how to wean 18 month old from breast???

Question

i have tried everything but she still pulls up my shirt and gets through the bra. She will drink from a sippy but still prefers the breast. it's not like the bottle where i can just hide them-- i'm stuck with these things!!! anyone have any new ideas? thanks.

Answer 1

I weaned my daughter at 18 months, but only because we discovered I was pregnant and because she was ready to stop. If your daughter isn't ready, you might consider letting her nurse once a day for a month or two. Then when she lifts your shirt you can tell her it is not nursing time, and remind her that she gets to nurse at . This will help her deal becaue she'll still get a chance to nurse, but also lets you reduce your milk production naturally and without a lot of pain from engorgement. Eventually, your milk production will decline to the point where your daughter doesn't get anything and she will probably at that point stop trying to nurse.

If you have to wean right away, you could try wearing dresses or vests that do not allow her to lift your shirt, which will make the milk less accessible. Try to always have a sippy cup available so that if she tries to nurse you can offer her another drink option. Also, my daughter really liked it when I made a big deal about how she was such a big girl and had drunk Mommy's milk all gone. I said it with a great deal of excitement and gave her lots of hugs and kisses each time she mentioned nursing.

Hope this is helpful to you. Best of luck with the weaning process!

Answer 2

If you have the option to, I would have dad or grandma take her for a few days or so and go take a little trip or vacation for yourself. This worked great with my daughter who I wanted to wean at 16 months. It gives you both a chance to break any current patterns and even if she doesn't wean completely you may get more control of when you want to nurse or not. LaLeche League is a great resource as well.

Answer 3

There is a ton of great weaning info here:
http://www.kellymom.com/bf/weaning/index.html

However if your daughter is not ready to wean, which she more than likely is not you could be in for a tough time. There is no need to wean and children weaned under age 2 are at an increased risk of illness and malnutrition.

"If the child is younger than two years of age, the child is at increased risk of illness if weaned"
American Association of Family Physicians
http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/policy/policies/b/breastfeedingpositionpaper.html

More on breastfeeding past one year
http://www.kellymom.com/bf/bfextended/ebf-benefits.html

Answer 4

18 month!? You DON'T wean them. You just stop. Just because you're "stuck" with them doesn't mean anything. You wouldn't let some guy on the street touch them just because they are there. Just tell her no and stop her when she tries to pull your shirt up. If you have to, then punish her. And praise her when she uses her sippy cup! Do it long enough and she'll stop. Now is the time you need to show that you are boss, or you're going to have a lot more problems than just this.

Answer 5

thats hot

Answer 6

my oh my , stop the child now , its gonna be hard but stop it now ,, one of these days your gonna be out somewher e and your child gonna lif t you rshirt etc , nursin g is nothing to be ashamed of , bu t at 18 months most kds are starting to talk and difently walking , sippy cups sippy cups sippy cups get pleanty of thos e sippyu cups and be persetant on not letting her nurse , she should be on complete table foods by now , so no malnurishment there , as for the illnesss , im sorry , i know a lady who nursed eall 3 of he r kids ,and they have been into the doc and on antibiotics for ear infection s etc compared to my kids i hav e 6 and didn t breast feed anyof them past a month old breast milk wasnt enough for htem ,