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How long to breastfeed??

post #1 of 21
5/30/01 at 8:18pm
Thread Starter 
I am nursing my 7 month old daughter and see no reason to stop any time soon. my question is though--what is a "good" age to wean them? I have heard everything from 3 months on up. My MIL gripes to no end about it saying that I am going to make her deformed and have problems with her mouth. Of course I do not believe that but I would like some other opinions. I believe that the Acadamy of Pediactrics recemmends til at least a year. My dh and I believe that it is ok until after a year--maybe up to 1 1/2 or so...
How long did you nurse????
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post #2 of 21
5/31/01 at 3:12am
HI,

my daughter is 18 mo and stills nurses to go to sleep, when she wakes up and when she's frustrated or cranky.

I have been thinking of weaning her soon. But she thinks otherwise.

I hate when people look at you crazy and give negative comments, like your STILL breastfeeding. Like it is any of their business.

Good fo you for wanting to give your baby the best.

Enjoy the baby. They grow up way to fast.
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post #3 of 21
5/31/01 at 9:51am
I nursed Morgan until she was about 20 months old and weaned herself. Kailyn is still nursing at 11 months and shows no signs of slowing.

Just remind yourself that you're doing the absolute best thing for your child and that your MIL is from a generation that was taught that formula was just as good.

Hurray for you for being so strong in your convictions!
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post #4 of 21
5/31/01 at 12:03pm
I nursed Bray until he was 8 months. I woke up one morning and he wanted nothing to do with the breast. i took him to the dr who said he was just weaning himself. I kept up his night feedings until about a yr though.
We were discussing breastfeeding in lamaze class when I took it 6 years ago. The majority of the group planned on nursing until one year. Our lamaze teacher told us a story, though, of an incident she witnessed. Her 5 yr old son was playing soccer when one of his teammates came running off the field. He said, "Mommy, mommy, I am thirsty." So, mom lifted her shirt and proceeded to breastfeed her 5 year old. To me, that seems alittle extreme. Just my opinion, though.
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post #5 of 21
5/31/01 at 1:10pm
Hi Jen! It sounds like you are doing a great job! I am currently nursing my 3rd child & I let them nurse until they weaned themselves as well. Both of my boys weaned themselves at 10 and 10 1/2mo. I fully planned on nursing them until at least a year old but they had other plans. It is completely up to you, but i would think that breastfeeding until at least a year old would be best. Just like if your child was on formula and taking a bottle. But i think that it is great that some moms nurse much longer. I think that it is so beneficial to the child that the longer, the better! I do have to agree with Stacey though. 5 years old is a little much! I can't even imagine my 5 years old nursing! As in your MIL saying that your baby's mouth will get deformed...I am sorry but i just had to laugh! I have never heard of such a thing! Babies who drink from bottles, yes, but i have never seen a breastfed baby have his front teeth pulled from them decaying or thier teeth sticking out. These are all common to bottlefed babies. Who knows though. Maybe Ann, our breastfeeding expert has an idea on this one!
Keep up the good work. Your baby is still young and as long as you don't mind continueing to breastfeed then i say "you go girl!"
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post #6 of 21
5/31/01 at 1:33pm
Thread Starter 
Thanks so much for the info. (More like moral support!!!)
Hailey does take the bottle some now and seems to be wanting it a little bit more than before. We had to put her on a bottle in the beginning since we moved 600 miles when she was 2 weeks old. I still mainly nursed her even then but we needed to be able to drive for longer amounts of time.
She sleeps from about 9 pm to about 5 am (YAY!) and as long as I nurse her she will go back to sleep for a few hours. She has her nights where she does not sleep well but my dh has a solution for that! (Hailey is his only baby so he spoils her like you would not believe!) he wakes up on her first cry and brings her to our bed for the "all night buffet". I think it is cute even though I sometimes wonder if he would be doing it if HE were the one feeding her!!!
I also had a situation where I thought enough is enough... When Cori was a few months old we went to McDonalds on the Navy base where we lived. Well, a little boy was eating a happy meal and then leaned over to his mom. She had no problem with just whipping it out right then and there. I feel that if a child can eat a cheeseburger then they are a little too big for the breast!! Maybe it is just me!
Thanks so much!!!
Krista---I agree with you. I laugh at the MIL too. She is just uneducated to this. She even continues to tell me that she fed her oldest (of 4 boys) phenobarbitol because he had stomach problems as an infant! I'm like----think about that for a minute. It ust blows my mind!!!
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post #7 of 21
5/31/01 at 2:16pm
I am with everybody else on this one, it's a personal decsion, and I think that your MIL should mind her own business when it comes to you and your daughter breastfeeding. I breastfed all 4 of my children until they were ready to wean them selves, all of them were weaned by 14 months. That being the latest and 10 months being the earliest. I think that when they start eating solid food it's a good time to start to cut back on breastfeeding. But again it's a personal decsion. Good luck to you and your daughter. Maybe you should think about getting your MIL a book about breastfeeding??
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post #8 of 21
5/31/01 at 2:47pm
Thread Starter 
Liz--
I have taken her many mags and books on the matter but she refuses to look at them. She says that they are just written by Dr.'s that want to publish their opinion. I have even sent her links to web sites (she is literally addicted to her computer) but she feels the same about them. We have learned to just ignore her and bite our tongue around her. I tried arguing the cause but to no avail.
I am defiantly going to continue up until a year (or a little longer) as long as Hailey agrees!!
I just feel fortunate that my dh supports it!
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post #9 of 21
5/31/01 at 4:13pm
Hey Jen~ Just email her this email page i just found:
www.fda.gov/fdac/features/895_brstfeed.html

