How many have or are "Extended/Sustained breastfeeding past 12 months" on BB?

[Willow]

I fed DD until 16 months. I was prg with #2 and that sadly ended in m/c at 12 weeks. I was devastated and felt like my b'feeding may have had something to do with our loss (I know now that's not true but I was just feeling sooooo bad at the time that I wasn't thinking rationally) I ended up back in hospital the week after my D&C with some mysterious 'infection' that no one ever really diagnosed and while I was in hospital I stopped feeding DD. It was just too much for me being so ill. I still feel immensely sad (and sometimes guilty) about the way our b'feeding ended Back then I thought 16 months was a fantastic effort (and yes, it is) no one I knew had ever fed that long. But then I discovered BB and the 2 year 'benchmark'.

I am still feeding DS1, he was 2 last month. He fed all through my pregnancy even though I'm sure for a long while I didn't actually have any milk. It was amazing to me. He was happy so we just kept going. We are now tandem feeding with his brother I had it in my head that I wanted to get to 2, now that we're here, I have no intention of stopping just yet. He hasn't had night feeds since 10 months and now only has one feed a day before his nap. He is fine though if I am not around to feed him. I think 3 would be my absolute cut off point, he will be going to preschool then and for me, that's long enough.

DS2 is 4 months and going well after a bit of a rocky start My plan is to get to at least 2 and by then I may be ready to wean. I will have been feeding for the better part of 7 years (I think) by then

[Kazmar]

I fed Annabelle till she was 15months. She weaned herself. Wanted it less and less until not at all within about a month
Ill feed Lucy the same amount of time, if not a bit longer I never knew how natural it would feel and I wish every woman had my same experience with bfing.

Where we live has the lowest stats for bfing,I think I read in Victoria! So thats really very sad

[Ca Plane Pour Moi]

I fed Liebling for about 16 months. By the end, he was just playing about so we were both glad to give up. He just didn't want to sit/lie still for a feed. I was aiming to feed until about 2-3, just because the idea of me feeding a walking, talking baby was freaking my family out. But feeding a child I was sending to a nursery school wasn't going down too well with me (school starts just after age 3 in the UK).

As for sleep - we had another issue here; DS was intolerant of dairy. He wasn't feeding overnight from ~10m (his choice: he'd just have a very quick sip then want to play, so I stopped offering and he wasn't fussed). When we switched from cow to goat for his dairy, he slept through.

We co-slept initially: DS had his moses basket then cot to start the night, then into bed when he woke. We still co-sleep now if DS wants to come into our bed.

[Mildez]

I fed DD1 for 2yrs6months and weaned her due to family pressure. With DD2 I weaned her at 2yrs due to not been able to concieve again and have regretted it so so much. Stupid Drs said they wouldn't consider me even ttc whilst she was BF except I knew I was definately ovulating and having regular cycles. Almost 12months on I am still no closer to having another baby so I feel I weaned my gorgeous DD for no reason at all except for the sake of my medical notes. Part of me feels sad that I did wean both my DD's.

[~Kim~]

Despite a tough start, DD fed until 17 months. Initially I was just aiming for another day at a time, but then 12 months.

I remember her last date and time of feed and didn't realise it would be the last.

Like so many others I had much external feedback about what I should be doing, and I have a feeling it impacted, but ultimatley DD weaned herself.

The Little Guy is still going strong with what feels like a million feeds a day, so I doubt he'll give up anytime soon, but seeing as he's my last....I'm not fussed.

Great thread Leash.

[Acacia]

We just hit 12 months BF a couple of days ago - I am so proud and I recently posted a big proud congratulations thread to myself and DD and a big thank you to all the ladies in the BF threads that have helped us through our 12 months! We've had our share of challenges, including pretty full-on oversupply at the start and the way in which that affected DD (wind/colic/lactose overload) contributed quite a lot to my PND, but...

I have no plan to stop at all - I want DD to wean when she is ready.

However, I was really worried about having to wean her a couple of months back, as DH and I are starting to get into gear to TTC #2 - and this is most likely going to involve more AC/IVF. I was under the impression that I wouldn't be allowed to go through more AC/IVF if DD was still breastfeeding and it made me feel really torn. But... I contacted my FS back in Australia and she told me that for I wouldn't need to wean at all which I was sooooo happy about! We have 3 little embryos waiting for us, and as I got AF back regularly exactly 28 days after my lochia stopped, I don't need to wean to encourage AF back (the only happy reason for having got it back so soon after birth!), and as we will be doing natural cycles with our embryos, I don't have to worry about breastfeeding and HRT! I was so very happy to hear this.

