Breastfeeding 9 Month Old--how Many Times a Day?

It's really up to you. My kids were all different. But in general, when you are ready to start doing it less, just substitute a feeding with a sippy cup or meal depending on what time it is. Each day add a substitution until you get to where you want to be. Sometimes they aren't too happy about it at first, but the adjust.

I nursed my daughter at least 5 times a day at that age. She was also eating a lot of food by then.

I quit pumping at 10-11 months, but nursed her 4 times a day while we were together.

At 12-13 months we were down to twice per day. At 15 months she started preschool and she has been nursing 3-4 times a day again. I could probably put my foot down and stick to twice a day, but she needs the extra comfort and I would like her to stay as healthy as possible.

Good luck - I know it's tiring.

I don't think there is a right/wrong answer to this question, and how long you nurse and how many times per day you nurse is up to you. In some cultures women nurse their children until they are 4 but I have found here in the states, people generally wean by about a year. I nursed my first child for 20 months. If I let her, she probably would have wanted to nurse longer, not because she was hungry, but because she liked the bond and comfort associated with it. If you want to cut back feedings to 2-3x per day, then you just have to set that limit with your child and stick to it. It doesn't really matter how old he/she is. He/She won't like it at first, but they will adapt. My second child is now 4 months old and we went from nursing every 2 hours when she was first born, to now nursing 5x per day. She nurses in the morning, nurses mid morning, has solids for lunch, nurses mid afternoon, has solids for dinner, and nurses before bedtime (8pm). Hope that helps. Good luck.

Forgot to add that I agree that breast milk or formula is the main source of nutrition at this age, BUT if you exclusively breastfeed at this age, children miss out on other essential nutrients not in breast milk like IRON. Your pediatrician could probably tailor the advice to your situation better.

It's all going to depend on the baby. I'm nursing my 10mo old, and she still nurses 3 or 4 times a day, and then throughout the night. Is he eating baby food or table food? That makes a big difference. My daughter continued to nurse every 3-4 hrs til she started eating table food right around Christmas. For me, in the next month I'll probably cut my daughter down to 1st thing in the morning and right before bed (and throughout the night - all of mine have woken up throughout the night til they've been weaned). I will have her weaned by 13mos.

I agree w/ the other posts your 9m old nursing schedule is totally normal. I have a almost 9m old and he nurses 1-2x a night; morning, before both naps and then before bed so the same around 4-5x a day. Stick w/ it as there is a light at the end of the tunnel in a few months. With my older child I started feeding 3x around 11-12 months and then slowly weaned him by 14 months by introducing cow's milk in a sippy. Congrats on breastfeeding this long! Your a great mama.

I night-weened my daughter at around 10 1/2 months old. At around the same time I think I went down to 4 feedings a day (in the morning, before each of her 2 naps and at bedtime).

Then when she transitioned to one nap at around 14 or 15 months we went to 3 feedings (in the morning, before her nap, and at bedtime). Over the next month or so I removed the nap-time feeding.

At around 18 months I eleminated the night time feeding (I did this by the "don't offer but don't refuse" method. It took about 2 weeks to eliminate the feeding completely).

Then at 19 or 20 months we went on vacation and she stopped asking to nurse in the morning (different surroundings different routine), and by the time we came home, she had weaned herself.

I hope that helps!

i personally breatfed my son every three hrs, (day/night.) i couldnt do more because i had to work full time. (i used a pump sometimes, and he got fed bottled breastmilk when i wasnt home. if you are able to be home with your child, some women breast feed every two hours. i would of if i could. i personally didnt care for breast feeding (myself). it is a never ending task for me, but i did it anyways for the best, for my son. i breast fed him until he was 1. (my son has a disorder called disphasia, (witch means he doesnt like to eat food, so he had to have a g-tube placed,) for a normal kid, i think there supposed to be eating just baby foods then; but some moms opt to continue breast feeding too. it really just depends on what you want to do/and/or what best for your child.

THe thing I loved about breastfeeding was I didn't NEED a schedule! I could feed her when she was hungry anywhere! I breastfed my daughter until she was 11 months and she was happy with that, meaning she didn't have baby food until 11 months. She still nursed every 3-4 hours.

4-5 times a day is totally normal for a 9 month old. Some of it is individual too. My daughter was probably nursing 6-8 times at that age (makes 4-5 times look good, right? lol) But, my son who is now 16 months and still breastfed was probably at 3-4 times a day...maybe less at 9 months. He dropped feedings on his own. Around a year he was mostly in the morning before we got out of bed (sometimes when he wakes in the night, I bring him to bed), at naptime, and for bedtime plus anytime he woke at night. At 16 months, his schedule is pretty similar. Nap, bed, in the night if he wakes. You probably already know the bulk of a babies calories in the first year come from breast milk or formula. So your 9 month old is just fine. I don't know how great your baby is as solids, but for me it was nice knowing my kids were still getting plenty of calories from breast milk.

You are so close to 1 year that I would try to hang in there the next couple months. Then at 11-12 months you can start introducing cow's milk if you want. You might find it easier to offer him milk in a cup during your nursing times to wean him. And I'd go slow. Take his least attached nursing session and offer him the milk at that time for a week. Then drop another session, etc. Go as slow as you want. Usually nursing to sleep sessions, like bed time are the last to go.

I found 8-9 months a particularly rough time with my kids. They do change a lot in a few months time and you might find as your baby gets closer to a year that he/she nurses less on his own especially as they get really into solids and are more distractible.

By one year, when you can introduce cow's milk, you can probably get down to 3 times per day (I did with both mine). Then, if you continue longer, you can get down to morning and night (before bed) around 1 1/2 or 2.

When our son was 9 months old I was still exclusively breastfeeding him. So he would eat anywhere from 3 o 8 times a day. AND wake up 2 to 4 times a night to bf as well.

Shortly after he turned 9 months I did introduce baby food and then a week later, table food. And we continued nursing till 18 months. So from 9 to 18 months he slowly cut down on daytime feeding himself. However, he was still waking a minimum of 2 times a night (and still nursing 1 to 3 times a day at 18 months) which is why we weaned. I was TIRED! LOL.

4 to 5 times a day is completely normal. Because they can digest bm so easily, they tend to need it more often than if they were drinking formula.

CONGRATS on chosing the best for your baby!

4 to 5 times a day is normal. His primary sourse of nutrition should come from Breast Milk until he is at least a year old.

I was down to 3X/day by then usually but feeding healthy food too supplemented with vitamins and blue algae as well (no fluoride) with water. The very helpful books that I consulted were The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding by LaLeche League Intl. and The Nursing Mother's Companion by Kathleen Huggins, R.N., M.S. as well as local lactation consultants (older woman who nursed their children). I nursed all seven which weaned at different ages for different reasons. Hope this helps:)

I still bf 5-6 xs a day. My daughter sometimes sleep through the night, but she seems to catch up on breast milk during the day. She only naps 1xday and is 10 mo old. I think it is totally up to you when you decrease feedings. That said, breast milk or formula is the main source of nutrition until one year.