Does feeding baby to sleep = bad habbit?

Question

Would love to hear from other Mothers who have feed their babies to sleep. Does it really create bad sleeping habits as I have been told? My little girl sleeps through the night and is very good at putting herself to sleep again when she wakes during the night time but she does not like her day time naps very much. I have tried everything but the only thing that really works is putting her on my boobie until she is fast asleep and then putting her down in her crib. WIll she get out of this habbit eventually (she is only 3 months) or will it only get worse if I dont do something about it now? How did feeding to sleep work for you?

Answer 1

I am a first time mom to a 4 1/2 month old little boy and i have problems getting him to take naps during the day as well if i don't nurse him. I try rocking him, bouncing him in my arms, singing to him-everything! But the only thing he basically wants to do all day long is nurse! (every hour). even if i get done feeding him a half hour ago and he becomes tired the only way i can get him to take a nap is to nurse him, otherwise he's cranky and crying and eating his hands (even when he "shouldn't" be hungry- 1/2 hour after i feed him). I feel like i'm also starting a bad habit, i don't want him to rely on my as a pacifier to go to sleep with. (he won't take an actual pacifier either). Anyway good luck! All i can say is just keep on trying everyday to let him realize that he doesn't need to nurse just to get himself to sleep. --did you try rocking him or anything?

Answer 2

Most babies fall asleep after feedings and the pediatrician told me that until 6 months it isn't a problem.  The only problem is if they fall asleep before finishing eating so they wake-up sooner to eat again but other than that it is ok that they fall asleep eating.  I know when my son was nursing that is how he wanted to fall asleep all the time he just found it comforting then around 4 months he just stopped falling asleep with the bottle (well most of the time anyways)

Answer 3

My son's pediatrician was very specific about this issue.  She advised me to keep my son awake for a period after feedings so that he would learn to fall asleep without the comfort of the breast (or bottle).

Answer 4

when you wean her it will go away...Right now she is three months old...how do you spoil a three month old.  The only thing they know is that when they cry they get their needs met.  Even in hospitals in the neo natal units...the babies get fed and held on demand.  That is how they get their trust and security for later.  When she is 6 to 8 months old though...you are going to want to break her of that habit.

right now she is so little....love her...enjoy her...believe me they grow up so quickly.  I am a mother of three...and they are 40 and twins are 37....and I wonder...where did the time go?  

Cherish each moment and let her feel your love!

Answer 5

Nursing to Sleep and Other Comfort Nursing

Am I creating a bad habit by allowing baby to nurse to sleep?

What about letting baby "cry it out?"

I've been told that baby will NEVER learn to go to sleep on his own if we don't teach him.

How will baby go to sleep when I'm not there to nurse him, or after he weans?

How can I gently encourage baby to fall asleep without nursing (and without crying)?

My baby sometimes nurses for comfort, when she's obviously not hungry.

Is this a problem?

My baby wants to comfort nurse the entire time he's napping!

How can I slip away without waking baby?

My toddler wants to comfort nurse forever when he's trying to fall asleep.

In conclusion...

Additional Resources

Many moms feel guilty for nursing their baby to sleep. Nursing your baby to sleep is not a bad thing to do! It's very normal and developmentally appropriate for babies to nurse to sleep and to wake 1-3 times during the night for the first year or so. Some babies don't do this, but they are the exception, not the rule. Many children, if given the choice, prefer to nurse to sleep through the second year and beyond. Nursing is obviously designed to comfort baby and to help baby sleep, and I've never seen a convincing reason why mothers shouldn't use this wonderful "tool" that we've been given.

"You are not a pacifier; you are a Mom. You are the sun, the moon, the earth, you are liquid love, you are warmth, you are security, you are comfort in the very deepest aspect of the meaning of comfort.... but you are not a pacifier!" -- Paula Yount

Am I creating a bad habit by allowing baby to nurse to sleep?

Your baby's desire to nurse to sleep is very normal and not a bad habit you've fostered. Don't be afraid to nurse your baby to sleep or fear that you are perpetuating a bad habit. Baby often will seek the breast when sleepy or over-stimulated because it's a comforting and familiar place to him. To associate the breast with wanting to relax enough to go to sleep makes perfect sense. As adults, we also do things to relax ourselves so we can go to sleep: we read, watch TV, get something warm to drink or a snack, deep breathe, get all snug under the covers, etc. Nursing does the same thing for your baby.

For many babies at the height of exploration or distractibility, nighttime or naptime can often be the ONLY time the baby will nurse well. Allowing him to nurse at these times when he is more focused on nursing and less intent on other things helps ensures that he gets enough milk, that your supply is maintained, and that the nursing relationship goes on. Don't be afraid to nurse at these times or fear that you are perpetuating a bad habit. Instead, take advantage of these times for better nursing.

The sleep issue is not merely a matter of good versus bad habits. It is much more an issue of culture and lifestyle and expectations. Here are three approaches to parenting issues:

Forcing baby to change to fit the parent's lifestyle is one approach. Our American culture tends not to be very baby friendly, and rarely makes accommodations for nursing babies. The current trend, seen in many popular books and parenting magazines, is to force baby to do all of the accommodating so that we experience as little change in our pre-baby lifestyle as possible; for example, baby MUST sleep through the night so that we get unbroken sleep and a "good" baby is seen as one who makes as few demands on his parents as possible.

Another approach is to try to approximate the mothering style of traditional societies and let the parents do all the accommodating. This approach can be very difficult to pull off without lots of support and changes of expectations in the people around us.

