Weaning from Breastfeeding

I think the Previouse response says most of it. By one year, my kids ate all table food. Mind you they had teeth. BUt basically we just left portions for them in the "pots" a littel longer so thier food was a little softer and over cooked so they could chew easily.

H.

Hi J.,

My name is H. B. I am a board certified lactation consultant and I also work for the WIC program for over 12 years.

First question? How do I wean?
Whatever your reason for weaning, you and your baby are entitiled to a safe, comfortable and gradual way to end your breastfeeding relationship. Weaning too quickly may cause physical and emotional problems for both you and your baby.

1. Stop 1 feeding every 2-4 days. Offer a substitute for that feeding. Snacks and activities are good substitutes.
2. Try to give yourself 2-4 weeks to complete the weaning process.
3. Avoid extreme fullness. When you drop a feeding, pump or hand express for 2-3 minutes to relieve the pressure of too much milk. "THIS WILL NOT TELL YOUR BODY TO MAKE MORE MILK. THIS WILL ONLY HELP RELIEVE ENGORGMENT AND REDUCE YOUR CHANCES OF PLUGGED DUCTS OR A BREAST INFECTION.
4. Use warm compresses before expressing milk, or stand in the shower with water running on your back to cause leaking to relieve fullness. After expressing milk, some women find it helpful to put icepacks (bag of frozen veggies) on their breasts for 2-5 minutes.
5. Wear a comfortable bra. Constricting or binding the breast only leads to medical problems.
6. Drink to thirst. Limiting your fluid intake will only increase your risk of dehydration.
7. Limit your salt intake. This will reduce water retention and swelling.
8. Be alert. Watch for symptoms of plugged ducts...sore, lumpy, hot and/or hard areas of the breast. Fever or flu like symptoms may be a sign of a breast infection. CALL FOR HELP!!!!

THINGS TO REMEMBER.....

1. Weaning is a physical and emotional time for everyone.
2. Breastfeeding is a lot more than producing milk and feeding it to your baby.
3. It is common to have mixed feelings about weaning.
4. When your baby stops breastfeeeding suddenly....This is not normal weaning. It is a nursing strike. CALL FOR HELP!!!
5. Your periods will start again during the weaning process. If they have not already returned. Please use birth control if you are not planning additions to your family.

What to feed your 1 year old?

As a parent or a care taker it is our responsibility to offer food 5-6 times a day. The job of the child is to decide, if I want to eat, and how much of it will I eat.

Stage 3 dinners. HAVE YOU TASTED THEM? HOW WOULD YOU LIKE TO EAT THAT JARRED FOOD EVERY DAY. I THINK I WOULD START PUTTING UP A FUSS TOO.

I think it is great thta she uses a sippy cup. She should have 4 oz. of 100% fruit juice daily. She should not drink more than 10 oz. in a 24 hour period. If she is drinking more, it can cause diarreah or a full stomach, leading to picky eating.
PLEASE DO NOT REINTRODUCE THE BOTTLE. AT THIS POINT IT WILL NOT BE USED AS A FEEDING TOOL BUT MORE OF A SECURITY BLANKET.

aBOUT 2 WEEKS BEFORE HER BIRTHDAY, OFFER 4 OZ. OF WHOLE MILK. If she does not have a reaction then the next day you can try 8 oz. If she doesn't want to drink the cows milk, so what? Offer her cheese, pudding, yogurt, icecream ect. It is not important that they drink cows milk. I would always offer but do not fight. Arguing only makes them worse picky eaters.
She only needs 4 servings of dairy every day.

meats: She should be getting a little of everything you are eating. WITH THE EXCEPTION OF COWS MILK TO DRINK 2 WEEKS BEFORE HER BIRTHDAY. ALSO NO HONEY. IT CAN CAUSE A FORM OF BOTULISM.
What is a serving of meat? Its about the size of a small book of wooden matches or 1/3 of a deck of cards. All the baby needs is 2 servings a day. Eggs, peanutbutter, any meat that is cut up small enough to chew.

Breads and cereal group. What is a serving of breads? 1/2 slice of bread,2-3 crackers,1 graham cracker, 1 tablespoon of ceral, pasta, rice ect. How many should we get? 5 servings a day.

