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September 2015 Moms
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Nursing to sleep

heidi3189heidi3189 member
in September 2015 Moms
I went back to work when baby was 6 weeks and have since been nursing her to sleep at night. I did the same thing with my 8 year old when he was a baby and never thought anything of it. To be honest I am just so tired by the end of the night that I get lazy and know that she will go to sleep with very little effort.
I never had any issues with my son as he got older. Never put him to sleep with a bottle as he got older and was weaned. Anyways, I have read alot of conflicting information about nursing to sleep and have tried to weed through the information best as possible. I'm just not sure that I think it will cause harm. I'm also a co-sleeper and allow baby to comfort nurse. I guess I just break all of the rules. :neutral: I'm curious to know other thoughts and opinions on the matter.
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Re: Nursing to sleep

  • caityrosecaityrose member
    I do it. Didn't realize it's not recommended?
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  • BrandiLaw87BrandiLaw87 member
    edited January 2016
    I do pretty much everything you just described. And also didn't realize it's a problem?

    ETA: LO sleeps in a bassinet next to me.
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  • xJKxORxJKxOR member
    I nurse to sleep during naps and for bed. Naps is kind of accidental in the sense that he just falls asleep while eating. At night it's more purposeful because I know it will make him fall asleep. I love doing if though and cherish our cuddling time. It may come to be a bad habit I'll regret but I like it right now (he's 18 weeks and sleeps in a crib in the nursery)
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  • ElleMF728ElleMF728 member
    I think it is recommended against because some babies can develop a sleep association especially when object permanence sets in around 6 months.  Basically babies wake every so often throughout the night after every sleep cycle (so do adults) the hope is that baby can soothe himself back to sleep and only eat when hungry to encourage STTN.  A nursing sleep association would mean that LO NEEDS to nurse in order to fall back asleep, you can see it in older babies who don't eat a real meal, just a couple sucks or an ounce or two from a bottle before falling back asleep several times a night.  I don't think its necessarily a bad thing and I don't think all babies will have issues with it.  It is just cautioned against because it could potentially lead to sleep problems that may need to be dealt with in the future (if you choose to obviously).  

    To add: Object permanence means that LO expects his environment when he wakes from a cycle to be exactly the same as when he fell asleep or it can lead to confusion and a greater need to be soothed back to sleep.  Precious Little Sleep likened it to falling asleep warm and cozy in your bed and waking up on your front lawn which I thought was pretty descriptive.  It is why a lot of pediatricians will suggest working on putting baby down drowsy but awake between 3-6 months so that he can learn how to fall asleep alone in his crib.  
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  • ForeverEverAfterForeverEverAfter member
    I nursed to sleep with DD1 til she was 2. Daycare could just lay her in a pnp, DH would get her to sleep by rocking if I worked nights, but for me she wanted to nurse. When she started waking more frequently I made sure to break the latch each time so she wasn't sucking while falling asleep (Pantley Pull Off from No Cry Sleep Solution), and that worked for us. Baby is only 17w, and sleeping long stretches, so she's nursing to sleep until it no longer works.
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  • MewkieMewkie member
    I am currently nursing LO to sleep but am thinking I may stop soon.   As @ElleMF728 explained so well, it doesn't always cause sleep issues but it can.  I think this is happening with us, LO is waking all night long and won't go back to sleep without nursing.  Not a problem for some but I am so exhausted and would like to eventually break this habit as he gets a bit older (almost 16 weeks).  Also, I found it helpful with DS1 for others to be able to put him to bed in my absence, whether it was a family member or a sitter so breaking that nursing to sleep association helped with that as well.  Some babies don't have that issue either but my first did so if I can I will try to avoid it with this baby.  Perfect for all my hot date nights that probably won't happen!  Haha!  I think there are no right answers on the topic.  See what works for you and your family and try to go with it!
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  • AndieTessieAndieTessie member
    I'm doing pretty much exactly what your doing. When she fusses in the MOTN I just offer a pacifier and put my face or hand on her face so she feels the same warmth and contact she would if nursing. Usually works and I just slowly back away when she falls asleep. With naps she almost always has to be nursed to sleep but for the moment I'm just going with it or else she'll never nap.
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  • Livvyloo87Livvyloo87 member
    The only thing I would worry about is when they get teeth or their teeth are near the surface, nursing to sleep leaves milk in the mouth which may sit on the teeth and contribute to faster decay of those teeth. I nurse to sleep but then burp and out her in a sleep sack which wakes her up slightly but not fully so she goes to bed drowzy.
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  • Kayciejoe56Kayciejoe56 member
    I rock to sleep for naps and nurse to sleep at bedtime. Mostly just because LO is so tired at bedtime that he just falls asleep... it's not really intentional.

