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I think it's fine. I used to do it too.
My dd can fall asleep on her own now and I didn't sleep train.
Are you making life a little more difficult for yourself? Probably since nursing to sleep means only you can put her down.

I nurse my son to sleep sometimes.
Sometimes I put him in his pnp awake and he passes out.
I say do what works for you!

I stopped letting C eat to sleep when she was 2-3 months old. I didn't want her to have a crutch. That being said.... she gets a bottle before bed and naps. Every. time. She still does at a year old. She just doesn't fall asleep during.

I, honestly, think its a really bad habit to get into. I know it works for others but it's just not how we wanted to do it. BUT, If it works... meh. Do it. I'm all about doing whatever you have to do to get by.

We nurse to sleep... Or before sleep all the time. When P was ready, she protested being nursed totally to sleep & had me put her awake in her crib... Same with her early night wakings where she's now fine with DH coming & rocking her (that was just before she dropped the waking).

I honestly believe in nursing to sleep, if thats what soothes thr child, and not forcing self soothing. We don't force crawling or walking so why force self soothing?... It's taken time but P has accomplished sleep milestones when she's ready & is now sttn on most nights at 11.5 months (a lot earlier than I expected).

i don't think it's an issue, but then again i'm still nursing my 8-month-old to sleep most of the time so i am a bit biased. lately he will nurse until he's full and just roll over and fall asleep when he's done, which is bittersweet tbh!

have you tried nursing before bed time but not necessarily until she is in a deep sleep? that's what i do and what i took "awake but drowsy" to mean. i nurse L before bed, he gets all sleepy and happy, then i put him in his sleep sack and he wakes up a bit and i put him to bed and he falls asleep completely in a few minutes. although sometimes i do give pacifier once he is in crib...

but to answer your question, i don't think it's horrible at all and actually probably quite normal.

@PurpleUnicorn: this is also what we do now...I used to nurse L to sleep sleep, and now i just make sure he wakes up a bit after I nurse him beforeI lay him down.

It's not something I'd do comfortably because I'm really big on sleep habits BUT if it is working for you, then just go ahead. (You can always fix it if a problem arises, and I've never met an adult who nurses to sleep! Lol)

I did the nursing to sleep thing until he was around 5 months. Then he started increasing his frequency of night wakings and they all required a nursing session...which motivated me to stop and sleep train. We went through a rocky month to figure things out. But once I got a strong bedtime routine down, he became so easy to put down. Since 6 months he goes down super easy, still awake, and sleeps like 12 hours without waking up. My philosophy was to do it til it wasn't working any more. It worked for us...

@PrincessBaby: we JUST started being able to do that like 2 wks ago (he's 5.5 months now). so just give it time...she's still little

@PrincessBaby: Have you ever read this article?

http://www.askmoxie.org/2011/01/tension-increasers.html

H is probably just one of these kids. I think theres only so far that other's experiences can take you. C is very much a "tension releaser", so what works for us is probably not going to work for you and H.

I say just trust your gut and do whats working for you. I will say that C was like that when she was tiny. I would have to rock her completely dead asleep and put her down or else she would throw a fit. She eventually outgrew it and we were able to do "drowsy but awake".

@PrincessBaby: My good friend has a baby exactly like that too! C was like that until like 3-4 months old but she outgrew it. Best of luck!

I have a tension increaser too! I nurse her every night before bed, sometimes she falls asleep and sometimes she doesn't. however, it always fills her belly and relaxes her enough that 9 times out of 10, there's no crying if I put her down awake.

she's 6 months old now - she has definitely grown into being able to go down awake, so no worries! nursing to sleep isn't the devil

I nursed my LO right before bed every night before he started weaning after 12 months. Granted, it didn't put him to sleep after maybe 6 months or so, but it didn't set him up for any bad habits. Just part of our routine.

@PrincessBaby: we weren't doing CIO before a year and always nursed to sleep. Wasn't a big deal for us but I also was up with her at night (DH couldn't help).

I've read enough that comfort nursing is not bad and good for baby, mom, and bonding and thats what I'm going with! At least for now!

I nursed DD to sleep until she was almost seven months old (and also for naps when she had difficulty) then slowly began putting her to bed a little less asleep. It progressed until I can put her down and she rolls over to fall asleep (after I nurse her, that is). We've regressed a bit these few weeks where I have to pay her a bit with separation anxiety kicking in again, but naps she still falls asleep on her own.

I don't think comfort nursing or nursing to sleep is bad - I think it creates a trusting bond and baby will no longer need it when he/she is ready. =)

DH also had concerns about this but he is one with what I did now in hindsight.

I comfort nursed my LO until he was almost 2.5 years old and nursed him to sleep for close to 2 years. He's 2.5 years now and totally weaned as of a couple of weeks ago, all on his own initiative. I don't think you're crazy! Yes, nursing to sleep will make your life a little "harder" in the short run, but remember that it really is the short run--these days (nights) will be the distant past soon!

Also, kellymom.com is a fantastic resource!

@zippylef: ooh thanks for that! Such an interesting link.

I honestly think it's something that you ONLY have guilt about because of online advice and books that say you shouldn't. I think that it's a natural reaction for a breastfeeding mom to nurse her child to sleep, but now it's turned into mommy guilt as supposed experts say you'll spoil and corrupt your child by doing so. BULL!!!

I know one mom in particular who nursed her two children to sleep for naps/night time until they're three years old and they learned how to fall asleep on their own just fine and she said they are AMAZING sleepers and always have been and she wholly attributes it to the fact that she just followed her motherly intuition instead of listening to others advice.

You're the mom. YOU decide what works best for you. Don't ever let someone else try to tell you what's best - especially a book because they don't know you or your baby. You do. Do what feels natural and right