Baby sleep and breastfeeding

Feeding your baby to sleep, where is the problem?

You gave your baby a bath, you put him in pajamas and you have hummed a lullaby. You are now both sitting in a quiet room and quietly watching your baby suckle. It does not take long to fall asleep. You drop it gently in his bed, turned off the light and you leave the room. When he wakes up three hours later, you give it back to him the breast and falls asleep immediately.
This is the same ritual every night and this is the problem! Breastfeed your baby to sleep is certainly an enjoyable habit for both of you. But if your baby starts to suckle need to sleep, start small and big hassle ...
All babies seem waking up several times at night. Most go back to sleep without a problem. If you're used to breastfeed your baby to sleep, then collect it also to sleep in at night. It is easier to breastfeed your baby during the night if you are a follower of co-sleeping, Nocturnal awakenings may be more frequent for both.

Breastfeeding and sleep

The breastfed babies take longer to take sleep patterns than bottle-fed. The explanation is simple: breast milk is easier to digest than milk powder. Babies breastfed then hunger faster and wake up more often.

The baby feeds for both food and reassurance. It therefore combines fast feeding and sleep. So, if you establish a ritual of breastfeeding your baby sleepHe will not try to find another way to fall asleep.

Change your habits

Does this mean it that you should never feed your baby to sleep? Of course not. Breastfeed your baby to sleep is a wonderful experience. But it must be occasional and not repeat all night. Why not make a part of your nursing Bedtime ? In this case, breastfeeding your baby soon enough. In this way, it does not directly associate this part of the bedtime sleep.
After feeding your baby, read him a story, humming a song to him or change his diaper one last time. If you split breastfeeding and sleep, even for a few minutes, your baby will not feel the need to suck to sleep.

Help baby to sleep alone

If your baby is already associated with feeding and sleep, do not despair. It is never too late to start giving him sleep habits. Here are some tips to help your baby learn to fall asleep alone:
• Separate feeding of bedtime nourishing your baby earlier in the evening.
• Feed your baby early bedtime, or reduce the duration of the last feed at night.

Remember that these changes relate to bedtime. Once your baby starts s'endormir seul the evening, he was able also to calm down and go back to sleep without your help during the night.

Improve sleep nursing mothers

The ideal is that you can sleep suit your needs (not always easy, admittedly!). Ask your partner for help during nighttime feedings. It is not because you are breastfeeding you should be the one to get up at night!
Some alternatives:
• Your milk before you go to bed. And your partner can get up at night and give a bottle of breast milk to your baby.
• Pull your milk in another room as your baby's room. Back to bed while your partner will be responsible for feeding at night. Ten minutes may be enough to express your milk while feeding, changing and rocking your baby to sleep on can take a lot longer.

If breastfeeding your baby can be a wonderful experience, sleep disturbances are also a reality. You can absolutely breastfeed your baby at night both. By doing so, you will help your baby to take good sleep habits with his father and his mother as he held then for the rest of his life.