Infant Sleep and Breastfeeding

You have put in a lot of efforts over the last one and a half years in bringing your baby into this world. The challenge now is to maintain your good health and enthusiasm to continue to perform all the functions expected from a mother. The reason, I say it is a challenge is because there would be times when you would get very tired, both mentally and physically and it requires tremendous resilience on your part to see your baby through to the next stage.

Let us look at some of the issues that can crop up.

Feeding your baby to sleep – where’s the problem?

Night has fallen. The baby has been cleaned and given a warm water bath. You have made him wear a set of clean night time clothes and are singing a lullaby to make him sleep soundly. You are peacefully feeding your child in the bedroom with lights off. The baby falls asleep immediately you put him on the cot. After three hours he wakes up again, you breastfeed him and then he goes back to slumber once again. This is fulfilling for both of you as well as your baby. But have you ever pondered whether this is the right way? No, of course not and this is likely to cause future problems for both of you as well as your baby.

You might feel that breastfeeding is the most ideal way and is a healthy routine which you are following day in and day out. But this is not true. This technique might sound easy for you since you feel the child sleeps peacefully after you have breastfeed him. But the child might form sleep associations which are not good for the child and this would later develop into a habit.

Most of the babies wake up many times during the night. If you have made it a habit to feed your baby, every time he wakes up, this would become a routine habit and the child would feel that only he has been fed he will be able to sleep soundly. This is obviously not the right way to make the baby sleep peacefully. Whether the child is made to sleep separately on the child cot or whether the child shares your same cot, matters would get worse as you would have to wake up many times at midnight.

Breastfeeding and sleeping – the connection

It has been researched and found that babies who are breastfed before going to sleep form sleep associations and they take longer to adjust to sleeping all by themselves s compared to formula fed babies. Moreover, breast milk is lighter and easier to digest as compared to formula milk. This is the reason why most breastfed babies feel hungry very soon and they wake many times during the night.

Secondly, breastfeeding is both calming and soothing. It is well nourished and complete food. Hence, it is easier to establish a connection between breastfeeding and sleeping. The baby forms sleep associations that only if he is breastfed, he can go back to sleep once he wakes up. Every time he wakes up in the middle of the night, he might need you and your breast a he finds it both soothing and comforting. On the contrary, your neighbor’s child who has adjusted well to the sleep patterns sleeps peacefully on its own without any help.

Try a change of routine

Now what does this mean? Should you not breastfed your baby at all before he goes to sleep? This is not what we are implying. Breastfeeding your baby is definitely a wonderful experience and you should definitely do so but not so regularly. You could do it once in a while at night. Never make bed times as breastfeeding routine. The child would start relating to it and would never become independent. You could breastfeed the child much before he is preparing to sleep. Once the baby is through with his feed, you could sing a lullaby or read out a story.

Help him fall asleep on his own

If your baby already needs your breast and your presence to go to sleep, then obviously he has formed sleep associations. But do not feel dejected. It is never too late to begin a new habit. You could still help him inculcate healthy sleeping habits. Few ways to kick start and help him sleep all by his own are as follows:

Slowly discontinue breastfeeding immediately before he goes to sleep. Slowly reduce the time you spend on feeding the child.

It is ideal to feed the child towards evening and not before he retires to bed.

These changes have to be incorporated only during night times and bed times. Once the baby is able to sleep on its own during nighttime, he would not need you every time at night.

How breastfeeding mums can get more sleep?

It is obvious that breastfeeding moms do not get their quota of sleep at night. It is the duty of both parents to stay awake and not only the mother’s responsibility. Ask your partner to change the nappy of the baby while you could catch up on some sleep. Some other ideal alternatives are:

Express some milk so that the child can be fed if he gets up in the middle of the night. Your partner can prepare a bottle of expressed milk or also make a bottle of milk using formula milk powder. Your partner can feed the child while you can express milk in a separate room. If you and your partner work together in unison, you could definitely get sleep and would not have a problem. Both of you should adjust and work out a system which works best for you, your family and your child.

Breastfeeding the child is a wonderful experience for the mother and the baby. But it could definitely lead to sleep related problems in the future. This is applicable to both you as well as your baby. If you inculcate healthy sleeping habits in your baby, he would become more independent and it would be a great relief to you.

Infant Sleep and Breastfeeding

You have put in a lot of efforts over the last one and a half years in bringing...