Breastfeeding Beyond 12 Months

[kitten2b]

my mum couldn't breastfeed (medication related) and thus I always expected not to be able to breastfeed. So to get to 2 and 3 years and nearly 2 years so far with Leon is amazing, something I never expected to happen, I was lucky that I had great midwives in the NBIC unit to help me with the girls.

[Rowellen]

Audax - yep! It's funny how perspective changes over time and with our own experiences.

I tried putting DD to bed later as Teeki said. It still took her over an hour to go to sleep but tonight she was happy, no excessive side swapping, no tanty when I refused to accept having my nipple pinched. So much more pleasant. She has only just gone to sleep (at 8.50 ) but it was much better. Cute moment - she stopped feeding looked up at me with the sweetest smile and said "nice!" while nodding her head. It makes it seem like the difficult morning I had (almost) never happened.

[Rosey]

I sometimes find, as an "extended" breast feeder, that its hard for me to appreciate others' achievements. It was really hard for my SIL to make it to 6 months BFing, and I remember silently thinking "is that all?" Even though I know that at 2 weeks, 4 weeks seems massive, and at 4 weeks, 12 weeks seems amazing, and at 12 weeks 12 months is incredible. But retrospectively, it seems so easy.

Anyone else find that?

Yes I do feel like that but I quickly remind myself it wasn't easy and of those times I would cry from exhaustion telling myself I would make myself get to 6months.

Buffy - boo to boob strike, but yahoo for the little break! Hope your DD's teeth come through.

[briggsy's girl]

I remember when I started out my only aim was to make sure d&d got colostrum. After that it was a bonus. Then I set mini goals to get me through the hard parts. 6 months seemed like a huge time when I was only a few very painful days in. So it was days then weeks. At six months I decided a year was doable. At 12 months I figured whatever happened, happened... And that's how I see it now. But when I talk to people about to start out I only ever say take it day by day. If you look too far ahead it's too big and overwhelming


Have my 12yo niece here so dd went to bed later. She dragged r up to the bedroom to get ready, had cuddles then order r out of the room so "mum and me can get comfy for booby". Kinda needed that connection. I don't exist when her cousins visit! Lol

[luna moth]

When DD1 wants to solo-feed (ie without her sister) she says "have lie down milk" It's mostly sweet and a little bit heartbreaking. And annoying, as its prime twiddling time.

[Barb Glare]

Breastfeeding your toddler - Practical Parenting Magazine - Yahoo!7 Lifestyle

Mention toddlers and breastfeeding and the now-famous image of American mum Jamie Lynne Grumet breastfeeding her three-year-old son on the cover of Time magazine is often brought up. The cover sparked much controversy. Is he too old? Is breastfeeding a toddler all for the mother? Can he be getting anything nutritious?

Breastfeeding into toddlerhood is not as uncommon as you may think. The 2010 Australian National Infant Feeding Survey showed
18 per cent of children aged 13 to 18 months, and
7 per cent of children aged between 19 and 24 months were still being breastfeed.

And the Australian Breastfeeding Association says that
450ml of breastmilk a day can provide 29 per cent of a toddler's daily energy needs,
43 per cent of his protein requirement,
75 per cent of his vitamin A needs, and
60 per cent of his vitamin C needs.
Breastfeeding into toddlerhood is not always planned

Mums who breastfeed their children past their first birthday often don’t set out to do so but find it evolves naturally, as it did for mother-of-three Victoria Pollock, who breastfed her second child, Caitlin, until she was nearly two, and her third child, James, until he was two-and-a-half. “I was pleasantly surprised at how easy it was to continue, even while working.”

If breastfeeding works for you, there are lots of great reasons to keep it up. “There are ongoing immune, nutritional and emotional benefits to the child for as long as he breastfeeds,” says Renee Kam, from the Australian Breastfeeding Association. “Even after children stop breastfeeding, lower infection rates have been identified among children who are breastfed for a longer verses a shorter duration.”

Emotionally, breastfeeding is a great leveller, too. “As children grow older, breastfeeding becomes less about food and more a way of connecting with their mum,” explains Renee.

