Latest Pregnancy Forum Topics:

  • What are your impressions of the name Alyssa? (9 posts)
  • is it Alright for a 13 year old girl to be horny? (7 posts)
  • Is this normal?????? (6 posts)
  • Help with girl baby names!? (18 posts)
  • Do you like? (5 posts)
  • Help with baby names!!? (31 posts)
  • What are some things a 9 year old likes to do? (6 posts)
  • Should I Trust my 15 year old daughter? (19 posts)
  • Dear teens...? (28 posts)
  • Books to read over the summer? (11 posts)
  • Did you give your baby tylenol for teething my dr says no but I did with my 1st what did you do ? (9 posts)
  • How Can I Get Pregnant Faster? (4 posts)
  • We need a name for a baby boy that is good in Spanish and English? (23 posts)
  • why is my 4 month old not napping anymore. is this a stage? any suggestions? (6 posts)
  • is it weird? (10 posts)
  •  

    10 TIPS FOR EASIER NURSING AT NIGHT

    During the first year that you will spend with your baby, you will spend a lot of time feeding your baby at night, so you might as well enjoy it. You have two nighttime go when it comes to feeding him which are: for you to get sufficient rest and for you to meet the nutritional and emotional needs of your infant. Remember, a happy mother and a well-fed baby is the whole point of nursing in the first place. Here are some tricks that will be very helpful.

    1-- You should remember your goal at night time, which is for your baby to sleep. You can't force your baby to actually sleep. Your role as a parent is to help create an environment for the baby that induces relaxation so that sleep can overtake the baby naturally.

    It is my belief that the ultimate goal of nighttime parenting is give your baby a good attitude about sleep, so that your child grows up seeing sleep as a good thing, with no fears of either falling asleep or staying asleep. In order to accomplish this goal, you will put a lot of effort into parenting your child to sleep and parenting her back to sleep when she wakes up in the middle of the night. Eventually, your efforts will become part of her inner resources, and she will be able to do this for herself.

    This goal is not the same as training baby to sleep through the night as soon as possible by denying him parental comfort. What it does mean is that, letting him cry sometimes will allow the baby to correct his own sleeping behavior.

    With the cry-it-out method, there’s an important lesson that your baby learns which is that you aren't going to come, so they may as well give up. Less-persistent babies give up the screaming phase quickly. Since they can't trust parents to be there, they learn to deal with their issue on their own.

    When dealing with babies, you should try to think of nighttime parenting as a long-term investment. The middle-of-the- night time you put in now will save you a whole lot of sleep in the years ahead. Your children will sleep well when they are older, and the good relationship you have built with them will keep you from lying awake at night worrying about them.

    2-- You have to develop a realistic ideal of night nursing. Don’t try to assume that you know how your baby is going to sleep at night or try to assume that this baby will be like the others. This will make it easier to deal any hardships that may arise from your colicky baby. (Remember that your other children may not have been colicky).

    You may have a mellow baby who breastfeeds with relative predictability by day and sleeps in 4-6 hour stretches at night. Just so that you know sleeping a five- hour stretch qualifies as sleeping through the night by most doctors when the baby is less than six months of age.

    You may be blessed with a high maintenance baby, such as one who will settle for nothing less than a lot of food and comforting needs day and night. Both types of babies are normal so don’t be shocked or disparaged. Also, you have to realize that when babies wake up frequently to nurse they are only asking for what they need to be healthy and not trying to bother you.

    This means more than just getting bigger, it means developing to the fullest potential physically, emotionally, and intellectually as well. Nearly all babies know intuitively how much nursing they need for nourishment and for comfort so take their words for it. Remember that at this young age, babies' wants are the same as their needs to them so when your baby wakes up for food at night, he likely needs it so don’t ignore him. He really needs this feeding. In fact, a common medical cause for an infant failing to thrive is not getting enough feedings at night.

    Of course, part of what your baby needs at night is the personal contact with you, and you may even learn to appreciate these nighttime feedings as much as the baby does.

    3—You will want to be open to trying various sleeping arrangements with the baby until you find the right one. There is no right or wrong place for baby to sleep. Whatever sleeping arrangement best suits the entire family is the right arrangement for your family. Be open to trying all kinds of different ones until you find the right one for your family.

    Sleeping arrangements may vary at different stages of baby’s growth too, so don’t be shocked when things change on you. Some babies settle better when they are sleeping snuggled right next to mommy all through the night, some babies seem to sleep better in a crib, and others sleep better when they switch from sleeping alone to sleeping with a parent.

    Most breastfeeding infants sleep best snuggled next to the mom. Don’t get me wrong: a baby’s sleeping zones should be decided between both parents as well as the baby. It's no one else's business. Do what feels right to you. Don’t feel pressured by other people’s opinions.

