but decide how you want to handle the crying. 

    Some people walk away cold turkey and let them CIO. I personally can't handle that, and would go in at regular intervals to pat, shush, soothe, etc. It could take a while for her to go to sleep for a week or so, but she'll get it eventually. Consistency is key!
    While I disagree wholeheartedly that nursing to sleep is "bad," I think when they stop is a good time to start helping them find new ways to fall asleep. Using the No Cry Sleep Solution techniques worked pretty well for us, and I got if for (literally) $.02 on Amazon.
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