Weaning off the Bottle at Night

I have 19 month old twin boys and I STILL put them to sleep with a bottle. there's nothing wrong with bottles to go to bed, it's comforting. Give them back their bottles and all of you get some sleep. You'll know when it's time to stop giving the bottles, it'll be when they can actually reason. All they know now is that you took away something they need and they don't know why nor can they understand why. Good luck

I think cold turkey can work, but it's pretty stressful for all of you! I also think it's good for them to have water, if they want it, through the night. How about a sippy cup instead? Most little ones won't fall asleep with a sippy cup in their mouths.

Born Free makes a sippy cup that is much easier for transitioning from the bottle. (No hard sucking required!) You can start with a softer spout, so most babies will take it easily. Once they're ok with that, you can switch to a hard spout. And then after that you can switch to a regular sippy cup (if you want). My son did great with that routine!

And come on- you are a great mother! Your kids will be fine! I promise that you are not the first person to give 15 month old kids bottles, OR to let them cry! :)

As long as its just water it won't rot their teeth. Give them back their bottle! Or try a pacifier. They're just babies. If the doctor has a problem with it, let him sit up with theem all night! My kids had pacifiers until long after "everyone" said they should. They're fine and no, at 16 and 21 they don't still have a pacifier! Don't torture yourself or your babies.

I see nothing wrong with water in a bottle...Our daughter is 19 months and she still loves her "ba" as she calls it (she gets Enfamil Next Step as she gives me a hard time about real milk)...what's the harm? I don't know, Ava is our 3rd and last and I see just how quickly this time went...let them be babies and enjoy it...if they're waking in the middle of the night for it, then maybe that's a different story, but really, in the grand scheme of things, what difference does this make? It's not like their 5 and going off to kindergarten still sucking a bottle. I say give them their bottles - it's a comforting soothing thing for them. (I assume they use sippy cups/straws during the day.) No on the teeth...I don't think you have to worry til they're around 3 or 4 or something.

PS - my advice after having our 3rd is much different than advice I'd have offered after our 1st - it's funny how you change!!!

Best wishes to you - and no, you're not a terrible mom!
J.

Try giving your girls water in a sippy cup at night. My son is 20 months and won't go to sleep without his cup. Plus the sippy won't effect their teeth.

i worked for a dentist for 7 years and yes it can give them an overbite like sucking your thumb can. many people(not saying you) say oh well its their baby teeth they are gonna fall out anyway, but thats defenatly not the case, baby teeth are like the guidlines of how adult teeth will grow in. so if the cold turkey is really bothering you(although if u stick with it for a week or two i really think it would work)u can try a sippy cup and remove it as soon as they fall asleep. you probably should try to cut out water at bedtime anyways because its just gonna be another battle when you try potty training them. they will never stay dry overnight if they drink at bedtime.ur doing urself a favor by nippin it in the bud now! dont feel like a horrible mother its nothing that cant be fixed with patience!!(and maybe a few late nights:)good luck!

D.,

It isn't until after age 3 that you really have to worry about dental issues, my sons's pediatrician told me. That being said, EVERY child is different.

IMO, I wouldn't go cold turkey. Just gradually, over a period of time, put less and less in the bottles, until you are down to maybe an ounce, and while you are doing this, distract them when it comes to having the bottle. Like leaving it across the room further and further away, almost out of sight. This is a comfort item to them, and they associate it with safety.

Any liquid or food in the crib, though is not good. They can choke, and you would not know until the next morning. I don't know if you wait until the bottles are finished before they fall asleep, or if they have the bottles there for comfort all through the night.

Good Luck,
M.

Hi D., my daughter is 19 months and i still give her an 8oz bottle of milk to put her to sleep at night, why, because she needs it and wants it and its fine with me. She falls asleep and gets her calcium at the same time so why deny that to them. Even though they are 15 months and 19 months, they are stll babies. I have 2 girls and never have i listened to what the doctor told me i should do, i do what my gut tells me or what is easier. We are the moms and we have to live with our children, and im sure if i took that one bottle a day away from her, she would freak out and there is no need to do that to them at such a young age, my oldest was ready when she was ready and thats when i stopped giving her one. you will know when, u will notice a loss of interst in it and thats when u can ween them off, not just out of the blue cold turkey, thats not fair...lol. Good luck and enjoy, it goes by sooo fast!

D.,
The twins are yours not your doctors, do what you want, the bottle of water won't hurt them and they will give it up when they are ready. Some do it early and some do it later. I had one who gave it up a 6 months when he started biting the nipples off the to get more out and another who was 2 years old before he decided it was time. I started giving him a Sippy cup during the day and gradually weening him off. Also I never gave my kids bottles at night so I never had a problem with them going to bed with it, but that is me, we are all different. Bottom line is you are their Mom, you need to do what works for you and them. My last child has always taken stuffed animals to bed since he was a newborn and is now 10 years old and still can't sleep without one or more. The way I see it is if he needs or wants that security at night then he shall have it.
Hugs,
T.

If the girls are *ready* to wean at night, do so because of that, not because of a dictate by your pediatrician. Your relationship with a doctor is supposed to be a cooperative one, not one of authoritarian and subservient. That said, I think conventional wisdom is that bottles are not safe to leave in cribs with infants, so maybe wean more gently? Let the girls have the bottles until they are sleepy, and then take them away, slowly taking it away earlier each night? You are doing fine as a mom because you are concerned about doing the best for them - try to remember that their life experience is based on years and years, and that any one event isn't going to ruin them. It's hard - every single issue feels so weighted and important! Good luck!

Be prepared & stay strong - there is going to be a lot of screaming. When we pulled our oldest daughter from her bottle it was the end of the world & then when we took our youngest daughter's pacifier away - oh my gosh. I don't think anyone in our house slept for a week. But you have to stay strong because to go one, or two or three days is a bonus - you are almost there. Stay strong!