how do you breastfeed at night?

I just feed him whilst laying down and i fall asleep while feeding him. He lays on his side and i lay on my side. I find it the easiest way to feed him and when i'm home i always feed him whilst laying down.

I would bring my baby into bed with me. But that does not work with every family.

When I was a baby my mother would just nurse me in a large comfy chair at night. Many times she would fall asleep with me for a while in the chair. And then when she woke after a bit she would put me back in my crib. That way she had very little sleep loss and yet I was still sleeping mostly in my crib. And then she would be refreshed well enough to get my older sister off to school the next morning.

During the early weeks, baby slept in a bassinet next to my bed. When she woke, I reached over and picked her up, changed her if necessesary (I kept some diapers by the bed) latched her on, and nursed laying down.

When she was a bit older and I moved her to a crib in her room, when she woke, I walked to her room (about 4 steps down the hall) picked her up, and sat in a rocking chair to nurse.

Pumping to bottle feed at night really ISN'T a good idea, for several reasons.

1. Going all night without nursing is going to cause problems with your supply -- especially in the early weeks/months, those night feeds are vital.

2. Bottle feeding is even MORE work -- you have to get up, get the bottles out of the fridge, warm them, feed, and rinse the bottle.

3. Pumping two bottles, along with nursing every couple of hours during the day must be exhausting for you. It's also a ton of extra work. One of many benefits of breastfeeding is that it's CONVENIENT. No prep, no clean-up.

If your bed is safe for co-sleeping, it's really not a problem to fall asleep while nursing at night. (I did it a couple of times.) If you'd really rather not, then get up and sit in a chair to nurse. Talk or sing to your baby while he eats to help you stay awake.

Also, to reduce the fatigue, try and nap during the day. The time you are currentlyspending on pumping could be better spent napping.

EDIT: It's probably taking your baby an hour to eat when he nurses because he has nipple confusion from so many bottles. He isn't latching well because he's used to drinking from a bottle. A baby who is latching and nursing well can usually be expected for nurse for 30-40 minutes or so at a stretch.

Rather than pumping early in the morning, nurse your baby early in the mornng. (He wont'object to being waked a little early. That will then free you up to tend to your older child and get her ready for school for the next hour or so.) Then, when your older child IS at school, nap when your baby naps so you aren't so tired during the night.

(Breastfeeding makes you tired because when you nurse your body releases hormones that relax you -- yet another wonderful thing about the process!)

Remember too, according to your other questions, your baby is still VERY young. Of course you are tired. You're still recovering from the birth.

Honestly, your practice of pumping and bottle feeding, while it may seem easier now, is going to cause FAR more problems in the long run than it solves. Try to stick with breastfeeding only. You will find it to be the easier and more sensible choice, AND the choice that will make it more likely that baby will still be breastfeeding in 6-8 months.

Breastfeeding at night is a lot easier than pumping two bottles of milk every day. ok if you fall asleep, keep trying. When you wake up put baby back to his crib.

I just sit up in bed and put the baby on my lap and let him eat that way. then when he's done eating I lay back down and fall back to sleep. i can't imagine getting a bottle ready in the middle of the night like that!