Fruits and veggies: Again a serving size is about 1 tablespoon times thier age. We would like to see 5 a day. 4oz. of juice will be one serving of fruit or veggie. However anything after 4 oz. offers nothing more than sugar and water. Please limit to no more than 12 oz. total in 24 hours.

This is a very important age. They are no longer infants but haven't quite become a child. By placing small cut up pieces of food, you not only engage your child in the feeding process, but also, you reduce the risk of choking. When children feel things before they go in the mouth, less gagging. If you don't believe this ask your self this question? Does my child pick up all different types of small things all around the house? Where is the first place it goes? In the mouth, thats how they learn. It is called the pincer grasp. PLace a towel or shower curtain underneath the high chair. This will help clean up. They are not old enough to eat everything on thier own, but let them enjoy the process.

Last but not least....Anything that is round and solid (ie. block of cheese vs slice of cheese) is more chokable. PLease cut things like hotdogs and grapes into 4 pieces. Nothing should every be forbidden when it comes to food. Just everything in moderation...(once to twice a week is moderation) If we don't allow certain foods or drinks and make them forbidden become much more important once they start getting foods from friends houses. Granted you probably have years for that.
I need to go. I hope this answers your two questions. Sorry it was so long!

H. B.

I weaned my son from breastmilk at 9.5 months. On the advice of my pediatrician I did it cold turkey and it actually went okay. During the day he easily accepted a bottle of formula, but it did take a few nights of a very angry baby before he stopped demanding to be nursed. At that time he was still waking up 2-3 times a night wanting to be nursed back to sleep, so weaning him at that time was for 2 reasons - to stop the night feedings and because I was going back to work part-time. So for a few nights I had to stay with him, comforting him as best as I could while he cried and cried. He would fall asleep for a bit, but wake up crying again. They were long nights, it took 4 or 5 days I think, but I stood firm and I'm glad I did. It may not have been a super pleasant experience for either of us, but it was over quickly and he's suffered no ill effects from it. To ease the transition I did still pump and gave him breastmilk with formula in a bottle (also to keep me from having to suffer from super full breasts, I recommend pumping a little off to relieve your fullness and do less and less everyday until it's mostly dried up). Some people wean their babies off the breast by replacing one breast feeding every few days with a bottle or cup of milk. I tried that and had no success, it just confused my son because sometimes he got the breast and sometimes he didn't. Doctor said cold turkey was the way to go and that did work best for me. Good luck.

Hi J.,

I don't know about the weaning part - I'm still nursing and not ready to give it up yet.

As far as the feeding, my daughter is one month older than yours, is just cutting her third tooth, and has had no problems eating small bites of cheese, chicken, broccoli, green beans, olives, banana, toast, etc. I just cut what I make for dinner really small for her, and she is good at trying most anything - if she doesn't like it, she'll spit it out and I'll try again later. So far, so good - and I've had no problems with choking. She also loves the toddler foods that Gerber has - raviolis, mashed potatoes, apple bits, crackers, etc.

My daughter tries to use a spoon now, but still needs lots of practice!

I hope this helps a little - just try different foods that are cut in little bites - you'll be surprised how well she'll feed herself.

I can't offer any advice on the breastfeeding because we stopped that long ago, however I do have a 12 month old. As far as eating regular food, your daughter should have no problem at this age. We stopped the jars of baby food at like 6 or 7 months. Just start out small. My son eats just about everything we eat, just don't season it too much, and cut it up into bite size pieces. I do suggest feeding things that she can feed herself. My son doesnt like to be fed by us, but if he can do it himself, he will eat anything! Cubes of chicken, toast, scrambled eggs, corn, green beans, bananas, and mandarin oranges seem to get the best responses. Good luck with your little girl! Take care...

hi J.,
I was told that you start weaning the baby off slowly. The first feeding to stop giving is the one right before bed. To replace it with a bottle of water. Also, I would check with your pediatrician to see what's best recommendation for weaning (every baby is different). Is there a La Leche League or breastfeeding support group in your area you can contact as well for suggestions?

Here a site that may be helpful:
http://www.parentingweb.com/lounge/dw_wean.htm

Good luck!