    I just wanted to say, that you should do whatever works for you! I try really hard to just do what we need to do and not worry about things that may or may not create bad habits later. There will be plenty of "issues" for years to come, so I just deal with them as they come. I nurse to sleep, and Cosleep because it's helping me get enough sleep to go to work each day. When that stops working, I'll change our arrangement. I may be making it a little harder, but not enough for me to have, what i see as, unnecessary battles right now. I also think a lot of sleep advice is from years ago, when way less mom's were working full time.
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  • jlawson23jlawson23 member
    I nurse to sleep. I co-sleep. And I don't worry (unreasonably) about what may or may not happen with these two things. Every baby/family is different. I work and I am a single mom, so at the moment I don't have time for sleep training and changing routines. I don't see anything wrong with either arrangement, but do what's best for you and your family.
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  • yellowbean15yellowbean15 member
    Yeah I rock to sleep for naps and nurse to sleep for bedtime. We didn't know there was anything wrong with nursing to sleep when we started (and until I read it on here) and now it's just how our routine goes. I haven't even worked on drowsy but awake. Part of me knows this could bite me in the butt in the future, and maybe lead me to do things differently with my second, but right now I'm loving all the snuggles and choosing to remain ignorant about it.

    Glad to hear it never created a problem for your older child! :) Hoping it's the same for us.
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  • hollidarhollidar member
    https://themilkmeg.com/why-the-milk-meg-would-like-to-burn-every-baby-training-book-in-existence/

    This is a great article that made me feel much better. I nurse to sleep for naps and night. We still have a nightly routine, and he will not go to sleep before 11. I'm hoping that changes soon, other than that I follow his lead. Usually he only wakes 1-2 times over a 10 hr period which is awesome. With the leap and 4 month sleep regression he has just become unpredictable. I'm sick of hearing about sleep training and being told to let him sleep in the crib at night or crying won't hurt him. He's 3.5 months old and sleeps in a bassinet next to my bed. I think this article articulates my feelings and gives me reassurance. Hope it does for some of you too. The author is a lactation consultant.
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  • bnwillia3bnwillia3 member
    Kayciejoe56 said:

    I just wanted to say, that you should do whatever works for you! I try really hard to just do what we need to do and not worry about things that may or may not create bad habits later. There will be plenty of "issues" for years to come, so I just deal with them as they come. I nurse to sleep, and Cosleep because it's helping me get enough sleep to go to work each day. When that stops working, I'll change our arrangement. I may be making it a little harder, but not enough for me to have, what i see as, unnecessary battles right now. I also think a lot of sleep advice is from years ago, when way less mom's were working full time.

    YESSSSSS!!! ^This, this, this!!

    There are SO many "rules" for raising kids that are actually just opinions. As long as baby is healthy and loved, you do what you gotta do to survive! ;) Babies are so different that was a problem for one, will be a blessing for another!

    I nurse to sleep most nights and co-sleep. Occasionally, my husband will rock baby to sleep, and other times baby just passes out on his own. I'm sure what we are doing will cause one issue or another at some point, but I kind of feel that's unavoidable when it comes to raising kids ;)

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