In the article it covers about everything; including how long the FDA recommends nursing, how nursing promotes GOOD JAW DEVELOPEMENT and how human milk contains @ least 100 ingredients not found in formula. Maybe if she sees it on the www and that the FDA recommends it then maybe she will stop bothering you about it!LOL!
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post #10 of 21
5/31/01 at 4:30pm
Thread Starter 

Awesome find!!

Thanks for that site!! I just read it and must say that it is perfect! It was even beneficial for my personal use. I had been wondering what medications to use when sick. I feel comfortable with the FDA's list!!
Now we shall see if the email gets deleted without being read or if she actually reads it.
TY TY TY
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post #11 of 21
5/31/01 at 5:07pm
YOU ARE VERY WELCOME!
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post #12 of 21
7/11/01 at 4:24am

STILL NURSING MY 5 MONTH OLD

I AM REALLY HAPPY TO STILL BE NURSING MY FIVE
MONTH OLD, HE GOT WEIGHED TODAY AND HE NOW
WEIGHS 20 POUNDS AND IS 27 INCHED LONG. He is going to be a tall guy.
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post #13 of 21
7/11/01 at 12:28pm
WTG Angie! Sounds like you are doing a fantastic job at breastfeeding!

Jennifer,
Any luck with the battle with your MIL?
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post #14 of 21
7/19/01 at 7:08pm
I just wanted to add that the World Health Organization ( WHO) recommends breastfeeding until the age of 2. You could also tell you MIL that even though babies get less milk after the first year they still receive the benefits of mmunities!!
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post #15 of 21
9/1/01 at 1:47pm
I was going to ask the same question. I think a child will wean themself when they are ready, but I have known people that have nursed their kids until they started schoool, and I think that is a little much.

I believe that each baby and each mom is different, so it varies. But if you can, and the baby wants to, I say go for it!
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post #16 of 21
9/11/01 at 8:25pm

I was wondering the same thing:)

I was wondering the same thing. My daughter is 4 months old she is breastfed. I was wanting to go at least a year, I would be perfectly fine with it even at 2 years (but that would be around the time for weaning for me I think) She wont take a bottle so I hope she doesnt decide to wean herself... I would just hope if she did she could take a cup well. I do worry about what others will think though if I went passed a year. I know It shouldnt matter, and it dosent really, but I dont like when peole give me 'surprised' and 'doubtful' looks ya know? I think It's great that you want to breast feed for a long time, and dont listen to what your MIL says, she is so full of it.

Ashley & Conrad 8/1/94
Kaylee 3/22/96
Emile 5/1/01
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post #17 of 21
9/11/01 at 10:43pm
I just bought Emily the cutest t-shirt from www.nursingkidz.com that says YES! I am still nursing!!! LOL! I thought that it was too cute.......not trying to promote them or anything, but they do have some cute tees for breastfed babies. I am going to get another one that says Got Mom's milk?
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post #18 of 21
9/12/01 at 9:39pm
With my three it had really depended on the baby. My first self weaned at 10 months, she had the tummy bug and would vomit after nursing, turned her right off the idea, I tried again after she was welll but she wanted nothing to do with it.

#2 I weaned at 14 months, she had herself down to just night time by then and weaned with no problem

#3 wouldn't touch solids at all, no cereal NOTHING, until 10½ months old he was still nursing 6 times a day then, but I weaned him at 15½ months just because we were on a bunch of field trips with my daughters classes and I just didn't have the time nor place to nurse and he never seemed to notice or miss it, so I just let it go.


I hope to nurse this on about that long too.

Smiles
Denise
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post #19 of 21
9/20/01 at 6:24pm
i am still nursing at 20 months. dh thinks it is time to give it up but andrew and i are going strong
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post #20 of 21
9/20/01 at 7:02pm
Good for you Lori!!
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post #21 of 21
10/4/01 at 3:15pm
I wanted to breastfeed until Logan was about 1 to 1 1/2 but he weaned himself at about 6 months. That is from regular feedings. At 8 months he weaned himself from all that was left, the morning feeding. It might have helped if I would have been able to be home with him rather than pumping at work. Now I am running into him not wanting his bottle. He would rather have a sippy cup. He is to busy to sit and drink his bottle or to nurse.
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