I think she wants to feed herself. At this age my son loved bananas, soft cooked broccoli, also the toddler staple of chicken nuggets,in very small pieces as long as she has some teeth. Small pieces of avacado are also a great source of good fat. My son also went through refusing to be fed and from what I've heard this is normal. Try something new everyday, you never know what she'll like!
Good Luck.

J.,

I weaned my son at 13 months from breastfeeding. He was eating so much solid food by that time that I got him down to just nursing 2 times a day and then finally just before bedtime. I would try and start out by cutting down the amount of times a day you nurse. Since your daughter isn't yet a year old I would give her a snack, some water in a sippy or maybe some diluted juice instead of nursing. Once she is a year you can give her whole milk instead of nursing. This seemed to work for my son and eventually he didn't even want to nurse anymore. The few times that he did want to nurse I would just distract him with something else. If you have your daughter on a sippy cup do not give her a bottle. I would just give her milk or whatever she is drinking in the cup.

If you are nursing her quite a few times a day it may be painful to cut down to only one or two times a day. I would start now and slowly cut out one or two nursing sessions a day and continue to do this every week. I couldn't do it at first because my breasts got so engorged that I woke my son up in the middle of the night to nurse it was so bad. Another thing that works to dry up your milk while you're doing this is cold cabbage leaves in your bra. It sounds strange, but for some reason it causes your milk to dry up.

Good Luck!

Steamed veggies and soft fruits are good choices, also finely shredded meats. I'm not sure about the weaning but I will say that at a year kids are old enough to be eating table foods and drinking whole milk. Also, once she starts eating solids regularly don't worry too much about whether or not she's eating the "right" things. I know that probably sounds horrible but it's true. Small children can be incredibly picky, it's their way of exerting control over their environment and all th new smells and textures can be overwhelming. As long as you are offering a variety of healthy items at meal times, make sure to include one thing you know she likes, let her pick what ever she wants from her plate. Don't force her to eat things, and give her seconds of anything she chooses.

I agree with Holly B. When I weaned my son it took me about 5 weeks by taking 1 feeding away per day. He hated cows milk so I just made sure we kept plenty of yogurt, cottage cheese & cheese on hand for his dairy intake. I am also a full time child care provider and all of my little ones are on table food by one and they feed themselves. Sometimes its messy (applesauce, yogurt) but they gradually learn how to work the spoon. Try steamed veggies with your daughter (peas, green beans, & carrots make great finger foods). Cooking chicken dishes in a crock pot makes the chicken extra soft...perfect for beginners. Best of luck in your weaning process.

Hi, J.--

My son turns one on February 1st, so I'm right there with you! He has refused to be fed for some time now and while I can occasionally sneak in some baked sweet potato or mashed potato, he pretty much will only eat what he can feed himself. For breakfast this morning, he had black beans (from a can...rinse them off first...you could cook your own and freeze them, too), dried apricot, and puffed rice cereal. At lunch time, I give him deli meat or sausage (from a local butcher who uses high-quality ingredients and no preservatives), with more dried fruit or chopped up fresh apples or pears and some whole grain bread. Dinner time he eats whatever we're eating, chopped up into tiny bite-sized pieces (he sits right next to me so I can watch and make sure he's not eating too fast--he sometimes squirrels away a bunch of food in his mouth and doesn't swallow)...he eats broccoli, green beans, chicken, pork chops, steak...anything I can cut into small pieces. My daughter, who's almost four, like Larabars...they're a super-tasty snack bar...and I give him small pieces of that whenever she's having one. I also try to keep a snack stash of dried fruit and cereal in the car for the two of them. I have been trying to introduce cheese, but so far he's not interested. With all due respect to Holly B (who clearly knows a lot about infant nutrition and has given you much excellent advice), fruit juice is not necessarily a good thing. Real fruit is better as it contains fiber and isn't such a concentration of sweetness. Also, getting children accustomed to drinking water primarily is a healthy habit for life.

