# 6 1/2 month old ... still nurses every 2 hours or more ....



## Tuesday (Mar 3, 2003)

I know this question really shouldn't be under "Extended Breastfeeding" but I didn't think it qualified as "getting started".

History: My 6.5 month old son has been EBF . I have just started to feed him a bit of rice cereal or at times sweet potato these past 2 weeks. He sometimes eats the solids and sometimes the food just ends up on his bib and face!









Here's the situation - my dearest son still nurses a lot. He seems to nurse about every 2 or 3 hours during the day. And, in the evening, he is literally up every 1 or 2 hours. There was a time around 5 months when he would sleep for 4 hours straight but ever since he started teething, he has started nursing more frequently at night. We co-sleep so it's not too too bad but I still would like to have a more rested sleep (sometimes we wake up every 30 minutes it seems!)

My son is a big baby - he is 23 pounds and 28 inches at 6.5 months. My theory is that he nurses a lot because he is big, he is teething and he is a baby.

*MY POINT ... MY QUESTION :* I know, I keeping droning on ... my point is - is all of this normal???? Of course, all my mother friends have babies who do one or all of the following: a) sleep through the night, b) eat a lot of solids, c) are formula fed d) sleep in cribs .

*My question to you - does my baby sound familiar?* I am just so tired today and just wonder - am I doing something wrong? My DH can't really help out much - he works the worst hours. He is either on a night shift and not home or he has to change from night to day shift and back to night with sometimes 4 or 5 hours of sleep himself. Since I don't want my son to drink formula, I'm not sure how DH could help anyway, even if he was home.

Well, enough venting. If you have a child that sounds like this, I would love to know. It would just be comforting. Thanks!


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## apmomto4 (Apr 3, 2002)

It sounds very familiar!!!

My youngest will be 2 next month and she still nurses a great deal. In fact, she doesn't even make it 2-3 hours!!! I'm lucky if she goes an hour without nursing!

It's more than just food, too. There's a great deal of comforting involved. It's a time to bond and reconnect and snuggle. This will be even more important as the months go by and your little one starts to explore his world. Coming back to mama for a little nursing really helps them to slow down and regroup.

Keep up the good work, Mom!


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## callmemama (May 7, 2002)

Sounds VERY familiar! You're doing a good job, Mama. You're meeting your little one's needs







My ds is 4 now and didn't start sleeping through the night until he was about 2.5. Sleep will come eventually!!


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## Daffodil (Aug 30, 2003)

Sounds familiar to me, too! My 10 1/2 month old dd still wakes every hour or two during the night, and rarely goes more than three hours without nursing.


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## reeseccup (Jul 3, 2003)

, yes very familiar....ds is 18months and STILL and never a break from...nursing very often, as often as he did as an infant...he doesn't eat A LOT of solids which is fine with me. You are not alone.


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## Quirky (Jun 18, 2002)

:LOL Man, that is some super-charged mama's milk you're producing there! Your little guy is almost as big as my 16 month old! :LOL

Ditto to the above - totally, totally normal, although very tiring for you. The sleep deprivation is hard. Can you nap during the day with him? Trite advice but true -sleep when the baby sleeps, don't knock yourself out trying to get stuff done.

As I'm chasing my little runner around the house all day, I sometimes wish he'd sit down and nurse already so I could catch my breath!


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## Tuesday (Mar 3, 2003)

Thanks for all the supportive responses! I am just glad to know that it's "all good". Jane - you're right - I should try to sleep more. The little beggar's napping is all over the place too - but I should try to sleep when he eventually lies down. I can only imagine how tired I will feel when he starts running!:LOL


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## Lirael33 (Dec 7, 2003)

My little guy is about the same age as yours, is a little "chunkalicious" as I like to call him, and still nurses about every two hours...! so there! you aren't the only one!

He eats a little rice creeal with apples about once a day, sometimes takes a bottle even after feeding, and still loves to use me as his pacifier/snackbar!

I can't eat anything in his presence without him wanting a taste ( iguess he gets the taste from my milk, and now he'll be a good eater, as well...)....and he seems to sleep at the breast all night, too....
(add my 2yo dd into the mix and it is always a midnight party in our bed!!! and hubby gets up at 5am for work, who do you think makes him breakfast & packs his lunch?)

....As for your sleep deprivation, I have definately found it beneficial to sleep with him at the breast, and the cuddle factor is awesome too... this is the longest I have nursed any of my kids... and since he's the last I intend to do it as long as humanly possible!!!
KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK, and feel free to message me with any questions! we can always find the answers together... that's why I am here, because all you wonderful ladies keep giving me such great loving information!!!


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## peace_lily_mama (Oct 14, 2003)

yep, sounds normal to me. i think that it could be cause he is big and growing and all, but also, i hear that when they are about to undergo a dev. phase (crawling, walking) they need more comfort. if they don't get it during the day, he will wake more at night. my just turned 6 mo. old just started this, and we started feeding him more during the day and holding him more and its solved. he still wakes up a good couple of times a night, but at least not ever 1.5 - 2 hours!


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## Tuesday (Mar 3, 2003)

Hi everyone. thanks for all the advice and support. I just wanted to add - I do actually hold or sling my son a lot during the day. He gets constant companionship. He seems to wake a lot especially when my diet contains certain things like onions, broccoli or legumes. I am glad to know I'm not alone. I just wish I could catch up on some of this sleep deprivation.


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## Mommy To Baby Roni (Mar 21, 2003)

Oh, the teething! I sooooo know what you mean. Have you tried giving him teething tablets at bedtime or during the night when he wakes? It's helped DD sleep better. Also, have you read the No Cry Sleep Solution by Elizabeth Pantley? I was at my wits end when DD was 5mos - same things you described. The book really helped my attitude, though I never worked at a full-fledged "plan".

Keep up the good work, Mommy!


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## UrbanPlanter (Nov 14, 2003)

My son is an avid nurser still at 21 months - every coupla hours 24/7.

I wanted to mention also that the WHO states (correct me if I'm wrong) that mother's milk is the primary source of nutrition for an infant for the first year of life and that solid food (started after 6 mo) is supplemental during the first year of life; and that a mother should nurse for at least two years.

I know moms who avoid starting solids until baby is 8-12 months old in order to avoid potential allergies. My son didn't really have interest in solid foods until after 15 months, and only recently did he start eating regular amounts (which are still quite small).

I'm only telling you this bc it seems to mean that breastmilk is verrry important in the first year and lots of nursing is therefore essential!!!

P.S. Regarding night nursing: at night the breastmilk has the greatest fat content, which is essential for the infant's brain. It makes sense for babies to nurse often at night, especially as they become more active during the day and begin to nurse less while awake. Yeah, I'm very tired, too! I just try to sleep as much as I can.


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## mamaofthreeboys (Dec 16, 2003)

We both have big babies! Mine is almost 6 months and is on a similar schedule as your son. He's not too interested in rice cereal. Sometimes I can feed it to him and he'll love it, but more often he'd rather nurse than eat from a spoon~

Do you have any family that lives close by or someone you trust to come to your house to watch babe for an hour or two? This has really helped me out! Sometimes my sister will come over or my hubby watches baby on weekends so I can nap sometimes and if Luke gets hungry they just bring him upstairs and he nurses himself to sleep. Just a suggestion that has really helped me the past week or two!

Hang in there!


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