Toddler Breastfeeding - Did This Happen to You?

I have no real amazing advice.

My youngest nursed until March of this year. He turned three in June, to give you and idea of how old he was when he stopped nursing.

He would do the same thing with M. if he was stressed out or scared. He has a Sensory disorder so things can get very over whelming,

He would nurse for what seemed like forever in the afternoon...and then again right before bed.

By Fifteen months they are no longer needing milk from mamma as soul nourishment. It is more of a security thing. It sounds like when you guys get home he just wants to be with you....and when you take him off he is upset because it was not on his terms.

There is no easy answer for how to remedy this. I hope you get some good advice:)

It seems like it is for comfort. It is sad when they grow up and things we enjoy about them being little end, but that's not a reason to keep going with it. You talk a lot about him being hungry and eating right before bed. I weaned my daughter at exactly one year, only nursing in the am for the last month or so, and she never had anything to eat after dinner. the need to fill their bellies right before bed goes away at a young age. it is very unlikely that he is hungry int he middle of the night anymore. if he was hungry, he would eat the food you serve him. it is also typical for toddlers to only eat one good meal per day, so he is not necessarily hungry just because he is not eating 3 great meals.

if this is a new habit of him using you for comfort, i would nip it in the bud before he really begins to rely on it. don't think of it as ending something good, but teaching him how to comfort himself which is an important skill. (not to mention the benefit of uninterrupted sleep for both of you when he is no longer waking and coming to your bed, etc.)

Aw mama, he misses you when you are away, and this is his way of connecting. He is getting tons of nutrition from your milk so don't let anyone convince you otherwise. He's stressed and needs this time to relax. So I don't think giving him 1/2 hour of sitting and nursing is too much to ask when he's missed you all day. This is a fantastic way to reconnect and BOTH OF YOU relax and be together after a long day apart.

your milk is fine, he's fine, you don't need to pump unless you want to. Don't wean him, he NEEDS this. You aren't ready, he's not ready to stop. Sometimes we have to let go of what we think is necessary and go with what he needs.... he's only 15mos old, he's still very much a baby and this time with you is important to him. Just go with it. He won't do it forever.

He is using you for comfort. If you want him to stop you need to stop him, and help him find better ways to sooth. At night there is no reason at this point for him to be night nursing, babies no longer need night feedings after the first few weeks of life. They do it because we train them to (per my ped). If you are not happy than you just need to start saying no. Maybe it would be easier on him if nursing was no longer an option at all? Just tell him your boobs are broken but you would love to hug/snuggle him as long as he wants, and see where it goes from there.

My daughter always loved the after daycare nursing. I think she missed M. and it was our undivided one-on-one time. Don't give that up! He will soon enough - he is old enough to start getting really distracted and not wanting you as much!!

I would just nurse him on demand, unless you are really ready to give up a feeding. Your supply will adjust to keep up with him. It sounds like your supply is not the problem at night anyway, if a sippy cup doesn't hold him either.

I would guess you have a few issues combined. he is getting older and more demanding of your attention. He probably is having a growth spurt and needing more calories. He might even be starting to get his two year old molars..All this could be affectign his sleep. Not much advice other than to fill him up in the evenings, and try to comfort him without food at night. Maybe try some tylenol at night to see if he is having any tooth pain. I am sure your supply is fine, it will just take a while to catch up to him.

This definitely sounds like he's nursing for comfort, not nutrition. He should be getting most of his nutrition from food, anyway, not even cow's milk. Unfortunately if you want these longer nursing sessions to stop, you're going to have to bite the bullet and stop them, dealing with whatever behavior he exhibits as a result. You could also limit the number of times he breastfeeds in a day. Just one longer session is more doable than several long ones. Good luck!

he misses you and wants to reconnect by nursing.

let teh baby nurse as long as he wants when you get home.

nurse before bed.. if your supply is low take fenugreek it works like a charm.