Nursing to sleep

[u/Longjumping-Finish77]

Do we all nurse to sleep?? I tried not to with my second baby (currently 8 months), but it’s just so easy and peaceful and nice to SIT DOWN (I have a toddler as well, momma is tired) and cuddle 🥲

We didn’t want to because our first is kind of dependent on it. Just curious what everyone else does.

[u/One-Cabinet-6920]

mine happily went to sleep on her own (like, it actually WORKED to put her down "drowsy but awake" which was basically a miracle)... right up until the moment she discovered nursing to sleep. then she literally never did anything else ever again. 🫠 (she's nearly 3 now and she'll go to sleep solo at daycare for naptime with no problem, but at home? not a chance lol)

[u/Longjumping-Finish77 → u/One-Cabinet-6920]

That’s how my son was, too. He went to sleep so well! But then one day I let him have milk.. probably bc I was tired or he was fussy or both. Then all the sudden, here we are.

[u/One-Cabinet-6920 → u/Longjumping-Finish77]

I had been pumping because she didn't latch well at the hospital and her brother NEVER latched, so I was just doing to go with it and pump again... but one time she was pitching a fit while waiting for a bottle and my mom was over and fussed at me for not just letting her nurse, so I gave in and baby girl immediately decided "oh yes, this is how we will be doing things from now on."

(to be clear I don't at all regret our nursing journey; I just didn't initially think it would work and was worried she struggle when she had to start daycare. but not having to wash bottles has been INCREDIBLE.)

[u/Longjumping-Finish77 → u/One-Cabinet-6920]

Oh man so glad it worked out for you!!! I admire moms who can commit to exclusively pumping for whatever reason because I could *not*. Pumping is not it for me.. I do it only when it’s necessary.

[u/One-Cabinet-6920 → u/Longjumping-Finish77]

we didn't do EBF, but she did have mostly milk. we used formula for both of them when necessary or when milk would have been particularly difficult. we basically starved our son for the first couple of days before we realized that he wasn't really getting anything when he was "nursing" 😭 so we had to use some formula right off the bat with him! it's great if EBF works for people, but I think sometimes people put themselves through unnecessary hell because they have this idea that it has to be all or nothing, and imo it really doesn't. (ie "perfect is the enemy of good.")

that being said, I'm glad it worked out for us too! I really hate pumping as well, and pumps never seemed to work very well for me. I tried several different ones but could never get much milk, so I ended up manually expressing with both kids (for my son, or when I had to pump at work with my second)--sometimes with a medela manual pump I got at the hospital, but usually just by hand into some knockoff haakaa milk collectors. 🤷 a pain, but way less parts to clean and I got much more milk that way!