I'm still breast feeding Lucas and although I always said I'd stop at a year this time, he clearly has other ideas.

Does anyone think this is strange or 'not on', breast feeding beyond a year old?

I bf my daughter for the first 14 months and then managed to wean her quite easily. But Lucas is still on 4-5 feeds a day. (He has had a couple of colds one after the other which seems to have put him back) But he doesn't seem to want to give up the boobie any time soon.

Now I really don't have a problem with feeding him but there have been a couple of things recently that have got me thinking that other people may not be so like minded.

So as it says in the title, I'd really like your honest opinions please x

I don't think I have ever seen someone feeding a baby that age, although I know of those that have, and I don't think I would *think* anything of it if that makes sense

If he is happy and you are happy...sod anyone who isn't..its not their baby or their boob!

Thanks Lisa!

I really am interested in what people think. There have been quite a few views but not replies and I can only take that as those peeps don't want to say what they think. But honestly I won't be offended...I just want to know how different people view this x

Well i don't think it is strange beyone a year, but there does come a time probs for me around 18 months when i would find it a bit uncomfortable to watch/or do myself. With my first DD i fed until 7 months, and then with Isla i finished the week of her first birthday. However, i'm not sure if i would have stopped exactly then if it wasn't for the fact that we were going away for a couple of weekends, so it gave me a deadline. I have to say i was starting to find Isla a bit too old to feed, although part of me didn't want to let go either, and past about 9 months i wanted to feed her in private.

I do have a friend who still feeds her 3 year old, and i really can't imagine still having that kind of relationship with my nearly 3 year old DD.

x x x

I dont think i would think too much of it. If hes big enough to walk up to you, unbutton your shirt and bra and help himself....probably too big. But hes still only a wee man and if he is comfy and you are feck em

honestly ,,,,, i applaud you for breast feeding ,,, i wish i had at least tried with one of mine
all i can think of though is watching my cousin bfeeding her little one when he was 2 years old or maybe a bit younger and i found that quite disturbing
also the breastfeeding programme on the other week is still very fresh in my mind which i found very wrong indeed

not much of a reply sorry x

marioandthestuntbubs wrote:

I dont think i would think too much of it. If hes big enough to walk up to you, unbutton your shirt and bra and help himself....probably too big. But hes still only a wee man and if he is comfy and you are feck em

that is exactly how I think...when they can go get it themselves its maybe a bit bizarre! Still not wrong, just would be strange to see that happen cos you don't think of them as babies at that point

I agree with Mario, Lucas is still little enough I think x

Hun

If you are happy and Lucas is happy it doesn't matter what other people think hun.

LOL! I still BF Maky! Ppl got a problem with that..they can lick my Pygmy Israelites!

Lol Jen!! Thanks ladies! x

My next issue is how the friggin hell do I get him to stop!

I breast fed him because of the benefit to him, in the goodness of my milk, and as his dad has type 1 diabetes and by bf'ing he has less chance (apparently) of becoming diabetic. But also, from my pov, breast cancer runs in my family (both sides, unfortunately) and it is said that bf'ing can help protect against it...and some other cancers. So win win situ, but he really doesn't seem to want to give up the boobie yet and I'm a little worried he's going to go through a hard time when I do say, that's it boy o! x

jenshayne wrote:

LOL! I still BF Maky! Ppl got a problem with that..they can lick my Pygmy Israelites!

LOl Jen!!

I BF Bethany until she was 15 months old although for the last few months of that she was only having one feed before bedtime.

I would say go one for as long as both you and Lucas are happy.

With Bethany I made the decision to stop, she had her last feed on a Wednesday I think it was, so on the Thursday I never offered it and she was fine, no fuss or anything so I guess she didn't really need it.

xx

my neighbour still feeds her wee guy, shes got him down to 2 feeds a day. he will be 2 in december! i can not see anything wrong with it burger what any one else thinks, u do it for ur self if u wanna wean bubs x

I dont find it odd at all! I could only do it for 8wks cos of Caitlins milk allergy, I dont know when i would have given up otherwise. I think I had a limit of 6mths in my head but at the same time I think you should do what suits you and what suits YOUR baby. The World Health Organisation recommend BF for the first 2 years anyway. Its only an issue here because alot of people think BF is a taboo/embarrasing thing which is silly.

I too have watched extreme BF before and yup I was a bit shocked at the primary age children doing it. I dont know what age the shock factor sets in but... def not 1-2!!!

My OH type 1 diabetic too. That was a big reason for me doing it. Its fantastic you kept it up so long. However not to disappoint I saw consultant recently who said that if Caitlin develops type 1 diabetes its in her genes. Iv been trying to give her a low sugar diet, my mum even worrying about her getting too much fruit pots etc. He said that nothing I do or dont do will change it and not to blame myself if it happens. He wasnt talking about BF though... I just mean I understand the concerns there.

