Expert: ruth kraft - 12/15/2009

Question
Hi, I have a 7month old that still nurses 2 times a night. I was told by his doctor that that isn't necessary. I would love to sleep for a whole 8 hours. How do I convince him to stop? He has in the past gone all night without eatting.

Answer
Well, the doctor may be right that the baby can physically live through the night without feeding, but he may not be taking the emotional of the child into account. There is often an emotional reason babies wake at night to nurse or eat. ( even with formula ) that should be honored also. However, you can try to start to wean that night time feeding by delaying the nursing and seeing if he will go back to sleep other ways. and hopefully he will pick up on it and sleep through the whole night. You can also read susan pantlys "no cry sleep solution" book. and that should be helpful. You can also give it a little more time, often this is a bit of a breaking point for babies and now will start sleeping longer. Reguardless of what your Dr. says, you should do what you feel is best for you and your baby.