DD is feeding about 4-5 times a day (if she's well and not waking up at night), including one feed at night (a dreamfeed before I go to bed, which we have done for so long I can't remember when I started it - probably around 4 months old) She feeds first thing in the morning, recently stopped having a mid-morning feed, though if I offer she will still have some. Another feed in the afternoon, and a very short, very bouncy/burning-off-energy feed before bath and bed. All of her feeds are very short now and she doesn't have much, and I've had to start feeding her in her dark room in her sleeping bag in the morning when she wakes up otherwise she won't take more than a couple of swallows. I need to encourage her to keep having enough as she won't drink much water and you can tell she needs more fluid as her nappies suffer and she gets a little bit dehydrated - this is also why I'm still offering her a dreamfeed and always offering a feed if she wakes up at night.

I don't know how much longer DD will continue to feed for - I hope for a long time! But as I'm in new territory, I'm not sure if she's showing signs of getting a little bit sick of BB - but she might turn around and surprise me and be really into it again. For now, she does like to have her BBs, but not for very long, and sometimes she will basically refuse unless we are in a dark quiet environment

Happy that we are still going, and will fell blessed for as long as she continues to want to BF

I'm really enjoying reading about everyone's BF journeys and I look forward to reading more.

Great thread, Leasha. Thanks!

[Kmn]

We're at 21 months, and i'm encouraging less feeding - still anywhere from 2 to 4 a day though.

[MrsB26]

We have just reached 12 months. DS still feeds 3 times per day and usually once at night, sometimes twice if i'm lazy and cant be bothered to pat him and such to get back to sleep - my milk seems like it has tranquilizers in it, i love that it ssends him straight back to la la land!

We co slept for 6 months then he went into a cot in his own room. DH and i needed 'our' bed back.

When i first had ds i honestly didnt have any goal in mind. I knew i wanted to try to breastfeed and i read lots about it and spoke to my friends about their experiences and i asked like a million questions. I have only 1 friend IRL who has feed beyond 12 months and she has been wonderful support and everytime i see her now she still pats me on the back for going so well

Once i got to 6 weeks i was stoked. Then by 12 weeks it has stopped being super painful and was getting to be quite a nice experience, then from there its just been the norm.

I'm hoping to make it to 2 years. But its really up to DS now as to what he wants to do as if he decided to finish then i really cant force it on him (or can i lol??)

I'd also love to tandem feed if it was possible. I still havent had AF return yet but hey - anything is possible!

[turtleschell]

Hey I intend to bf till 2 yrs, but I want to start trying for a new child when DD is 12 months old.. How can you get pregnant when you are BFing? And can you still BF whilst pregnant??

[Heaven]

Kelly- with the cosleeping pictures you saw did you mean mum had her arm under bubs head?? I hear lots of ppl say this is how they sleep but I never do, I get a dead arm! lol. And you'd think it would hurt their neck! Obviously not. I have my arm straight out and DD is sort of under my arm, down the bed a bit (mouth in line with boob of course, lol).

[Shanti]

Great thread!!

We are fast approaching our goal of breastfeeding for 12 mths!! So thrilled and so proud of DD and I.

We feed to sleep here and plan on doing that for as long as DD needs it because it's easier and it's nice and natural

Look forward to posting in this thread when we reach 12mths! Yeah!! Our next goal is 18mths. Then who knows....!

Well done to all you girls still going past 12mths!

[BellyBelly]

You sure can... people tandem feed too. But also some women (like me) find their milk dries up during pregnancy too. Every woman has different hormone levels and some get their cycle back very quickly, some don't so it's impossible to tell when you'll ovulate again. Obviously it happens two weeks (approx) before your period. So if you get a period, you can start charting or using OPK's etc.

[Willow]

mistyschell - I've fallen prg twice whilst b'feeding. The first pregnancy sadly ended in m/c at 12 weeks so I can't say how that would have gone.

The second time I continued to feed my son who was 12 months when I fell prg again (even though I suspect during the second and third trimesters there wasn't much milk at all) until his brother was born. We are now tandem feeding

[BellyBelly]

Nope the arm under the mothers head, like a v shape... elbow out, hand behind head at pillow level.

[Winter]

I was planning on bf past 12 months but if DD bites me ONE MORE TIME she's not going to go much further than 9 months!!

[Willow]

Nope the arm under the mothers head, like a v shape... elbow out, hand behind head at pillow level.

We don't co-sleep (DS2 is in his cot next to our bed) but I feed in bed and then pop him back in his cot and that's how I feed in bed too.

[thepixie]

17 months on Saturday and still completely obsessed with the noo-noos.... *sigh* she sticks her hands down my top and actually helps herself, it's embarassing in public!

[Shanti]

I was planning on bf past 12 months but if DD bites me ONE MORE TIME she's not going to go much further than 9 months!!

OMG it KILLS doesn't it?? DD bit me so hard today that she left 4 teeth marks in my nipple and they stayed there for agges!!!! I was so upset with her and took her 'booby' away from her!! It bloody hurts.... she's a biter big time....