how can i break my son from going to bed with a bottle?

Stephanie - posted on 09/09/2010

When it comes to the type of cup, I had to use a sippy cup that had a HARD nozzle, not a soft silicone one...that was too close to a bottle so she ended up needing that every night instead. But with a hard top, she couldn't keep it in her mouth like a silicone-top or a bottle...it falls out when you lay down to sleep. So when she actually fell asleep, there wasn't anything in her mouth so she ended up not needing that anymore. Now she keeps the cup next to her in bed, but doesn't need it in her mouth. And I agree with everyone who says to keep diluting whatever you give them to drink until it's just water. That's what I did too.

T - posted on 09/05/2010

Break the habit as soon as poss. Better to see him cry a bit from a substitute for the bottle than cry while having cavities filled. It's hard to break habits with our kids. Betterthat you realized now rather than 17 months or later. I vote for diluted juice and just keep diluting it more and more to eventually water. Water at night is ok so if he needs a bottle with water, not such a bad habit to have.

Mari - posted on 09/04/2010

I did cut off the nipple one day, my son was very puzzled about it, he still had a bottle for a while but realizing that there is nothingcoming out he dropped it all together. I had the same problem and it fixed it withing couple of days

Gail - posted on 09/03/2010

Just tell him that he is too big and give him a small cup of milk, a cookie and have him use the bathroom. He may complain for a while but when they get teeth it can have bad affect on them. You and your husband do not take a bottle to bed and he is too big to act like a baby. It is probably time to also assert your authority in a kind way. If he fusses just ignore it and it will go away.

Brittany - posted on 08/31/2010

i just took the bottle away from my son at around 9 months broke the binky habbit a few months ago and he'll be 2 in nov. i had to be the "bad parent" and let him cry threw his fits but it only takes a few nights after that its a piece of cake

Jennifer - posted on 08/27/2010

when i moved my daughter to sippy cups i didnt give her an option i just bought a few sippy cups that had a soft silicone nipple and handles on the side i threw out all her bottles and i gave her some milk in the new cup and it took her all of 5 min to figure it out we then gradually moved to different kinds of cups now that she will be 2 in dec we are moving to just regular cups she was about 10 months when i broke her of her bottle and she was already on whole milk then because she had started to refuse her formula i wish you the best of luck

Regina - posted on 08/27/2010

I understand that it is easier to just give him a bottle, but parenting is not easy. You got to use tough love to break him of the habit. He may cry, but it needs to be done. My daughter started having discoloration on her front teeth from sleeping with the bottle, so u have to be careful. Think of a different bedtime and nap routine to help calm him and put him to sleep. We give my daughter a bath in the evening and that help calms her before bed or reading her a story and sitting with her for awhile until she falls asleep. They just want to feel comforted, and the bottle is giving your son that comfort, so u need to substitute that with something else. It will be tough at first, but worth it in the end. Good Luck!

Kristi - posted on 08/26/2010

I used a sippy with the soft rubber mouth piece. I think that's why it worked so well since it felt similar to the nipple of a bottle.

Lindsey - posted on 08/26/2010

what type of cup did you find that worked? i have one that is a straw type and he likes it but once it gets to a certain amount he cant get anything out and the other i think comes out alittle too fast

Kristi - posted on 08/25/2010

I expected the switch from bottle to sippy to be a difficult one. However, I slowly introduced the sippy. It replaced the bottle at snack first and then shortly after he drank from a sippy before bed with no complaints. :) Good luck! :)

Laura - posted on 08/24/2010

Mistakes can be great learning experiences so don't feel bad--plenty of other parents have done the same thing. The good thing is that you have recognized your mistake and are now able to work on correcting the problem. No biggy--It's all part of being a parent!

You don't mention HOW your son gets his bedtime bottle--do you or your husband feed it to him before bed or do you leave it in the bed with him? Since you wish to get him off the bedtime bottle, now would be a good time to introduce a new bedtime routine--one that doesn't include a bottle. With my daughter, it started with simply giving her less (about half) at bedtime for a week or so. Since our routine involved rocking (in a rocking chair--no stones involved!) while feeding, it was easy to just stop the bottle and switch to a story. We continued with the rocking. She never seemed to notice!

If he goes to bed with the bottle, you or your husband might try giving him the bottle shortly before putting him to bed. This would create a change in routine that you can control easier and avoids having the bottle in bed. Start with his regular bottle, then switch to a reduced amount before finally eliminating it all together. Once he isn't receiving his bedtime bottle, give him a story instead! Just remember, you are the parents and are in control of the situation, if you choose to. I know it doesn't seem that way at times, but it is true--you are the ones that can control it. Switch up your routine and before long he'll be off of the bottle. Hope this helps and good luck!

Ebony - posted on 08/24/2010

I did the same thing. What i did was this. I bought him a sippie cup and started adding sweet water in it and not the usual mike or juice. Each week I put less Karo Syrup, the clear one, to unsweeten it and soon all that was inthere was water. He stopped wanting it after about 3 weeks of that and was on his way to bed without it.