To cap it all off, there are health advantages to breastfeeding your toddler for you as well: women who breastfeed for more than two years have half the risk of breast cancer as women who breastfeed for six months, according to researchers at the Yale University School of Medicine and Yale Cancer Center in the US.

Making it work

Just as mothering your child into toddlerhood enters a whole new dimension of language development and play, so too, does breastfeeding – so be prepared! “I’ve noticed a definite change in the breastfeeding dynamic with Merrilina since she passed the one-year mark,” says mum-of-one Bryony Hesson. “She’s been ‘acrobatic’ feeding for months, but recently has started combining breastfeeding with whatever little game she may be playing.”

How and when you choose to breastfeed your toddler is entirely up to you, which is good news if you’re a working mother. “Generally, toddlers can go without breastfeeding for many hours, provided they have other healthy drinks and snacks provided and are content,” says Renee. And your breasts will adapt to provide enough milk to allow you to breastfeed as much as you like.

Coping with criticism

For some mothers, it’s the thought of how other people might react that can put them off breastfeeding their babies into toddlerhood. And unfortunately, many mums who breastfeed their toddlers do notice a few more raised eyebrows, even from family and close friends.

“I’ve received a lot of looks from people all through Daphne’s breastfeeding life,” says Charleen Warburton, who breastfed her two-year-old daughter until she was 19 months and is due to give birth to bub number two in April. “Daphne’s always had a lot of hair and people thought she was older than she was. I just learned to ignore them.”

Clinical psychologist Dr Maya Griffiths agrees with the approach of ignoring any looks and quiet comments that aren’t said directly to you. But if someone comes up to you to give their opinion? “People often make critical remarks even if they are naive about the topic at hand, so it can be helpful to remember this as it is easier to brush off negative comments. Therefore, ignoring any glances or quiet comments may be all that’s necessary,” Dr Griffiths says.

A common criticism of mothers feeding older children is that they’re doing it for their own benefit. Dr Griffiths says that this couldn’t be further from the truth. “You can’t force an infant or toddler to breastfeed, so it’s rarely about the mother,” she says. “Again, a lot of this criticism comes from people being misinformed.”

What kids think!
We asked five breastfeeding toddlers what they think Mum’s breastmilk tastes like and these were their answers:
1. Honey
2. Hugging
3. White chocolate
4. “Just boobie milk”
5. Chocolate and strawberry

Breastfeeding manners

Lactation consultant and psychiatric nurse Brooke Higgs gives her five top tips for teaching toddlers to breastfeed on your terms:

1. Like any strategy for managing a toddler’s behaviour, consistency is important. If you don’t want your toddler breastfeeding at the supermarket, then don’t breastfeed
him on some trips but not others.

2. Introduce the concept of waiting: “Mummy will give you your milk when we get to the car”. Toddlers don’t often like having to wait, but if you are consistent in your approach
your child will catch on. Make sure you do breastfeed when you get to the car or home or wherever you have promised at the end of the waiting period so your tot knows you say what you mean!

3. Find something special that your toddler loves to play with and use this to distract him from wanting to breastfeed at times you’re not happy with. Hide it when you don’t need it or it will lose its effectiveness very quickly. Something portable that you can hide in your handbag is helpful.

4. If you don’t want to breastfeed your toddler while out and about, have a special chair at home (or nanna’s, or a certain friend’s place) where this is the only place that your toddler is breastfed.

5. For boobie grabbers, try wearing clothing where your toddler cannot easily access the breast. Say calmly, “You can have a breastfeed when we get home,” while moving your child’s hand away from your breast. As your toddler gets older he may even learn what colour bra or certain clothing item means “no boobie”!

[Jellyfish]

My perspective has definitely changed but not really in terms of others experiences more like when DD1 was DD2s age (14mo) it felt like a big deal to still be feeding but with DD2 it seems weird to think she wouldnt still be feeding lol.

[blessedatlast]

Just subbing I am 18 months expressing, nearly 14 months breast feeding.. DS will be having hernia surgery in the next couple of months so that is my next goal.. I want to BF him til after his recovery then once again I'll re assess.. I think he'd be easy to wean, I left him for the first time overnight last weekend and Mum gave him EBM in a bottle, as well as cows milk (I hadn't pumped enough for 2 bottles) and he was perfectly fine.. DS is not a comfort feeder, not a nipple twiddler and will ONLY feed from my right side, but he does stick his hand down my top for comfort.. It's sooo cute

[sloane]

just joining dd only turned 1 ystery so I'm getting in early!!