A third approach is to do as much accommodating on the parental side as possible, and then to "ask" baby to accommodate the last part of the gap. This is an approach that can work for many families. With this approach, parents do all they can to be sensitive to their baby's needs, and only ask baby to accommodate when nothing else truly works.



What about letting baby "cry it out?"

There are two schools of thought about getting babies to sleep. One is a rather rigid method of "sleep training" where a baby is put down awake in a crib and left to cry himself to sleep so that he learns to "self-soothe" and doesn't develop sleep associations that require someone else to put him to sleep. This method has been around since the 1890's and was dreamed up by male university sleep laboratory researchers. Many of the popular "sleep training" methods of today are modified versions of this (allowing baby to cry for progressively longer periods without comforting him, instead of just leaving him to cry until he gives up and stops).

I can't, with good conscience, recommend the cry-it-out method for getting baby to sleep. Anyone who advises you to let your baby cry until he gives up and falls asleep is focusing on the baby's behavior

Answer 6

I wouldn't do it, even if they are young, dont ever give extra food, they become chubby and then its bad, but its fine if you change the eating schedule to give her food before she sleeps and not giving extra, its alright.

Answer 7

not at all! i dont think anyone can sleep on an empty stomach

Answer 8

I nursed my baby to sleep (at bedtime only, naps were not an issue) until he was 9 months old.  At that time, I decided to break him of the habit by brushing his teeth after he nursed.  The first few nights he wondered what I was doing and cried when I tried to put him to bed and I had to spend some extra time holding him before I could put him down.  After a week he was into the new routine.  

Answer 9

Three months old! Nah! don't even worry about it. She doesn't have to soothe herself to sleep at that age. If you're worried about having bad sleeping routine in the future wait until around 9 months. Its perfectly fine (and good for her) to fall asleep after filling her belly. Good that you're thinking ahead though but seriously... don't give it a second thought. She'll be fine. Plus at 3 months you shouldn't ever let her cry herself to sleep... lke  I said.. 9 months is the time to do it if you're going to. Good luck.

Answer 10

We have a 3 month baby boy and he often goes to sleep during nursing.  That is perfectly fine and at 3 months, baby is much too young to be worried about bad habits at this stage.  Soothing a baby to sleep is OK.   It doesn't have to be your breast always though and maybe you can try to soothe your baby to sleep using different ways.  If still awake after feeding / burping, we can also gently rock our baby to sleep as well.  Pacifier doesn't work for us either.  

We didn't try the ferber method (let him cry it out) and we probably never will.

Answer 11

Hello, my baby is the same way. Since 5 weeks old she was sleeping through the night and her last feeding before bed would always make her fall asleep and then I would put her in the crib. It is just a night time ritual now to have me holding her while doing the last feeding. Mine is 7 months now and she will get sleepy now but not fully asleep, but once she is in the crib she falls fast asleep.  I wouldn't worry too much. You are doing what you feel is best for your baby and your instincts are what you should rely on. I did and mine is healthy and happy.  

Answer 12

My daughter is 11 months old, and will not go to sleep without a bottle.  So yes, it does turn into a bad habit.  One that I really need to break, but I dread it so badly!

Answer 13

I nursed my now 12 month old to sleep until about 2 months ago.  Tonight, he'll fall asleep just fine snuggled next to me and have no desire to nurse.  We didn't have a single struggle weaning him off nursing to sleep.  It took 2 or 3 nights of falling asleep without mommy in the bed (just daddy- he snuggles great with daddy).  I'd stay out on the couch for 20 minutes while daddy took baby to bed and after he was asleep, I'd come to bed.  After that, it wasn't a problem!  

It's fine.  It's not a bad habit.  It's her source of comfort.  Don't let anyone tell you otherwise.

Answer 14

When my daughter gets fussy I do the same thing and I have done it since she was born.  At first she would always fall asleep.  She is almost 6 months old now.  During the day she eats at certain times and takes naps at certain times, I always give her a bottle before I put her down and I don't see why that would be a problem.  Sometimes she only eats a little bit and goes right to sleep.  You should do what you feel is right for you and you baby.  Don't let others tell you what is right for you.  My doctor said there is no problem with giving her a bottle before naps and bed.

Answer 15

My children always feel asleep while feeding at bedtime. I've never had a problem getting them to sleep without it when they were older.

No way would I wake a sleeping baby.

Have you tried a pacifier instead?

Answer 16

I faithfully rocked/fed my daughter to sleep every night from day one.  At 6/7 months, she'd finish her last feeding and if still awake, push me away to go to bed on her own, and now (she will be one tomorrow!) doesnt take the last feeding at all, and goes to bed without making a sound.  It creates NO bad habits, just makes for bonding time between the two of you, that you MUST have! Trust me, now that its over, I miss that time terribly, and so will you.  She will not expect this from you forever, I promise, so make it last and enjoy it!!

Answer 17

This is my 4th time around and with the first 3 I did feed till they fell asleep and they were never great at going to sleep later on. With this baby--I did feed her until she fell asleep until she was about 5 months old. Then I would feed her a little earlier than normal and put her down at the time she was falling to sleep at and luckily she kind of rooted around abit for a few minutes and she fell asleep on her own. Now, after a month and a bit she goes to bed at the same time every night on her own. At 3 months the baby hasnt developed "bad" habits yet and there is time to start a new routine

Answer 18

Its bad