As far as weaning...I started weaning my daughter when she was 13 months old and she completely weaned off the breast a month later...however we'd substituted binkies and bottles and she is only just now weaning from the binky. Honestly, if I had to do it over again, I would have waited to wean her 'til she was ready. I regretted not having that sweet relationship with her or the "instant fix" of bringing her to breast whenever she had an "owie" or emotional upset (both of those will become more frequent in the next year, as she learns to walk, run, and climb and also learns about "mine" and "no"). You might try continue to nurse for naps and bedtime and just wean your daughter off breastfeeding during the day (do this by distracting her with an activity she enjoys whenever she asks to nurse) and see how you feel about it after a month or so. You might find that being able to still breastfeed helps you as a parent. I hope to continue to nurse my son for at least another year...that's what the World Health Organization recommends and I don't feel like either of us are ready to give up the relationship yet.

Best of luck with everything!
C.

I weaned my little guy shortly after he turned one last November. The process for us was happy and painless! I started giving him Pediasure mixed w/ whole milk in a bottle, but if your little one is on a sippy cup that would probably work fine, mine goes between both with no issues. Anyway, he didn't like whole milk plain so I just used the Pediasure to sweeten it up as well and add some extra nutrition. His doc reccomended both to help him gain weight. I cut out one of his usual breastfeeding times every day or so and stopped feeding at night and gave him a bottle instead of breastfeeding in the same setting as the normal. I think it was only a week or so and he wouldn't even take the breast anymore. I was a little sad we didn't have that bond, but glad to not be a milk machine anymore.

Watch out for engorgement which you can ease by pumping a little bit once a day and ice cold green cabbage in the bra. You keep the cabbage either frozen or in the fridge, crush it a little, stick it in your bra and change when it becomes wilted. It also helps stop milk production which is why this method is not reccomended at the beginning of breast feeding.

1. When my oldest daughter was a year old I only nursed her in the morning and at night. Whenever she wanted to nurse during the day I would give her something else to do, eat or drink. After a month of that I started giving her a bath in the morning instead of nursing but I continued to nurse her at night. Night time was the challenge until my husband’s shift changed. Once he started working days he would lay down with our daughter at night and read to her. Then he would put her to bed. This worked great for us. It also gave my husband another chance to bond with our daughter. Weaning takes time so be patient.
2. Our youngest daughter (12 months old) was sick with the stomach flu about three weeks ago. She refuses to eat the same foods she was eating before she got sick. I don’t know why. Maybe she connects the food with the flu. Who knows. Anyway, we have changed her diet to the Diced fruits and Veggies (Gerber Graduates), Pasta Pick-ups, Chopped Bananas, Cheerios, Puffs and Wagon Wheels. We also give her little pieces of meat. Our daughter has a mouth full of teeth including molars. If your little one has less teeth make sure you cut up the diced food into smaller pieces.

I would have to say just inturduse her to the sippy cup during the night. Just make sure it is spill proff. Ans be consistant.Or another thing you can try is rocking her at night and just lett her cry back tto sleep. It's not going to hurt her but it will keep the house hold up for a coulpe days. it will take up to three days for your breastmilk to dry up. Just to let you know they will hurt really bad. Hot showers seemed to help.Iv'e been through it three times.

My daughter had lots of teeth at 12 months, so what you give her may depend on how many teeth your daughter has. She ate pasta with tomato sauce, steamed broccoli (just make sure it's almost mushy), rice, little bits of deli meat like turkey and bologna. All those things (minus the pasta) she could hand feed. My daughter loves bananas and the nutrigrain waffles, as well as the Gerber cereal, Life cereal, and Cheerios. She could probably feed herself cheese as well.

As far as the weening, I did it much sooner (6 months), but I would cut out a nursing session for a couple days to a week, then cut out another one until you are finally down to one. Then slowly phase that out. Taking it slowly won't be so hard on your daughter, and it won't be quite as painful for you! (I had to wear tight sports bras for a couple days when I finally opted to quit completely.)

Hope that helps!

I'm not sure about the weaning. My daughter weaned herself when I went back to work. MY little one just turned 1 and has been feeding herself table food since her 9mo checkup. She has adapted very well. we started out with pasta, cut up chicken, ground beef, corn, peas etc. Gerber has some "pasta pickups" that she has loved from the start. they are not too messy. They're ravioli stuffed w/chicken, carrots...etc. To start we just cut them in 1/2 until she got the hang of it. We found she ate alot more when feeding herself than she did with us feeding her. Just watch out you don't season anything too heavy.
Hope this is helpfull.