Advice on weaning.

anahdz1306

Hi I just completed 1 year of breastfeeding on July 9. Anyone have any advice on weaning a baby that's been just breastfed non bottles or cups. And she wakes up 2 to 3 times at night.

tracybilal

Hi i bf my baby uptill 9 months which was almost 2 weeks back but i had introduced her to bottle since birth even though it was my expressed milk. However i had to try almost 6 different brands to see which one my kiddo liked. And i started experimenting when she was 7 months. And finally after 2 months she accepted one.
however she still wants to be bf for comfort some times.
Oh and she too still wakes up to feed 2-3 times.

luvHim

My baby won't take bottles or milk/formula well either! And he just turned one July 1. I am following this to see if there is any advice.

anahdz1306

I've also tried different brands of bottles and none had worked. I was told to put mustard on my breast and I guess my baby likes mustard.

FitMama2013

My situation is a bit different as I'm still nursing my 18 month old, but only twice a day. I weaned at night first, so for a few weeks, my husband handled night wakings because if my son wanted to nurse, I couldn't be the one trying to comfort him. Then I started spacing out the amount of time between feeds until one dropped. I work, so I weaned from pumping when he was 14 months and continued to nurse morning and bedtime from there. We just did it very gradually over months and spaced out time. Also, I would say go ahead and try a straw cup with your child and keep trying to see if your LO will take it. It took my son awhile to get used to it!

kcasey155

I'm not sure why the magic number is one year old for stopping, when the World Health Organisation recommends all babies should be breastfed until age two. Admittedly none of mine made it to two years, but I fed until they either lost interest or were just doing it out of habit just a couple of times a day. My four eldest stopped between 17 months and 23 months with very little upset and without the need for any bottles. Why not just carry on that bit longer as you've done so well to get this far and see what happens in a few months time?

TurquoiseViolet

Can someone else get up with her at night? That is the only thing that worked with my son. He was waking up 2-3 times a night, and would nurse back to sleep for comfort not because he was hungry. At about 9 months, instead of me going in to get him, my husband would. After about 4 days of that he decided it wasn't worth getting up.

Have you also tried different flow sizes for the bottle nipples? She might have a preference for how fast the milk comes out. Or what are you giving her in the bottle? With my daughter, we would start with 3/4 bottle of expressed breast milk and 1/4 bottle of formula. Gradually we worked it to a full bottle of formula. And then did the same when she graduated to whole milk.

Good luck!

arainiday1

I'm not sure why the magic number is one year old for stopping, when the World Health Organisation recommends all babies should be breastfed until age two. Admittedly none of mine made it to two years, but I fed until they either lost interest or were just doing it out of habit just a couple of times a day. My four eldest stopped between 17 months and 23 months with very little upset and without the need for any bottles. Why not just carry on that bit longer as you've done so well to get this far and see what happens in a few months time?

First of all, WAY TO GO FOR NURSING A YEAR!!!! great job!!!!!


As far as weaning goes I do agree with this other poster.... WHO says two so that has been my goal. I have 4 kids and when I had the first two I was MUCH younger and I only breastfed them about 6 months. But when I had my 3rd baby (9 years later) I had learned a lot more about it and let her self wean pretty much. She stopped right before 21 months. My littlest is now just barely 21 months and has now surpassed her sister cause she is still going. It has dramatically decreased since we have finally gotten her to sleep more through the night and in her own room (YAY). I will probably start thinking more about totally weaning closer to her birthday I suppose.

If you don't want to keep nursing then I'm sure kellymom.com has some good ideas also.

arainiday1

Oh and either way I'm sure you will want to try a bunch of sippy cups to find one that works for you. Sometimes that can be a daunting task but try to be patient.

lizb214

At that age, I'd avoid a bottle because that's just one more thing you'll have to wean from. I'd try expressed milk in a sippy cup for awhile and like others said- if you're both doing well with nursing, no need to wean just because your baby turned one. Good luck!

AuraJ77

I agree with Lizb214. There is absolutely no need to introduce a bottle. Baby also doesn't need to nurse at night - and this from someone whose babies both nursed every 2 hours through the night until 10-11 months old.

Baby doesn't need formula, or milk for that matter, if she doesn't like it. She just needs whole foods and calcium. One of my children drank milk, the other didn't. One didn't mind formula for a bit, but not long. The other wouldn't even touch it.

Night weaning is hard. There is a routine that's hard to break. My suggestion would be to keep everything the same except the feeding. For example, if there is a soft light or music, a rocking chair, things like that.

I found the book 'Bed Timing' very helpful for getting my children to go through the nights. It's about WHEN, not HOW to sleep-train.

Good luck, and I hope you get your full night's sleep soon.

anahdz1306

Thank you all. Just yesterday I took my daughter to the dentist and she also told me to start weaning so I'm kinda stuck because I wanted to let her self wean. I might just wait til she's 2 in the mean time I'd like drop a feeding or two, maybe like preparing her for when she really has to stop

kcasey155

There's no reason why she can't have three meals a day and breastmilk. The breastfeeding should teeter off naturally once she's getting enough of everything from food. My daughter is 10 months, has three meals (of picking and trying foods), snacks and breastfeeds six or more times a day. Just work out what works for you

AuraJ77

Was there a specific reason your dentist said that? Look at this article about breastfeeding and tooth decay: https://www.breastfeeding.asn.au/bfinfo/breastfeeding-and-tooth-decay

Although my sister, who is a veterinarian, contends that, while human breastmilk has "immune factors", it does not have "antibodies".

Po-tay-to, po-tah-to

If tooth decay is the issue your dentist is worried about, give your baby a drink of water after BF, and brush her wee teethsies a couple times a day.

Curlychip

I am trying to wean my 2 year old (probably over the next 6 months-1 year :yawn: )
She has only recently started sleeping through the night, but I stopped feeding her in the night as often at about 1 year because it was 5-6 x per night and now its only when she really kicks off :sad: .

I am cutting out feeds at particular times of the day e.g. 'mummy only makes milk in the morning...' etc and that seems to be working. Im sure cold turkey would work more effectively but we aren't up for that kind of torture :laugh:

I also wouldn't advise starting a bottle. Mine started using proper cups before 1 year and quickly got quite accurate with them. Much easier to clean properly! Try watered down fruit juice in a cup as well as milk and water. Baby can learn that although breastmilk tastes best, nice things can come from elsewhere too?

Crys483

I'm still nursing my just-turned 2 year old. But he really enjoys using the straw sippy cups when I'm at work or with his meals.
Do what you feel comfortable doing, not what a dentist or anyone else wants you to do. If you and your daughter are still enjoying a breastfeeding realtionship then just keep going!

acarrillo2012

My daughter is 14 months and currently breastfeeds twice a day, when she wakes up in the morning and when I get home from work. It's still comfort/bonding for her and I'm not going to rush her to fully wean. I did find that once I stopped feeding her in the night, and when I stopped pumping while at work, those two changes decreased my milk supply dramatically. Even after she breastfeeds in the morning she will still go to the refrigerator to ask for milk because I just don't produce that much. As your body gradually adjusts to producing less, the baby will naturally adjust. I agree with other posters though that it's really whatever you're comfortable with, nobody else's timetable is relevant to your decision of what's best for you and your child.

carriecarrio

With my first baby, everyone seemed to have an opinion about how long to breasfeed her for or when to wean her. I weaned her at 15 months and my hormones went crazy! I don't think I was ready to wean her. With my second baby, I am going to breastfeed for as long as I and the baby want... Nobody should be telling you when to wean your baby from the breast.