I just went with the flow.
My first goal was 4 months and I was going to wean due to returning to work. That came and went, I was not ready to give up and neither was DS so we worked around my returning to work.
My next goal was 12 months, that came and went too and again, neither DS or myself wanted to give up so we kept going.
I started gently weaning a couple of weeks before DS 2nd birthday and he must of been ready as he just stopped all together a few days after that.
I am really happy we got as far as we did, I miss b'feeding my beautiful boy so much, but have so many wonderful b'feeding memories
I find my goal keeps changing all the time. At the moment, I am just happy to go with the flow and let DS feed for as long as he wants. Ultimately, I would love to make it to 2 years. Like you said, it seems to be getting easier the older they get because there are less feeds. We have had a sudden drop from 7-8 feeds per day to 4-5 feeds and it's so easy. I could imagine feeding forever like this, it's easy and he feeds around the same time each day. Apart from the health benefits we all know about, for me it's convenient, and I love feeding him so can't imagine weaning anytime soon.
Good luck with your decision.
I was the same as you, one moment could see myself doing it for a long time, the next feeling like I am ready to wean and then the next just a bit longer....etc
DS weaned himself at 13 months. Right about the time i got pregnant - we figured this out afterwards. He just stopped. Would scream the house down if i tried to offer it, so I thought he must be off it for teething or something, so I thought I would let him tell me when he wanted again. He never did, never nuzzled or anything.
The month before I was talking to my MCHN who is also an LC about the possibility of weaning as I had returned to work and it would be more convenient, a work colleague was making my life difficult blah blah blah. I hadn't made a decision, just wanted to discuss it. She started off by making sure I was aware that the WHO guidelines suggest 2+ years and that I wouldn't make the decision based on work colleague (hell no, that would make me want to keep it up much longer!!). She then went on to ask me if he ever sucks for comfort, or would fall asleep at the breast. He never had, he was always all business, get on, feed, get off. She told me that in her experience babies that don't suck for comfort in any way and eat solids well usually self-wean by about 15 months. That was only another few months away and that made me feel good about continuing. I just mention it because it was something I wasn't aware of and I wonder if it is a)true and b)helpful to mothers thinking of weaning their baby earlier. I also wonder if it is the babies that don't suck for comfort that have mothers that think about weaning earlier, because the bond is all about nutrition for little one, not comforting snuggles? In fact, I have just started this as a new thread here!!
The WHO recommendation is to bf for a minimum of 2 years, so my goal each time was 2 years. I didn't make it either time - DS1 self-weaned at 14months when I was 4 1/2 months pg, and DS2 self-weaned at 21 months - so close!!
I don't think you need to decide now. It's ok to go with the flow and see what suits you at the time. GL!
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