No advice on stopping BF as Caitlin was so young, sorry! x

Thanks Snoop. No I know there is still every chance my kids will still get Diabetes but I feel it's my duty to do all I can to try to prevent it. If it still happens I won't blame myself, I know it's one of those things. Until we know more about it there's little else we can do x

Diabetes is genetic, but can be brought on by triggers and stressors. Like a horrible flu or some traumatic event that occurs. BF can prevent a lot of illnesses and diseases but cannot stop it completely. Madisyn was breast fed til 2 and she developed it not long after. If you want to check on occasion, its pretty easy to do without having to poke their finger, put some cotton balls inside their diapers at night..and collect them in the morning. You can test the urine on the keytone test strips you can buy without a Rx at the pharmacy. Do this every few months if you are concerned. I have checked Makynlee this way a few times..just to put my mind at ease. xxx

thats a tip of the day jen ,, i would never have even thought about putting cotton wool in nappy in order to get urine sample x x

I think that a mother knows what is best for her children so you shouldn't care what other people think.

X

I don't see a problem with you still BF - I did until Libby was just over 13 months BUT if you do leave it longer it will become very difficult to get him to stop. I was lucky in that Libby kind of weaned herself off me, in the end she was only having one feed in the morning and I knew she wasn't getting alot so just gave her a cup of squash instead (she wouldn't have milk or water) and she was fine.

I do have a friend with a little girl the same age as Libby and she is still BF, she wants to stop but unfortunately the little girl has other ideas, she asks for 'mummy milk', and uses it to get to sleep still, my friend is finding it very difficult to stop.

With regards to getting Lucas to stop, how about cutting out one feed at a time - maybe by offering him a yogurt instead?

Good luck hun - and only stop because YOU want to not because of what other people say xxx

I dont hink its wierd either xx

I think it's lovely
We stopped completely at about 1y+a couple of weeks. It was a natural progression, he was getting more fussy / less satisfied / no sleeping as well - we phased in bottles slowly then made the swap over. I think it was the morning feed we kept until the end - as he was still sleepy and it worked best.

We used hipp organic formula for the transition - I didn't want to swap straight from breast to cows milk - with TT closer to nature bottles. It was maybe about 10/11 months that instead of his mid-morning feed I gave him a bottle, then a couple of weeks later tried him before bed, then his mid-aft feed and lastly his morning one. It wasn't that long on bottles (2/3 months?) before we changed to using a cup with a regular straw (cut down a bit shorter) for day time milk drinks, then did this for bedtime drink too.

In terms of the benefits of breastfeeding I'd have hazarded a guess in thinking you've pretty much covered that and although it helps reduce risks / percentages of things I wouldn't have thought that BFing a certain amount of time would increase those (if that makes any sense!)

Well done you (and little one) on getting to 1yr though - you'll know yourself when it feels right and natural to start to progression to stopping xx

Thanks for your support ladies. I will be guided by Lucas whilst also trying to cut him down on his feeds, if that makes sense.

Susan, I was trying to cut out a feed during the day before he got ill, but he's got to the stage now that even after I've given him something else, he'll get grumpy and miserable until he gets the boobie!! But I'll keep trying.

Jen, the OH got some Keytone strips today for himself and I said 'ooo I can test Lucas' to which he responded, 'humpf if he's got keytones then he's in real danger, be better to check his blood'.

Again ladies....thanks x

The tests can detect even trace amounts of keytones, poking the finger is painful for a little one. They start exhibiting signs long before..like constant thirst..pee'ing..miserable all the time.
Which usually describes most kids! LOL

i fed leo till 13ish months and oliver till 12, i honestly dont think a few more months would have made a difference at all, your doing really well

once they got over 9months ish i didnt feed in public though as id have been worried about the comments and looks but if i saw someone feeding a baby/toddler personally i wouldnt think anything of it.

ps well done you xx

hopadom wrote:

Thanks for your support ladies. I will be guided by Lucas whilst also trying to cut him down on his feeds, if that makes sense.

Susan, I was trying to cut out a feed during the day before he got ill, but he's got to the stage now that even after I've given him something else, he'll get grumpy and miserable until he gets the boobie!! But I'll keep trying.

Jen, the OH got some Keytone strips today for himself and I said 'ooo I can test Lucas' to which he responded, 'humpf if he's got keytones then he's in real danger, be better to check his blood'.

Again ladies....thanks x

Not neccesarily mate. Your OH may be worrying if ketones show up hes got whats called diabetic ketoacidosis which WOULD be a real danger and hes right would show up loads of ketones but Jen is right - a)you would notice changes like thirst, pethargy and irritability before then and B)you can get lower levels of ketones without being acidotic so if you wanna test every now and again would be better to use a urine test and only do a finger prick if you had real concerns re a change in health as finger pricks hurt for just a check over

Theres a good site here with info on the genetic component: http://www.diabeticlive.com/diabetes-101/is-diabetes-genetic/ just if you are interested

Sorry didnt mean to threadjack. Back to your OT the only thing id say on weaning is make sure hes totally well and happy. I had a mare with C and bottles recently and gave up and im not even trying again til i can be sure theres no teeth on the march, colds, coughs, bugs or anything else bugging her before i try again. Im aiming for her 21st bd

Gemz i do assume you mean 12 months for Leo or a) you are lying about his age and b) you were on telly recently