How to sleep train a breastfed 18 month old?

Understanding Sleep Training for an 18-Month-Old Breastfed Toddler
Sleep training a breastfed 18-month-old can be a challenging yet rewarding journey for parents. At this age, toddlers are developing their independence, but they may still rely on the comfort of breastfeeding to soothe themselves to sleep. Here’s a comprehensive guide on how to approach sleep training while respecting the breastfeeding relationship.
The Importance of Establishing a Routine
Creating a consistent bedtime routine is crucial for helping your toddler understand when it’s time to sleep. This routine can include calming activities such as reading a book, singing lullabies, or gentle rocking. The goal is to signal to your child that bedtime is approaching, which can help ease the transition from wakefulness to sleep. Experts suggest that a predictable routine can significantly improve sleep quality for toddlers.
Choosing the Right Sleep Training Method
There are several sleep training methods available, and the choice largely depends on your parenting style and your child’s temperament. Here are a few popular approaches:
1. Ferber Method (Graduated Extinction): This method involves letting your child cry for progressively longer intervals before comforting them. It can be effective but may be challenging for parents who are sensitive to their child’s distress.
2. Chair Method: This gentler approach involves sitting in a chair next to your child’s crib and gradually moving further away each night until they can fall asleep independently. This method allows for a gradual transition while still providing comfort.
3. No Tears Method: This approach focuses on comforting your child without letting them cry. It may involve picking them up when they cry and soothing them back to sleep, gradually reducing your involvement over time.
Regardless of the method chosen, it’s essential to remain consistent. Mixed signals can confuse your toddler and prolong the sleep training process.
Addressing Nighttime Feedings
For breastfed toddlers, nighttime feedings can be a significant factor in sleep disruptions. While some parents choose to eliminate night feedings altogether, others may prefer to gradually reduce them. Here are some strategies:
– Gradual Reduction: If your child is used to nursing to sleep, consider gradually reducing the duration of each feeding. This can help them learn to fall asleep without relying solely on breastfeeding.
– Offer Comfort in Other Ways: When your toddler wakes at night, try comforting them with gentle words or a pat on the back instead of immediately offering the breast. This can help them learn to self-soothe.
The Role of Breastfeeding in Sleep Training
It’s important to note that breastfeeding and sleep training are not mutually exclusive. Many parents successfully navigate both by ensuring that breastfeeding remains a source of comfort during the day while encouraging independent sleep at night. This balance can help maintain the breastfeeding relationship while promoting better sleep habits.
Final Thoughts
Sleep training a breastfed 18-month-old requires patience, consistency, and a willingness to adapt. Each child is unique, and what works for one may not work for another. By establishing a calming bedtime routine, choosing a suitable sleep training method, and addressing nighttime feedings thoughtfully, parents can help their toddlers develop healthy sleep habits while still enjoying the benefits of breastfeeding. Remember, the goal is to create a peaceful sleep environment that fosters independence and security for your little one.

How can I get my 18 month old to sleep without breastfeeding?

Here are some tips to begin omitting nighttime nursing sessions:

1. Consider whether a consistent bedtime routine would help.
2. See how easy it might be for your baby to fall asleep without nursing.
3. See if you can get the baby to “let go” of the breast before falling asleep.
4. Be sure you nurse enough during the day.

How to sleep train a nursing 18 month old?

Gentle or gradual sleep training method
The aim is to make changes to sleep habits very gradually. For example, you may swap nursing for rocking to sleep. Next, you would pat your toddler to sleep. Finally, you transition yourself out of the room (chair method) so your child is falling asleep completely independently.

How do I get my 18 month old to stop nursing at night?

For weaning off nighttime feedings, try switching up baby’s routine or putting baby to bed with a special blanket or soft toy. Even better if Dad or someone else puts baby to sleep, so that baby is not reminded of nursing. Stopping most feedings will impact your milk supply.

How long to let an 18 month old cry it out?

For the cry-it-out method, you let your baby cry until they fall asleep, and rest assured they will. Some babies may protest for 25 minutes, others 65 minutes, and some even longer. It’s important not to put a time limit on it (that’s a different sleep-training method).

How do I get my 18 month old to stop drinking milk at night?

Over a few nights, gradually dilute the milk with water. Do the same for any bottles offered during the night. Generally within a night or two of just offering water, your toddler will realise that milk isn’t an option and they will start to resettle them self and ‘sleep through’.

Why does my 18 month old want to breastfeed all night?

Toddlers who nurse frequently are typically doing so out of comfort, rather than necessity. While it is important to understand the root cause of your little one’s desire for comfort nursing, there are different ways to begin night weaning that may help you – and your toddler!

What are the negative effects of breastfeeding too long?

For example, duration of breastfeeding experience has been shown to correlate negatively with parent-reported antisocial and aggressive behavior in children from 4 to 11 years of age [43]. These effects on antisocial behavior appear to extend well beyond childhood into adulthood.

Does an 18 month old need milk at night?

It’s best to stop giving your baby bottles between ages 1 and 2. By a year old, your baby is getting their nutritional needs met with daytime meals and snacks, so they don’t need the calories from breast milk or formula to get them through the night.

Are breastfed babies harder to sleep train?

Research shows that there really is little difference between sleep patterns in bottle-fed and breastfed babies and so choosing to swap from breastfeeding to formula feeding should be a decision made based on other factors and not sleep.

Is it too late to sleep train an 18 month old?

So what’s the answer? Is it ever too late to sleep train a toddler? Here’s the good news: It is NEVER too late to make changes in the sleep department- ever! Now, the older your child gets and the longer he/she holds onto these unwanted sleep habits, the harder it’s going to be to change them.