BF/weaning advice

welshgirl

I am so torn about BFing and weaning.  Could I get some advice or thoughts?

W is 13 months, and still BFins 3 times a day easily (plus a bottle of milk at bedtime). I really thought he might at  make a move towards self-weaning after he turned 12 months, but really doesn't seem to be.

I don't know how I feel about weaning him (or even how to go about it), but I also don't know how long I want to be doing feeds during the day (usually mid morning and mid afternoon).

I don't particularly enjoy the daytime feeds (he bites, twists all over, and when he's teething wants to nurse ALL the time). But I don't know that I want to force him to stop this far away from 2 years. I'd be happy with him nursing in the mornings only (at wake-up). But I want him to decide that.

*sigh*

I guess I just want feedback, advice, or experiences, if you don't mind sharing?

helovesducatis

Well, first of all my advice would be to go with your instinct about what is best for both you and your son. ?If you feel like its time, then try to implement change gently and see what works. ?If you have hesitation, think about why you have a hesitation to wean and what might be a better choice.

That being said,?I myself chose to cut out daytime feedings around 13 months and only nurse first thing in the morning and last thing before bed. ?I felt?comfortable?doing this because Lucy was eating good portions for meals and was taking milk and juice without a fight from the sippy, so I felt confident that she was ready to rely on solids not breastmilk for her?sustenance. ?

The way that I cut out daytime feedings was to rearrange our routine. ?I sat down and wrote out what our daily routine looked like up until that point and decided how I could change it so that we could skip daytime nursing sessions without her noticing. ?

For us there was a mid-morning session which would be initiated by her while we were playing at home. ?So, for a week we were gone all morning until naptime. ? While we were out, I would give her a favorite snack (that I knew she would eat a lot of and fill up on) so that she would be full when we came home to take a nap. ?

Then, in the early evening was another time that she would commonly want to nurse. ?For that I would give her a late snack (so she was full) and we would do a lot of activities between 4:30 and 6 so that her mind was preoccupied. ?This feeding was especially hard to cut out because a lot of it was her wanting cuddle time too. ?So early evening is still our cuddle time, we just dance while we cuddle instead of nursing. ?I made a playlist on my Ipod and when she would reach for me and fuss like she wanted to nurse I would pick her up and say "are you ready to dance?" and we'd dance to a few songs and then move to another activity.

Just remember that as you cut out nursing sessions, you will need to find new ways to cuddle or spend time being?physically close to them. ?My daughter isn't a calm or cuddly baby, which is why dancing works great for us. ?Also, if she's having a clingy day, I will carry her into stores with me instead of putting her in a cart. ?She likes to be held and be at my eye level while we interact and talk about things in the store, people we see, etc. ?For her, this works to replace the physical closeness we lost during the daytime nursing sessions.??

GratefulGreens

My DD weaned about a month before she turned 3, so hopefully I'll have some good advice ;D

First of all just remember that you've come this far and many people quit much earlier or don't even try at all.  The benefits you've given your son will last a lifetime.  Don't beat yourself up about it - you've done a great job! 

If nursing just isn't going well for you anymore (ie, you don't enjoy it, it's becoming a hassle, it's painful, etc) then it might be time to stop.  If it's not working for you at this point, then it's just not working.  However, if you're really torn about it and are still enjoying some of it, then maybe keep going a little longer. 

If you're really wanting to stop then start by cutting one nursing session at a time - the most "unimportant" one.  Then gradually decrease...find a substitute for that nursing session.  Maybe a bottle of milk or a story instead.  Then gradually go from there.

Again, do what you feel you need to do. It will all work out   Good luck!

Poonico

I would just wait until he came to you wanting it and then if for some reason you don't want to that time or feel that he nursed too recently, try offering something else and see if he'll take it.  If not, that's okay, just try again next time.

I would just see how he responds and go from there.