experts
Learn
how to wean a reluctant child from her bedtime bottle.
Q: My daughter,
who is almost 4 years old, still wants a bottle to go to sleep. What
can I do to end this routine?
A: When a 4-year-old is still using a bottle to go to sleep, there
are two patterns that must be overcome. First, she has chosen the
bottle as her lovey, or special comfort object, to help her with the
transition from a wakeful state to a sleep state. Second, this choice
has become a deeply ingrained habit. Weaning her from the bottle will
require either finding an effective substitute, or using tremendous
force to break the pattern.
Your daughter's
insistent urge to grow is a powerful force that can be harnessed to
help effect the change. Engage her cooperation. Set a date in the
near future, perhaps her fourth birthday, and offer her an exciting
opportunity. To celebrate this milestone, she can collect all her
bottles, take them to a local store, and trade them in for something
that would be thrilling to her (perhaps a small bicycle, a pair of
roller skates, a hamster, or an Easy-Bake Oven--something that will
make her feel more grown up). If she excitedly looks forward to the
date, she may be able to sacrifice the bottle in order to enter a
new phase. Only communicate in a way that builds her security and
self-esteem: You are excited about who she is as a 3-year-old; you
will be excited about who she becomes as a 4-year-old.
If you are not
able to enlist her resources directly, weaning the bedtime bottle
can be accomplished by substitution. Replace the bottle with a more
age-appropriate transition/comfort object. Make the alternative as
attractive as possible, while making the bottle less attractive.
This new transition
to sleep might include a consistent bedtime ritual, when you spend
about 20 minutes together doing the same nighttime activities in the
same order. Give her something wonderful to hold as she sleeps. A
large stuffed animal (about the same size she is), or a really great
doll that she falls in love with, would be a good choice. Put away
other stuffed animals or dolls for a while; she will form a more special
bond when she only has one or two. You may also want to make a tape
recording of your voice singing to her or telling her stories. Listening
to you repeat the same stories or songs night after night will comfort
your daughter as she drifts off to sleep.
You know your
own daughter best. Select comforting measures that will touch her
most deeply. To make the bottle less attractive, try adding a drop
of bitter apple extract on the nipple or actually in the bottle (available
in pet stores to teach pets not to chew). A small amount will give
the bottle a mildly bitter or musty taste, making it a less important
part of the sleep transition. Many children will stop asking for the
bottle within one to two weeks.
If neither of
these approaches work, you will need to energize the process yourself.
Offer milk (or something else to drink) in a cup at the beginning
of the bedtime ritual--before reading a story, taking a bath, or brushing
her teeth. Reduce the amount she gets in her bottle a half ounce to
an ounce a day until it is empty, then take the bottle away. Respond
to requests for the bottle with hugs.
Weaning is difficult,
but if you delay, the bottle will affect the shape of her mouth and
teeth. Wean her from the bottle before peer pressure unkindly steps
in. Peer pressure will do the job, but only by threatening her self-esteem.
Your
should know:
The
information on this Web site is designed for educational purposes
only. It is not intended to be a substitute for informed medical
advice or care. You should not use this information to diagnose
or treat any health problems or illnesses without consulting your
pediatrician or family doctor. Please consult a doctor with any
questions or concerns you might have regarding your or your child's
condition.
Rebornne Baby. American Baby
