How do I wean my breastfeeding one year old?

Question

My son was sick at birth and slept with me, things have not changed much. How do I break this cycle

Answer 1

He needs to sleep in his own bed--that's the first thing that needs to happen.

He needs to learn how to put himself to sleep. Most children know how to do this at around 6 or 7 months, but because he's slept with you since birth he hasn't learned how. Put him in his own room and leave him in his crib.Don't pick him up or rock him--just lay him down and rub his back or sing to him softly to help him fall asleep. If he wakes up, walk in his room and sit/stand next to his crib so he knows you're there. You don't need to rock him or hold him to help him back to sleep--just talk to him softly or sing to him to help him fall asleep again.

As for breastfeeding, it's a good idea to *start* weaning him now, but there's no reason he has to be weaned by a certain age. It's a good idea to start the weaning process now though.

Limit his breastfeeding. Breastfeed him once a day and slowly teach him how to drink from a sippy cup. Let him pick out his own cup maybe with a certain character on it so he is excited to use it.

Answer 2

Congrats on breastfeeding your baby for a year! That is great! I think there is nothing wrong with continuing to breastfeed if you'd like (the World Health Organization recommends a minimum of two years). And cosleeping is also not a problem, unless you really want your son to sleep elsewhere.

We always slept with my daughter. Sometime around 14 months or so I started to feel I needed more space, so we brought a crib mattress into our room and put it on the floor next to our bed. She now naps and sleeps part of the night there. If has been a great first stop for us toward eventually having her sleep in her own space. I was suprised that it didn't really affect her nursing habits, though. I thought she might want to nurse less at night when she wasn't right next to me smelling me, but it didn't really change much. As she has gotten older, though (she's now 21 months) I do think her frequency of nursing, both at night and during the day has slowly declined. However, there are times such as teething or illness when she starts nursing more again. I think she is slowly moving toward weaning on her own terms, but it may take us quite a while longer.

Here are some links about weaning. Both these pages have a lot of great links, so you can do a bunch of reading on this topic:
Kellymom - http://www.kellymom.com/bf/weaning/how_weaning_happens.html
La Leche League - http://www.lalecheleague.org/NB/NBweaning.html

Good luck!

Answer 3

I don't know but I wish I did. My baby was in the hospital for a long time and when she came home I just started sleeping with her and now she's one and I'm still breastfeeding too. I think you just have to wait until the baby is eating enough solid food and drinking from a cup.

Answer 4

I understand what you are going through, as I went through it myself. First the good news: You son will eventually sleep through the night in his own bed, and even be happy about it. :) The bad news: It's going to take a few stressful, heartwrenching weeks. First, we did our normal bedtime routine (reading books, breastfeeding) then put him in his crib. He of course screamed, but we kept him in there. My husband and I took turns staying in his room with him, lying on a sleeping bag on the floor til he fell asleep and then we'd slowly, quietly sneak out. We sang lullabies, talked to him, held his hand through the bars, tried to calm him as best we could. Over the course of about a month we slowly worked our way out of his bedroom. Literally! We went from lying on the floor, to sitting up in a chair, moving closer and closer to the door. Eventually, he gave in and realized that he had to sleep in his crib. It was painful hearing him fuss and cry, but the end results were worth it. He slept in his crib by himself at about 14 months old. Now he's 4 1/2 and has relatively no sleep problems. Looking back, I wouldn't change a thing, given my sons temperament. I see it as a stage he went through. So, hang in there and best wishes!

Answer 5

Do you WANT to wean him or are you feeling pressure to do so? There is nothing that says he needs to wean at one year. As a matter of fact, 12 mos is the *minimum* time it is suggested to nurse according to the AAP.

If you do decide to wean, go slowly and gently. Eliminate no more than one feeding every 5 days. If you are still feeling engorged, wait a bit to drop the next feeding.

"Don't offer, don't refuse" is also a good philosophy to follow.

Answer 6

maybe try getting him a toddler bed and start by putting it in your room. at least to get him out of your bed. once that works, put him in his own room and sit with him until he falls asleep. if he is still breastfeeding, and you want to keep him on your milk, put it in a sippy cup. if you want him off your milk, just start by mixing half and half with whole milk and your milk. then eventually, go all whole milk.

Answer 7

wean him one meal at a time for a week per meal. this will give him time to process each one. as for the sleeping. I would suggest taking that one day with you and then one day alone. and then one day with you and two nights alone. or just talking to him about sleeping in his own bed and just doing it outright. you need your sleep also!

Answer 8

Give him a sippy cup with whole milk and pump some of your own, or just pump your own and dilute it little by little with cow's milk. Or you can put lemon juice on your nipple or some mean mom's use cyanne pepper...try the lemon first!

Answer 9

Put black smut or paint on the nipple and he won't take it. This is the way women in Ga do it on stubborn kids.