Weaning from breastfeeding?

Samantha - posted on 10/16/2009

Wow thank you everyone. Such helpful information.

Sylvia - posted on 10/14/2009

Hi there Samantha..I too am a nursing mommy...and am trying to wean my 15month old daughter...She is so attached and it makes me laugh i feel like she is glued to me at times. Iam just taking it slowly i nurse her when she wakes in the morning and then at lunch and then again before bed...The rest of the time is a sippy cup.Takes time but she is adjusting pretty well.Good luck!!

Sherry - posted on 10/13/2009

When I weaned my daughter it was cold turkey as well. I gave her whole milk mixed with some vanilla rice milk ... it was so yummy and sweet she weaned no problem.

Tiffany - posted on 10/13/2009

When I weaned my daughter at 14 months we just quit cold turkey. She was old enough to eat solid food and drink cows milk. I found she was more ready than I was. She took right to eating and drinking. I did use a bottle for a couple weeks before switching to a sippy cup. I thought she would still want to nurse but she liked being independent. Weaning was harder on me than her. Good luck with whatever you do.

Polyleah - posted on 10/13/2009

Congratulations on being able to nurse for such a long time. I nursed all three of my children as well. I would say that consistency is the key, and remember to have substitutions readily available to distract him (such as the cups or a small toy). If you feel this is time to wean him, stick to that. Nursing is a huge attachment for both mother and child, and you will get opinions from both sides of the issue.



You chose to nurse him this long, now you are deciding it is time to wean, you have done your son a tremendous amount of good for his health. Now you will be teaching him how to deal with change. Remember this will be a change for you as well. It may not be easy, but just stick with it. I nursed one of my daughters for 14 months and the other for 17 months, my son only for 7 months, they had different needs, but in all cases I felt good to offer them the comfort of nursing, after a year the nutritional value of breast milk begins to dimish, and the act is done more for comfort or habit. Also, you may want to research this on your own, but I read that breastmilk may not offer the vitamin D. needed for young children as well. Vitamin D, or the lack there of, has become a big thing recently. Of course breast milk is the healthiest, but people are not getting enough vitamin D in general, so we may not have enough to transfer to our children from our breastmilk. Good Luck with your weaning efforts. God bless you and your wonderful child.

Crystal - posted on 10/13/2009

Such an awesome thing to breastfeed for so long. Congrats to you and your little one. Formula is wonderful for women who don't prefer to nurse and gives infants the necessary nutrients, but breastfeeding nutritionally is much better. But back to your question, I would be consistent with the weaning. If you are demand-feeding (nursing whenever the baby wants, not on a schedule), try offering a sippy cup when he wants to nurse. An easy way to start would be by expressing breastmilk and putting it in the cup. That way even if he is unfamiliar with the cup, he will recognize the taste. Always offer the cup. If he refuses the cup, start to nurse him for a few minutes, then try to offer the cup again. Nursing is an emotional mother/baby attachment, so make sure to cuddle your baby when offering the cup. It will not be accomplished in one day, one week, or maybe not even in one month, but be consistent and don't give up.

Susan - posted on 10/13/2009

WHO recommends nursing until they're 2. I encourage you to continue nursing guilt free. If you do decide to wean, just do it gradually- eliminating a session a week or so. Good luck with whatever choice you make...