2006-09-25 12:02:31 · 19 answers · asked by anna nicole 2 in Pregnancy & Parenting ➔ Toddler & Preschooler
He is old enough to talk to and understand. Tell him only baby's drink like that. Give him a sippy cup and hold him for a few min. when it is nap time or bedtime. Then quit allowing him the cup and just hug him and put him in bed. Keep the cups and drinks for meals and drinks in the kitchen. Brag on him each time he does it without crying or whinning and DON"T give in! He will never learn to do what is right if you give in.You will set him up to be a horrible child and teen that you will have to negotiate everything with. Remember you are raising an adult that needs to know how to get along in the world and succeed!!
2006-09-25 12:08:48 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 1⤋
Sorry, I have to disagree...it is not normal for a child that old to still be nursing.
I think you should cut all day nursing, but if he nurses for comfort at night, you shouldn't cut that until a few weeks down the road.
This will be hard for both of you, it is a bond. I really cried the first time my son was hungry and I went for a sippy instead of me (and I HATED breastfeeding....ok, not hated, but I didn't think it was this great wonderful thing).
You've done a great thing for your child and you should be very very proud. It is the best thing for your son and you made it!
You will have other bonds for your son.
My advice is to cut it during the day totally....and then in a few weeks cut the breastfeeding out at night. DO NOT cut the cuddle time he gets to spend with you....Cuddle as if you were nursing for just as long....that's what he needs from you and will always need from you.
Explain that he is too big to be nursing.....nursing and bottles are for babies and he is not a baby anymore....focus on the positive things about being a big boy.
Breastfeeding support people (of which I do support) say it is natural and nothing wrong with it but if a three year old child was walking around with a bottle in their mouths they'd have plenty to say.
2006-09-25 19:50:55 · answer #2 · answered by jm1970 6 · 0⤊ 2⤋
First off, three years old is NOT "way too long" as someone else said. Please know that if the two of you are happy nursing, there is no reason to stop! A lot of moms feel pressure to stop from others at this age. Know that it's totally normal and healthy to keep going if the two of you are still happy with the nursing relationship. Michael Jordan nursed until he was 3 years old. The world-wide average age of weaning is 4.2 years. The natural age of human weaning according to anthropologist Kathryn Dettwyler is between 2.5 and 7 years of age. A nursing three year old is very NORMAL and you are to be congratulated and applauded for providing your child with such an amazing start in life!
That said, breastfeeding is a relationship between TWO people (OK...maybe more if it's twins or tandem nurslings!) and things need to be working for both of you.
The first thing to consider is compromise. Is there a way you can cut back on nursing so that you feel better about it, but not totally wean so that your son still has his needs met as well? When is he nursing? Day and night or only specific times of day? Would cutting down to only nursing to sleep be a compromise the two of you could live with, for example? Roll that around in your mind and figure out if there is a balance that can be struck to keep both of you happy.
If you decide to completely wean, distraction and substitution are pretty good at this age. Try to "head him off at the pass" and offer him something else BEFORE he asks to nurse. If you think he's nursing out of boredom, look for more ways to entertain him. If he only really nurses at home, get out of the house more. If he asks to nurse and you think he might be hungry, try offering a favorite snack, etc.
Try to make it a gentle and gradual transition. This will help to keep you from getting engorged and make things less stressful for the two of you.
There are some helpful links below for you.
2006-09-25 19:09:29 · answer #3 · answered by momma2mingbu 7 · 4⤊ 1⤋
The thing is, if you want to stop and he doesn't, it will be a bit cruel regardless. I don't think sippy cups are what he's after though, more likely he wants a snuggle. Maybe give him a hug and play a big-kid game with him, like playing catch or tag. If it's sleeptime, rub his back.
It can be very easy to resent a three-year-old nursling, better to quit before you do.
2006-09-25 19:40:23 · answer #4 · answered by Goddess of Grammar 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Here's how my cousin did it.
She breastfed her daughter until she was three and in order to help the child make the transition to sippy cups (and not seem like a mean mommy in the process) she put bandages on her nipples and told the child that her breasts were "sick" and that the child had to drink from the sippy cup until the breasts got better. Her daughter accepted the sippy cup because she was trying to be helpful to the "sick" breasts. Of course in a couple weeks the child forgot about breastfeeding altogether and stuck with the cup.
However, I am going to disagree with the above post and say that it IS time to stop, and fast. You do not want to nurse a child so long that later on in the child's life he can actually look back and remember nursing. That can be psychologically detrimental to the child.
2006-09-25 19:09:49 · answer #5 · answered by A.R. 4 · 0⤊ 3⤋
When he wants to breastfeed, offer him a cup instead. You have to just break him at once. Twice a day is not that much, but his age is what makes it bad. He may even end up with seperation problems from you when he starts school from it as well. Be careful with it and try to stop it now.
2006-09-25 19:10:09 · answer #6 · answered by Corinn 2 · 1⤊ 2⤋
Wow...3 years old. I feel bad for you! Not in a negative way but because he has TEETH! Oooh thats got to hurt! Well my suggestion would be to just gently wean him by telling him that he gets a special food (pick his favorite food thats not your boobies!) instead of breastfeeding. Eventually he will forget about the milk machines and eat his favorite food. Good Luck!
2006-09-25 19:12:20 · answer #7 · answered by mommy_2_little_man 2 · 0⤊ 2⤋
Give him a Big Boy Cup(a sippy cup)
2006-09-28 16:38:26 · answer #8 · answered by Andi Lynn Martin 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
He is definetly old enough for you just to explain it to him and then stop. Just replace the times he usually breastfed with something he really likes doing to keep his mind off of it.
Good Luck
2006-09-26 00:28:57 · answer #9 · answered by Me 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
He needs to be drinking out of a cup and not a sippy cup, a regular cup. Thats too long to breastfeed him
2006-09-25 21:14:26 · answer #10 · answered by chyna 2 · 1⤊ 2⤋