Weaning - Grover,MO

I did the same thing with my daughter. I stopped one feeding at a time. I would wait about a week and drop another. I would start feeding her the frozen breast milk in a sippy cup (I went from breast to cup instead of bottle). I kept the morning feeding as the last one just because I enjoyed waking up with her and holding her for that first feeding the most :) Going from breastfeeding to cups was actually harder on me than her.

Good luck!

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Drop one feeding every few days to a week and replace with the frozen stash till it is gone.... Then move to whole milk once it is gone. I did this with my last child as he got near one year- worked like a charm...easier on him, no engorgement for me and gradually my supply went down. We also made the move at one year to no bottles too- I refused to put whole milk in bottles. Worked great with my DD and DS and I plan to do the same with this one... I work FT so my kids would get pumped milk 3 bottles a day from 3 mos- one year! Great job on the nursing mama!

He's nursing at night for comfort, so if you want to stop nursing at night then you need to find him another way to comfort himself. My oldest daughter was like this. We co-slept so I just stopped offering the breast *every* time she wanted it and would rub her back or rock her first. It took about a month, but she was weaned at 13 months.

You could try a blanket that smells like you if he sleeps on his own. You'll have to sleep on the blanket for a few nights to get your scent on it; and make sure you get 2 in case one gets lost. A friend of mine did this with her daughter and it worked really well. You could also use a stuffed animal.

If you wean gradually, by dropping one feeding per day every 3 or 4 days, then you shouldn't have much problem with engorgement. That usually only happens when breastfeeding stops abruptly.

I also had a frequent night nurser and that's where I had to start the weaning process. I began to limit nighttime nursing to 2 times nightly and then 3 or 4 days later, down to 1 and so on. I offered him/her a sippy cup instead of nursing and at first he refused, but after a night or 2, he was OK sipping from it instead of me. I held him/her and comforted over my shoulder instead of against my chest. I weaned my kids VERY slowly, usually over a 4-6 week period. I eliminated 1 feeding every 5-7 days replacing it with a drink, a snack and some distraction (book, playing toys, or even a walk during time he/she usually nursed). There was no pawing at my chest, crying, or begging to nurse. They just adapted to the reduction of my milk and then one night they just went to sleep without the evening nursing and that was it. I never experienced engorgement or mastitis. Please be patient, give extra affection and attention, and sensative to his/her needs. If the child becomes sick or resistant to weaning, I'd always stop for a couple days or even a few weeks and try again later. My daughter was extremely resistant at 13 months when I first tried weaning (probably due to stress of travel, my husband's emergency appendectomy, etc at that time), so I waited another month and it was easy. Don't know if her learning to walk at 14 months had anything to do with it, but it seemed as soon as she could walk, she was more interested in other things than nursing. Weaning shouldn't be traumatic for either of you. Best wishes for a smooth transition. Midwife mom of 3

It is your choice if you want to wean but I wanted to ask one question about something you said. It is not meant to be judgemental. It just really struck me and I would like to ask about it.
Why do you worry that things could change soon when breastfeeding has been going well up to this point? Is it based solely on the fact that the calendar now says your baby is soon to be 1 or is it some other reason?
I have 3 children that I nursed until 3 years, 5 years and my youngest turned 2 last month and is currently nursing. Age effected nothing whatsoever. It didn't get harder or change in any way really, if anything it got easier as they got older. As they got older they naturally cut back on how often they nursed per day. My first was at once a week when he stopped, my second was never more than once a day and he'd skip days. My third does nurse a lot at this moment but it comes and goes depending on teething, if she's got the sniffles etc. Calendar age doesn't suddenly flip a switch and make things impossible.
Again, it is your choice as it is your body and your baby. I just ask, please don't do it out of fear.

I haven't had a chance to read the other responses, but here's what I did:

I started by skipping one nursing session in the middle of the day. I choose right before her afternoon nap, and then I'd nurse when she got up. We did that for about 3-4 days. The I choose the mid-morning session to cut also, and we did that for 3-4 days. I gradually got to where I was only nursing right before bed and first thing in the morning. Your body takes a few days to adjust, and so does baby, so this method worked well for us. I then eventually skipped the right before bed nurse, and then just nursed in the morning. Then I went every other morning, and then just stopped. If I started to feel engorged, I'd nurse at our next "usual" time, but would then try to skip the following few times. Your body will evenutally slow production and adjust.

I started weaning both my boys right at a year. I was only giving 4 feedings a day at that time and replaced one feeding each week with whole milk in a sippy cup so I was done in about a month. I had no problems with engorgement or infections or discomfort and the boys didn't miss it at all. A surprisingly smooth transition both times! Best of luck!

I will add to what Katrina said and say that the toddler years are SO much easier with that connection to fall back on, but to answer your question...

Start with the nursing session he is least interested in and as others said cut one out at a time "gently, with love." Don't necessarily do it a week apart (what has gone on a schedule this far?), just cut another out when he seems ready, this may be a week, it may be 3, it may be 2 days. Just follow his cues. Don't think of it as more time for you yet, as you must distract. Change this nursing time into quality time, reading, cuddling, playing, etc. I'm glad you've had such an easy time breastfeeding. I AM someone who nursed my kids until they self-weaned, and I did want to comment because of your first sentence. Though I have enjoyed the benefits of toddler nursing and love to share that with anyone who is interested, I am not ignorant and realize that not everyone wants that. I feel a bit lumped into a category and dismissed out of hand. For great weaning advice, call your local La Leche League...
K.

PS. If you get engorged, take notice. pump until you hurt no more (not more than that if you want your milk supply to go down), but don't let it go, as you don't want to end this beautiful journey with mastitis. Also, cabbage leaves really work for reducing engorgement and lowering milk supply.

pps. you can just night wean, if you'd rather. Elizabeth Pantley's book the No Cry Sleep Solution is a great book about night weaning.

Well, if you want to wean and get some sleep...you should!! (not everyone desires to BF a walking and talking toddler, or child.) Anyway, my sister cut out one feeding at a time. She would cut one feeding for a two weeks, then move onto the next one, and so on. Instead of nursing, she would offer a bottle or sippy cup with water. If you wean that way, you will be doing so slower. I know my sister didn't have engorging, because of the slow process.