Weaning?? Help, please!

[juliasdad]

Howdy, all-

My wife's having a big problem, and I'm afraid I don't understand all of the issues.

Julia's 9 months, and was still being nursed about 4 times/day in addition to 3 meals of solid foods.

We just returned from a week's vacation; Julia was left with her aunt, who bottle-fed using frozen EBM. Carolyn (DW) pumped 3x/day during the trip to try to keep her supply up.

Now, on our return, she has all kinds of problems nursing. Mostly, Julia will try, but DW doesn't let down easily. Then Julia gets frustrated and cries, and even bites a bit.

We don't have a problem with her being weaned at this point, but Carolyn wants Julia to be weaned gradually from her. I think the "cold-turkey" approach is painful for her, both physically and emotionally, and it's harder to accept when it's obvious that Julia is willing to try.

Ideas???

Thanks,

-dan

[August Mom]

Wow. That's a tough way to return from vacation. I have no suggestions on the weaning itself, but as far as letdown, perhaps Carolyn could pump a bit before feeding Julia to encourage letdown. Once the milk is there, then she can put Julia to the breast and, hopefully, Julia won't get as frustrated and will eat her meal. Good luck.

[JulieL]

I weaned DS at 9 months. I took away one feeding a week till the weaning was complete. You can wean faster than that if you want, but I had the time so I figured why rush things. DS practically weaned himself. At 8 months he was starting to get really difficult to BF. It didn't matter where I was, in a dark room w/music, in the living room with the t.v. blaring he just didn't have the patience for it anymore. So I took that as my key and weaned him. I know this doesn't exactly help you out but I hope it gives you a little idea of how it can be done. Exspressing should help your wife and give her some relief. Do try the BFing in the dark or alone w/music. I have heard this can be very helpful.

[spu]

Sounds like Julie might be going through a temporary nursing strike. This can happen for any number of reasons and usually does not mean the baby wants to wean. Perhaps since she was bottle-fed for a little while, she got used to the rapid flow of milk, and now that she's back on the breast, she's getting frustrated that she has to work for the millk. It's all very normal, and usually resolves itself with patience and a little persistence.

Have Carolyn continue to try and nurse as usual, particularly at night when the baby is tired. Nursing strikes can last a few days or even a week. I've read that the nighttime sessions - esp. when sleeping in bed with mom (even if your baby isn't used to nursing at night) will help resolve a nursing strike quickly.

LLL is a great resource for issues like these, esp. since it's coinciding with Carolyn's readiness to begin weaning (and not wanting to go cold turkey). See if there's a group in your area that you can call for advice. They can help with technique, and also coping since this can be tough for everyone involved, esp. if the baby is getting frustrated and hungry.

I hope things go smooth for you all in a few days.

susan

twin girls 7.20.02
charlotte & else

[egoldber]

It does sound like she is getting frustrated. If you are still using the bottle, you may want to switch to a slower nipple so that it isn't as easy for her to get milk that way. That may encourage her to nurse.

If you are reluctant to go to LLL, you may also want to see if a local hospital has a breastfeeding mom support group. The hospital that I dleivered at has one. It was open to any nursing mom to come in and asked questions of the hospital LCs and there were often moms with older babies there asking questions about weaning and other issues.

Best of luck!

[stillplayswithbarbies]

Here is a link to some information about nursing strikes:

http://www.kellymom.com/bf/concerns/back-to-breast.html

At the bottom are links to other resources as well, if you don't find that one helpful.

...Karen
Jacob Nathaniel 2/27/91
Logan Elizabeth 3/25/03

[Melanie]

Sounds like baby really enjoyed the speed of the bottle and is getting lazy (sorry! I hate that word) and doesn't want to wait/work for mommy's milk. The only way to help with that is NO bottles at all. Maybe mommy can drink some mother's milk tea to help up her supply again.