How to Stop Breastfeeding & Start on a Sippy Cup

Ouch! I remember the biting...A very experienced mom once told me to give a quick flick to the baby's mouth (at the very moment of the bite) and at first I was like "no way!", But after you've been bitten enough, you know you have to do something to get the baby's attention.
It sounds like you are definately ready to wean, so in the mean time, DO start mixing the breast milk with whole milk. I did 1ozWM to every 4oz ofBM at first...about every 4 days, I increased the WM by 1oz while decreasing the BM by 1 oz...worked beautifully and my kids were compleatly weaned within 2 weeks. Good luck
S.

J.,
My daughter started doing the same thing around 10 months so I decided I was going to have her completely weaned and on a sippy cup by a year and by 11 months she was weaned and using a sippy cup. I didn't want to introduce a bottle since she was also breastfeed and I didn't want to have to wean her from the bottle also. I did have to have some help from my husband because if she was sitting on my lap she wanted to nurse. So he would sit with her at night before bed and give her a sippy cup that had a mixture of whole milk, formula and sometimes breastmilk, then I would breastfeed her after that. I tried many different combinations until she started taking it. Then I kept increasing the whole milk until it was all whole milk. I did gradually cut back on the breastfeeding, first cutting out the afternoon feedings and only offering in the morning and at night, then I cut out the morning one, I would get her up, change her diaper and go right into the kitchen and put her in her chair with breakfast and a sippy cup. At first I was warming up the milk and I gradually cut back on warming it so it was less and less warm each time until I finally could give her cold milk. I actaully only took about 3-4 weeks to get her to drink cold milk from a sippy cup. Oh, and sage will reduce your milk supply, she lost interest as my milk supply started decreasing too, I was cooking with sage as much as I could. I hope my story helps! Good luck! - E.

hey lady. i did the same thing with my oldest daughter. she wouldnt switch to formula, so i just switched her over to cow's milk in a bottle one day, and it went very well. she was also just shy of a year. it probably isnt recommended. and i would say that you should try to sneak in some formula here and there anyway. but its only necessary for the next month, you know? try hand pumping and giving him some breastmilk throughout the day as well with the cows milk. as you gradually decrease how much you express, your supply will mellow out on its own. ALSO. this is a good time to set some night time routines in, as you should probably wean the night time feedings. hes almost a year, so this is a good transition period for him to learn to comfort himself back to sleep. definitly give him some tylenol before bed, as he is probably in pain. but offer him water in a bottle instead of milk at night. the key here is to do it gradually for a better adjustment, especially if you aren't into letting your bby cry it out. good luck.

J., don't laugh (you can snicker, though) when I tell you to put cold cabbage leaves in your bra to alleviate the pain of engorgement (okay, a good guffaw here is allowed). Repeat when the leaves wilt or every two hours. This will also help lessen the milk supply.
OR......try putting some frozen veggies (still in the bag) on you (put a towel under it to reduce the risk of freezer burn - ;) ) - it will cut the inflammation.

I got this information from WebMD after reading some studies several years ago about tribal women dealing with engorgement by applying cabbage leaves. I don't remember giving it a try, but I also never got a real chance to give my son Nature's best food.

I agree with your doctor. You could do half cow milk half formula or breast milk if you don't feel comfortable just switching, but to do it 1/4 oz a week will take you FOREVER! I always did half and half (4 kids) for a few days and then 1/4 and 3/4 for a few days and then just whole milk. As far as your milk supply, you're going to be uncomfortable for a few days up to 10. Pump or nurse as little as possible as it's a supply and demand situation. If you're not using it it will go away faster. Warm compresses make it more comfortable and make sure your bra is snug fitting. If you're going to pump or nurse don't do both. You're demand will go up so there for the supply will. Good luck!

you cant just STOP cold turkey...you have to do the switch slowly
like 1/4 0z of formula and 7 3/4 oz of breast milk (this is an example)follow for one week then add 1/4 oz more each week.....till your up to just 8 oz of formula.....

same goes with the milk switch too and if your having problems with his sleeping like in your last post may i suggest a formula that is easy on the tummies

I remember the biting too...as if leaking all the time wasn't bad enough! :)
Whenever my son bit me, I would say "No!" very firmly and then set him down. He caught on very quickly that biting meant no more food, and he stopped.

That said, if you want to wean, try the cow's milk. I went from nursing all the time to only nursing in the morning and at night and giving my son cow's milk (straight) during the day. He loved the milk, so there was no problem.

Good luck!

J. I would say if He has been only breast feed you may need to go to the bottle with mixed breast milk and cows milk and slowly cut back on the nursing. I know they want him to get on the sippy cup but he is still little and that is a big jump to the sippy. give it time if you keep offering the cup every few days he will start to take it when he is ready. dont rush him. take as long as it takes for you both to cut out the breast feeding and move on to cows milk.