My 9 month old will only fall asleep on my breast...any suggestions on how 2 geet her to fall asleep

Nicole - posted on 09/26/2009

I have 2 other children so can't always bf my 6 mth old to sleep. l put her in bed when she is sleepy and have my hand on her the whole time, yes she does cry but not for very long now. This is the only thing that worked for me with my older 2 as well, l felt like l was still conected to them even though l was trying to teach them how to go to sleep on their own. I have decided that what ever works for you is the right solution...but remember they are only small for such a short time they grow and get heavier!! Good luck!

April - posted on 09/20/2009

my son is also 9 months old and he won't go to sleep unless he nurses first. i don't mind because i actually feel more nervous when he doesn't nurse. want to keep up supply without having to pump all the time.

but.............try using a cd that has soft music or lullabys. or even a cd with white noise. my neighbor gave me a CD that has a hairdryer sound on it...worked like a charm for her little girl

Dana - posted on 09/20/2009

I too am looking for ways to get my 13 month old to fall asleep in other ways other than after breastfeeding. He is still waking up 2-3 times a night to nurse and I am more than exhausted after doing this for over 13 months. Any suggestions would be welcome. I am not a fan of CIO for many reasons - especially since I have a 3 year old sleeping in the room next door! Good luck with your 9 month old; let me know if you find a solution!

Nora - posted on 09/20/2009

Hey Tiffany.. it can be very hard on the mum when the only way to get baby to sleep is by breast feeding. Yes it is a perfectly natural way to get baby to sleep but if you have had enough of it then you can always change you don't have to grin and bear it. My daughter is almost 7 months and this has been the way I have gotten her to sleep that and rocking. She is getting to heavy for me to rock to sleep and I am finding with Breastfeeding her to sleep she wakes up more frequently during the night looking for me to settle her. I have been told that when a baby falls asleep at your breast then they wake up in there cot/bassinet they look for you to settle them back to sleep as last thing they remember is that mummy got me to sleep. Once they get older its harder to teach them to self settle but I have been letting my daughter cry it out which has been working for me. Its very very hard but it will get easier. If you are not keen to try this then there are other methods out there that can help get your baby to sleep on their own without the crying. Plenty of books out there, the no cry sleep solution or save our sleep. At the end of the day you have to do what suits you and makes you happy. In saying that when baby is sick all those methods tend to go out the window. You cant leave baby to cry themselves to sleep if they have a cold . It can take three days to break a routine then you have to start again but if your persistant you can make the change. Best of luck!

Mandy - posted on 09/19/2009

my 8mo also falls asleep while feeding. these days, it is the only time he has milk, apart from during the night. it is good for me too....it makes me stop and sit and relax for 10mins while he is going to sleep.

Hang in there, you are doing great

Minnie - posted on 09/19/2009

I agree with Vanessa. Kids just up and one day decide that they're too big to nurse to sleep at mommas breast. It might not exactly be in the time frame that you expect, but that just means adjusting your expectations of what your child needs.

No child will nurse to sleep forever, I promise.

Vanessa - posted on 09/19/2009

both of my chilren have breastfed to sleep (2nd baby 9 month old now) and i believe it to be the perfectly natural way to go to sleep at your mothers breast. yes, they do outgrow the need to fall alseep on your boob.