Here's a tip if you are looking for information on weaning your child from breastfeeding: don't look on the Internet unless you want to be guilted into nursing until your child is going off to college.
I'm all for breastfeeding. My plan is to do it for a year, according to recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics. But, I believe you have to do what is healthiest for baby, even if that means switching to formula to prevent starvation.
Babies respond differently. Some don't have to be taught to latch properly. Some know right away how to be a good eater. Some mothers have great milk supplies and don't have to pump for hours just to get one decent bottle once they go back to work.
Peanut and I were part of that some. The only problem I've ever had is having too much milk in the beginning and I'm not about to complain about that given the way I've seen some moms struggle with their supplies.
Back to the topic at hand. I plan to start the process of weaning Peanut so that when we hit her first birthday in July, we are all happy and settled without the need to nurse. I feel I have fulfilled this mothering duty and I'm ready to move on to the next phase. Plus, I want my body back so I can drink so much caffeine that I have heart palpitations. And I'm tired of carrying that pump every day, lurking outside of the unisex bathroom twice a day, waiting to pump. And I want to wear better bras, ones that might not accidently unleash my breast if I pull on the strap the wrong way.
Call me selfish.
I've been trying to find info on the best way to wean. I googled it and, well, don't do that. The most prominent sites don't really offer any info. It's more about how if you wean your child before they are ready they will go on to a life of crime and publicly blame you for all of their woes.
Some did give helpful info but not before telling me that if baby isn't ready to be weaned, the process could be very traumatic (kind of like researching weaning baby).
So I've got a handful of tips - don't do it suddenly, skip a feeding, shorten feeding time, etc. I suppose that's the best advice anyone can really give but if you have more, let me know. I'm open to anything that won't make me feel like I'm the worst mother of the year for weaning my child.
Monday, May 11, 2009
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4 comments:
That post made me laugh.
Two other things: 1) I would also recommend NOT Googling "spider bites" and, 2) I so wanted to burn my nursing bras. If they hadn't cost so damn much, I just might have.
I am weaning my little man (at 15 months) and I'd say it is probably easier to wean before they can start demanding feedings. (Either that or let them self-wean, but I don't want to wait that long...I want my body back, too!) I agree that there is some "nurse them forever or you're a bad mom" propaganda out on the net, but I found Kelly Mom's weaning info. to be pretty good: www.kellymom.net/bf/weaning. I didn't check it out until recently, but it turns out I was already using some of the techniques (www.kellymom.net/bf/weaning/weaning_techniques.html), like "don't offer, don't refuse" which worked for Mr. Man since he has never been all that interested in nursing. Also we've used the "substitution" method--sippy cup--and the "daddy gets him out of bed in the morning while mommy sleeps in, so baby can't nurse" technique. We're down to two or three quick feedings a day--morning, middle of night (two times a night the past week--ugh!), and sometimes during the day. But I'm going away for four nights at the end of the month, so that's going to be THE END. Poor daddy--I'm so glad I'm not going to be dealing with a crying baby for four nights in a row...but at least I have something to look forward to, and hopefully the END OF NIGHT FEEDINGS AND WAKINGS. For which I will be eternally grateful. Glad to share more if you're interested...email me at lisa@ plus URL shown here. :)
Lisa, thanks so much for the advice. I forgot about kellymom. I've used her site a few times including the advice to use fenugreek to keep milk supply up. I feel you on the night feedings. Peanut went from sleeping through the night early on to eating one to two times in the middle of the night for the past six months. Needless to say, I am a tired mama. I'm thinking I might do a partial wean to start off with that way I can stop pumping at work but I can still nurse her when I'm around even if it is just for the comfort and an added boost of nutrition. Good luck with your weaning and the days away!
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