    Some ultra-sensitive infants are so stimulated by mother's close presence that they are better suited to sleep without her just so that they can settle down, yet they don't sleep well in their own rooms. In this case, try the sidecar arrangement. This is when the baby is close enough for nursing, yet mother and baby are not so close that they keep each other awake. Check out the "Arm's Reach® Co-Sleeper® Bassinet" that is designed to be used next to the parent's bed.) http://armsreach.com/mini_cosleeper.phphttp://armsreach.com/mini_cosleeper.php

    http://armsreach.com/mini_cosleeper.phphttp://armsreach.com/mini_cosleeper.php

    4-- You can also offer your baby frequent feedings during the day. As babies get bigger, they get busier during the day and forget to eat so you have to fill in the blanks for him. This will help baby to make up for missed feedings at night. This happens especially after six months. In this situation mother may be the one who tried to make the baby breastfeed at least every three hours during the day, so that he does not need to nurse as much at night.

    5-- Give them a quick fill up before you go to bed. Wake your baby up for a feeding just before you go to bed. If baby nurses to sleep at nine and you go to bed at 10:30, you may be woken up by the baby shortly after you have fallen to sleep. It is better to awaken baby and fill his tummy right before you go to sleep you can both get more sleep at the same time.

    6-- Offer both breasts during the baby’s feedings. Since you're going to have to feed your baby in the middle of the night, you might as well try to do a better job to make sure that he is filled up. There are two very good techniques for switching sides when nursing the baby while you are lying down. One of them is the across the chest roll: this is when the baby finishes nursing on the first breast, cradle him against your chest as you roll to the other side. Then you have to get settled and then let the baby latch on to the other breast.

    If you don’t like this idea, instead turn your upper shoulder toward baby as you adjust the level of the upper breast so that your baby can latch on. It is very simple and good for both mother and baby.

    7—Change your baby before a feeding. If baby's diaper is wet or dirty, change him before he eats because this will help to lull him to sleep after the feeding. This doesn't work for those babies who seem to have a bowel movement every time milk is going in their mouths.

    8—You want to let go of the continuous sucker. Some babies love to sleep with a nipple in their mouth. After they have finished feeding, they will continue to suck for a few minutes or even longer. While some mothers can sleep with baby attached throughout the night or at naptime, most mothers can't relax with baby still connected.

    If you want to avoid waking your baby as you try to take the nipple out, gradually ease him off by inserting your index finger in the side of your baby's mouth to pry his jaws open gently. When his jaw begins to let go, you must slowly draw the nipple out of his mouth, protecting it with your finger in case baby clamps down on it.

    Some babies will be startled awake as soon as they notice the loss of pressure inside their mouth. If this happens, you will have to be ready to press with your index finger upward on his lower lip or chin as soon as your nipple is clear, and give the baby time to adjust to the change. From here you can slowly ease your finger pressure off.

    9-- Burping when feeding the baby at night. Many breastfeeding babies nurse with less anxiety at night. They reason for this is because they swallow less air and don't need to be burped. Even if you do need to help your baby bring up a bubble after nursing while lying on the side, you need not get out of the bed. Prop your baby up with his head and tummy against your body and pat his back until he burps.

    10-- Try to sit your baby at a 30 degree angle. While most babies can night nurse while they are sleeping flat and lying sideways, some babies suffer from gastroesophageal reflux (GER) and wake up with colicky abdominal pain during or right after the feeding. When you are feeding these babies, gravity is going to be your best friend. Instead of nursing sideways with baby lying flat, prop him up on a foam wedge between a 30 to 45 degree angle and him upright for at least thirty minutes after a feeding until gravity empties the stomach.

    Sponsored Ads:

    Related Articles:

    Also In This Category:

    Currently Online :

    10 member(s), 17 guest(s):
    babyDoll, BrightStar, Camel, Dyllon, GoldenNature, Gunship, SageBrush, Sarah, Style, WorldWideWonder, Crawler.de, Google, Cobion.com, Slurp

    Search :

    No comments yet
    Categories: Newborn Difficult Teens Soccer Parents Programs for Kids and Teens Cutting Wedding Costs Baby’s First Year Bedwetting Discipline Toddlers Anger Management in Parenting Getting to Know Your Teenager Make Your Baby Fall Asleep Unborn Child Parents and Child Relationship Room for Your Newborn Choosing Baby’s Name Wedding Decorum Wedding Jitters and Cold Feet: Being Pregnant Daycare Baby Potty Training Weddings Wedding Games & Activities Womens Issues Weddings Wedding Favors Work At Home Moms Sleeping Baby Parenting Skills Maternity Baby Shower Autism Baby Boomers Child Safety Baby Gifts Child Care Day Care After School Activities Breast Feeding Babies How To Adopt a Baby Parenting New Mother's Survival Guide Time Management For Moms Fitness In Pregnancy After School Activities How To Hire a Nanny Birthing Room Teenage Pregnancy Pregnancy Symptoms Pregnancy Stages Pregnancy Signs Pregnancy Diet General Pregnancy Information Miscarriage Maternity Clothes Getting Pregnant Pregnancy Exercise Childbirth Weddings Abortions Breastfeeding