Introducing a dummy in an older baby

I am at my wits end.... Bonnie was always a good night sleeper until I started co-sleeping at about 3-4 months. Now she just wants to suck on me allllll night :( I am soooo tired!

The only resolution I can think of is a dummy... I tried water instead of milk, but it just doesn't work, she wants to suck. I have thought maybe I should get up instead of putting her in my bed when she wakes of a night, but I am so tired. I usually feed in bed and when she is finished I put her back in her bed... it usually works, occasionally not. Last night it was every hour!

Does anyone have any experiences they would like to share?

With my first he never had a dummy, I B/f him until he was 9 and half months and when I stopped he just wouldn't settle, so I resorted to a dummy and it worked for us, he stopped using it at about 18 months so really only had it for about 9 months.

I think give it a go and see if it will work, it might give you a bit of a break and some well earned sleep.

:goodluck:

hugs xoxo

Tanya, I don't know, neither of my boys would take a dummy. But DS2 is a thumb sucker instead. I would think though that by introducing one at this stage, you might be causing yourself a lot of work down the track for getting rid of it. And I think it is recommended to try and stop dummy usage when the teeth are through.

Maybe you could try a comforter of some sort in her cot? That might work. The other thing is you can try not feeding every second time she wakes and see how that goes. Maybe see if your DH can try settling her instead (it can be much easier without the smell of milk or the site of bbs!). GL hun, I hope it settles soon.

Tanya, I agree with Mantaray,if you introduce a dummy now,i think you might have a little trouble when you need to get rid of it. My 4th son was the only one to have a dummy and he used it as a secrurity thing, he couldn`t go anywhere without it,and hence when his teeth came in and once he started to talk we knew it was time for it to go,the dummies enterfer with their speech, he hasn`t had it for 3 months now,we still need to keep a listen out to his words. good luck.

Tanya, my advice would be please don't do it. You're just going to be replacing one problem with another further down the track. My DD had a dummy and I had a lot of trouble getting it of her again when she was older. I SWORE that DS wouldn't have one but what do you know, he ended up with one :( He is a lot less fond of it though and often sleeps without it and doesn't have it overnight. I still kick myself daily for it...

Hey Tanya,

I haven't used dummies for my 3.....not that I am against them, but just never got round to it. So I can't offer much advice there. But my instinct would be to avoid it for Bonnie at this late stage.

I know its the wrong time of year (ie chilly!), and I know it's a pain, but do you have a chair in Bonnie's room that you can feed in?

The reason I ask is that Lexie did a very similar thing (ie would wake and then just want to be in bed with me and suck on me for hours). I am SURE it was to do with the smell of my milk.

So we experimented and put her bed (hammock) in our spare room and moved a chair in there for me to feed her in, and I hooked up the monitor so that when she properly woke for a feed I went and gave her a good feed, then tucked her back in her own bed, left the room with my fingers crossed.....(I also let her have her "blankie" in bed with her too.....which she is now addicted to, but I am OK with that....)

This literally stopped her "snacking" instantaniously: and she and I were both a lot happier........

I feel your pain babe, I really do. xx

Thanx girls...

Lucy, she is still in our room. Ans when she wakes she really cries and stands up. I leave her for a minute jic she decides she is still tired but she is persistant! LOL

I know she is just snacking and more or less sucking for comfort, but I have no idea what to do! All my kids had dummies and were sleeping soundly at night by this age, I seriously thik I have built a rod for my own back!

Ok, bit of an update from us...

The night after my sook on here I decided I was not going to give in to a tired baby wanting to suck on me all night!.
I was up watching a movie (I should have been in bed) and she woke at 9:45. I fed her in hopes that would keep her satisfied for a few hours. After being in bed a sleep for about an hour she woke at 11:30. I just kept laying her down when she stood up giving her a pat. She eventually went off to sleep, but it was an hour later!! However she didn't wake again until 5:45 :)
Last night she tossed and turned a bit but didn't get up. She eventually woke at 3:45. I fed her in bed and put her back when she was done. She woke again at 5am and after sooking for a couple of minutes stoop up against the rail sooking. I got up and laid her back down 'shhh'ing her... she went straight back to sleep. She then didn't wake until 8 :D

Fingers crossed I haven't jinxed myself by telling you all this!!

WELL DONE!!!

I hope you start feeling less knackered soon babe.

Well done to you, and well done Bonnie.

xx

Wow Tanya, that fabulous. Well done hun.

Tanya that's great news, I hope that it keeps going well for you.

hugs xoxo