Help getting Toddler Off Baby Bottle's?

Question

my 18 month old daughter only goes to bed/sleep if you give her a baby bottle with milk in it, is this normal ?

Managered to get her off the day times bottles and on to a juice cup but cant seem to find away to get her off the night time bottles. if she doesnt get the bottle at night she just crys till she makes her self sick. Worryied it could damage her teeth.

ANY ADVICE ?????

Answer 1

My daughter was the same way. She would stay up all night long if she didn't get that milk bottle. The way we broke her of it was we gave her milk in her sippy cut, undiluted, about an hour before bed. When it came time for the bedtime bottle we started diluting it with water. One ounce to seven ounces of milk the first few nights, then two ounces of water, then 3. Eventually she started picking the cup over the bottle because it was full flavored milk. It took her until she was down to one ounce of milk to 7 ounces of water but the water was good for her and she was away from the milk bottle at bed time. It takes patience though.

Answer 2

My son was the same, would only have a bottle of milk to go to bed and he would be put up asleep. So we put him to bed awake with a bottle (not a baby's bottle) of water and when he cried we left him. He kept getting out of bed so i did the rapid return where i would put him back to bed without making eye contact and without speaking to him and after 3 nights he was sleeping through. We also established a routine so he got used to bedtime. It's bath, brush teeth, get ready for bed, read 2 books and then a cuddle with me and into bed. He is now just over 3 and has been sleeping through since he was 2. Its great as me and my partner know that at 7.30 he will be taken up and we won't have any tears tantrums or whining for milk. I hope that you have a break through, my way might not work for everyone but it did work for me. Good luck! x

Answer 3

I am not sure it is any good for their teeth but my eldest still had her bottle until she was 5 but she loved it so much only had it at home i didn't really see much harm. She is 12 on Wednesday and the most wonderful well adjusted child there is I love her to bits! I just let her give it up when she was ready. As my nan used to say you never see an 18 year old in nappies sucking a dummy carrying a baby bottle do you!

Answer 4

You are going to have to go cold-turkey on the bottle.

Pick a night and go for it. Be kind, caring, comforting but firm. NO BOTTLE. She can have milk in a beaker by her bed.

Make sure you've got a comforting bedtime routine in place first. Bath, Story, Cuddle, Bed.

Make her a reward chart (in the shape of a big girl cup) and give her a sticker (or two) to put on it each morning for going to sleep without the bottle.

Good luck, stay calm, take deep breaths, be strong.

Answer 5

You should of had her off the bottle at a year old. You never put a child to bed with a drink. Let her cry after a few nights she'll get the point and give up. Don't cave in and give her that kind of power over you. She is still young to learn that you are the boss. Your more likely damageing her teeth. Time for some tough love.

Answer 6

I gave my son the bottle until he was about 24 months only at night. He would do the same, crying and carrying on until he was sick. What we would do is just have one bottle and each night I would make like I couldn't find it. At first he would get all heartbroken and I'd put a little bit in the bottle. He'd be asleep before he finished it. After a few days he just stopped being interested in it.

Answer 7

Yes its totally normal as she needs the milk until she is two, If it is just the one bottle at night I think she will be fine with having it until she is ready to give it up. That is what I did with my first girl, and now my second is two and she only has a nap bottle which she is starting to show a little disinterest in. Neither of my girls have problems with their teeth. I think if it goes past 2.5 then you need to facilitate the bottle weening but she is still a baby let her have her comfort..oh and just brush her teeth first thing in the morning she will be fine.
Hope this helps

Answer 8

If you are saying that she cries until she makes herself cough then that isn't sick. I wouldn't give it to her because juice or milk will cause her to have bacteria in her mouth that will lead to rott Maybe fill the bottle with water or just put up with the noise for a while. Eventually she will go to sleep on her own without any help. She won't be the first one or the last. We had problems in weaning my son of the pacifier but we finally just threw them all away and he cried for 3 days and that was it.

Answer 9

My mom had to take my sister off the night bottle. She said the way she did it was to start putting a smaller and smaller amount in it over a period of a couple of weeks, until there was just a mouthful left. My little sister looked at her and asked, "Is this all I get?" When she told her yes, she tossed it down and said she didn't want it anymore. I think she was almost 2 when this happened, so mom was about at her wit's end too. Good luck!

Answer 10

It certainly WILL damage her teeth, in fact it could be so bad that all of her baby teeth rot to stumps which is not only very ugly but she won't be able to eat normally until her adult teeth begin to come in.

So do not give in to her tantrums !!!

This is very important, you can only give her non-sugar water if anything. Try using a brand new bedtime routine such as reading to her, giving her a soothing bath, singing a song and other nighttime routines to help her settle. If you NEVER give her a bottle at night again, then she will learn to stop crying for it. Making herself "sick" crying breaks your heart (and nerves) but it won't do her any real harm. The bottle will. You as a responsible parent will make the choice for her.