I found with my ds that I actually enjoyed bf more after he turned 1. I found the feeds more relaxing because we actually stopped for a while and my very active toddler just chilled out and I could spend time just letting my mind wander.

[Heaven]

Great thread! I fed DD1 to 3.5yrs (18 months tandem feeding). Now feeding DD2 who is 2 yrs. I have cut down to 2 feeds a day now (nap time and bed time) because I figure that's enough for me at this age and I was also trying to get my cycle back to normal. Otherwise I imagine she would still be feeding a lot! We also night weaned at about 18 months I think, maybe a bit before, and so now she mostly sleeps through thank God. So everything going great here and I'm hoping for her to self-wean whenever she's ready just like her big sister did. I don't see it anywhere in our near future though

My perspective has definitely changed but not really in terms of others experiences more like when DD1 was DD2s age (14mo) it felt like a big deal to still be feeding but with DD2 it seems weird to think she wouldnt still be feeding lol.

LOL, I was just thinking this the other day. When DD1 was 2 I was thinking she was so big and it was a big deal to still be feeding her and everyone probably thought I was a weirdo. But after feeding a 3.5yr old it had never crossed my mind that feeding DD2 might be seen as strange now. She is still so little and of course she would be BFing! lol.

[~Hestia~]

So have been invited to an interstate wedding, no partners or kids...unsure whether I should enquire about bringing Buster or just to leave it. We can't all go due to cost and I really can't go without him seeing he is still feeding.

[phebee]

Well you're going to have to ask I think. They need to realise that babies need their boobies, wedding or not. I'd put it simply as that you'd love to go but if you can't take Buster you won't be able to.

[Teeki]

Have they specifically said no babies? I didn't include babies on my wedding invitations, there just wasn't enough room for them. Anyone who asked and needed to bring and feed them, that was fine. Same with SIL, DD wasn't on the invitation but we asked and she went.

If they haven't specifically said, I'd just give them a call.

[~Hestia~]

Oh I forgot I wrote that She has said that they want to keep it small hence no one's partner or family are invited. So I feel bad putting her in the position if that makes sense. No point assuming though I guess, will have to bite the bullet and ask!

[Teeki]

Yeah I did think the no partner part too was strange. If you had enough money I'd say all go over and just take breaks to be with Buster. Otherwise I'd be skipping it unfortunately.

[starangelk]

Hi ladies, what a great thread! My son is 18 months and I am bfing him once a day, before I put him down at night. He doesn't seem in a hurry to wean and I'm happy to let him feed for as long as he likes. My problem is that I am beginning to doubt that I've got much milk. My boobs are so tiny they are almost inverted and he really squeezes them when he's feeding. I know that for older kids the bf's become more about attachment with Mummy rather than milk but I'm getting paranoid and I don't want my milk drying up to be the reason he stops feeding. I know I could do fenugreek etc etc but just not sure if that's the right thing to do when it's only one feed per day. Has anyone else felt like this too?

[Ladylove]

I'm small in the bust too but I've not had problems. DD still feeds 3-4 times in 24 hours though.

Has anyone had this as a problem once their bubs seriously cut back on a couple of feeds- if DD has skipped a feed or gone longer between feeds - usually because I've forgotten to offer and she's not asked- when she does later feed she often throws it back up. Actually I don't know if the vomit is actually due to this but I had a theory that my milk by then has built up thus has a strong flow, she hasn't fed in a while so guzzles it down and it's too much too soon for her. Or maybe it's not related to bf at all... She goes through phases lately where she seems to be miss chuck-a-lot.

[Barb Glare]

Strangelk, you’ve answered your own question. The system is working perfectly. At 18mnths you are not meant to be going around with huge watermelons on your chest. Your boobs are working great - providing just what your son needs. If he wants more milk - he knows how to achieve that, feed more often. Despite popular belief milk doesn’t “just dry up” As long as you feed you make milk. But you only have to make what that one little boy needs - not enough for the whole neighborhood. Relax and enjoy!