A sleepy change

It’s been a week.

Last Sunday night Arthur slept through the night for the first time ever.

It was amazing.

But, it had a twinge of sadness attached.  Arthur had been having a bottle for all his feeds except the night feed.  Him sleeping through meant it had been 24 hours of no breastfeeding.

I decided that I would make up a bottle of water and try him with that on Monday night.  I prepared myself that he in all likely hood wasn’t going to sleep through again but the fact that he had done it meant that he probably didn’t need to be fed in the night any more.

So Monday night I made up a bottle of water for him and when he woke up at 3am he drank the lot and then settled back down to sleep.  However he woke up at half past 4 and wouldn’t go back to sleep 🙁 Little monkey!!

48 hours no breastfeeding.

Tuesday night, Arthur woke a couple times in the night he wasn’t fighting the bottle and I didn’t feel like he was desperately trying to feed from me but he didn’t drink that much water.

72 hours no breastfeeding.

Wednesday he woke once, had a little cuddle and a little water and then back to sleep.

Ummmm 94 hours….okay thats enough, it had been 4 days not breastfeeding.

Thursday he decided to wake at 4 in the morning, this isn’t little monkey territory this is little monster territory!

5 days.

Friday, he slept through again HURRAH!!!!!!  Its now Monday and he slept through all weekend, three nights in a row!

I feel like a different person.   I feel like an actual human again!

On Sunday we were in the car and I said to Mark it had been a week.  We realised that this was the end of breastfeeding.  I was actually pretty sad about it.  Even though I’ve been phasing it out since Christmas, it’s been 8 and a half months.  I had a rocky start but on the whole I was one of the lucky ones who found it not so difficult to do.  It had been over a month where the only feed I had been doing was at night.  I had been thinking about the best way to stop it but in the end Arthur made the decision for me, which I guess is the best way for it to happen.  I enjoyed our late night/early morning snuggles just us.  But I must say I didn’t get any less enjoyment giving him a bottle of water at this time, we were still snuggled up and it was still our special time.  In a truly selfish way the full nights sleep have made me get over any sadness pretty quickly!

SuperBusyMum



38 thoughts on “A sleepy change”

  • Amazing – I cannot wait for T to start sleeping through, 10 months of getting up 2-3 times a night is killing me and for this reason I’m now counting down to a year when I’ll stop breastfeeding as I feel that it will help him sleep when he’s not so reliant on me. It’s great that he chose his own time to stop breastfeeding x

  • I only breastfed for just over a week and Pip was much happier with the bottle so I don’t know much about phasing it out but I do remember the first time she slept through and the utter bliss of getting a complete night of sleep! Enjoy! xx

  • That first block of time with a full night’s sleep is blissful….. The only problem I now find is that when Teddy now has unsettled nights it is a total killer having got used to sleeping properly again! x

  • My two didn’t get on with breastfeeding unfortunately, I so wanted to breastfeed too, but can imagine having it happen so quickly is surprising and maybe tinged with sentimental sadness. Yay for him sleeping through the night though- that’s awesome.

    • Btw, I just read your comment on an old Redhead and babyled post… A Typical English Home has free social media buttons in lots of different colours, so you may find some nice free ones there- just Google that blog and you’ll find it 🙂

  • I totally understand the sadness and nostalgia attached to this new milestone. I gave the little lady a bottle for her bed time feed a few weeks ago when she was ill and my milk supply wasn’t adequate enough, and felt really sad about it for that one night. We’re back to breastfeeding again now, but I think its only a matter of time before we start phasing it out as I prepare to go back to work and it does feel like it’ll be a bit like an end of an era.

  • Yay Arthur! You feel so much better when you have had sleep. I was really lucky with my two, I’m one of those pain in the backsides mum whose monkeys slept through from 6 weeks but I was to lucky enough to breast feed so well done you. I felt incredibly guilty with my son and it took me a long one to come to terms with it, with my daughter i couldn’t establish again but expressed for a few weeks. Would live another to try again but mean hubby says no more x

  • I do totally understand lamenting finishing breastfeeding but you did so well to make it that far, so enjoy some lovely sleep! Amy xx

  • Oh there’s something just so blissful about a run of full night’s sleep when you’ve got used to doing without isn’t there! Enjoy your rest!

  • Oh that first night when they sleep through is amazing, our twins did it (just once) last week and we couldn’t believe it, hasn’t happened since but I know they can do it now! I haven’t breastfed but it must be a little sad for you when it comes to an end, you can still enjoy the snuggles though! xx

  • Congrats, that’s fantastic. I think it’s way easier to have them wean themselves off then do it ourselves. I had to wean off Missy Moo for health reasons and I was devastated and she was devastated, it wasn’t easy. I am so happy for you that it’s been such a good transition for both of you. That’s when you know it’s best! Way to go! I bet you do feel like a human again. It’s sad to stop but then you get a few weeks under your belt and think it’s my body again, feels weird at first. Enjoy it until the next baby. hahaha Thank you so much for sharing and linking up with Share With Me. As always I enjoy reading your blog each week and getting to know more about you! #sharewithme

  • Aww, a bittersweet week! But SLEEP, how amazing! Isn’t it fantastic how babies just know when it’s time to ditch the night feed – that’s what kept me going through numbers 2 and 3 – the knowledge that it would end sometime! A really lovely post, I hope your little man keeps up the good work! 🙂 E x

  • You’re allowed to be selfish where sleep’s concerned! I think it makes you a better mum in the day if you’re more refreshed, too. I fed both of mine until 9 months, and though it is sad to stop, it’s also freeing and a new phase for them x

  • I was reading this post and thinking that I have all these to come soon and its exciting and scary!) do you miss it though or you are happy that it done and over?

    • We took our time with it, almost 3 months and so it doesn’t seem so sad also in the end since Arthur gave up the last feed himself he wasn’t “asking” for it so I’m not so sad plus the sleep is amazing haha xx

  • Oh sleep, it’s wonderful to welcome it back again isn’t it. I’m awful if I don’t get enough sleep so I’m rather relieved that my two are great sleepers generally! I always think everything in life has it’s good points and not so good points and the key is to try to always focus on the benefits rather than the losses if that makes sense. Always lovely to discover new blogs too 🙂

  • It’s a bittersweet moment isn’t it? I stopped feeding my boys at six months and my daughter at eight months. I had thought I might feed her for longer as I wasn’t going back to work, but she weaned herself! Lovely post x #ShareWithMe

  • Isn’t a full night’s sleep just the best thing when you’ve been deprived of them for so long?! #ShareWithMe

  • I’m soooooo hoping that my little miss will start sleeping through the night soon. Sometimes i’m in such a tired haze at night we both fall asleep midfeed and wake up with a fright.

  • Oh I remember the day that I stopped breastfeeding all of mine. It is a sad but bittersweet memory. But the fact you are getting full nights is good though!
    x x
    ps this is my first visit to your blog and I LOVE your theme!

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