Breastfeeding after 12 months

Hi I fully B/F 1st DD for only 6 weeks, comp to 3 months, tried everything to stimulate milk production but all too no avail, I just had no milk, once I started the bottle feeds she settled immediately and no longer screamed in hunger. She didn't want my milk anymore, I felt like such a failure.
My 2nd DD i fully B/F for 5 months and comped for a further two, again my milk just seemed to dry up over night, again I tried everything but again nothing worked. And again she chose the bottle.
3rd DD I successfully fully B/F for 15 months and she finally gave it away by 18 months.
4th DD I fully feed her for 9 months then she started biting me, drawing blood on many occassions with those sharp little toothy pegs, I couldn't take it anymore, so at 10 1/2 months she was on the cup. And I fell pregnant with #5. lol.
#5 DS hopefully will be breastfed up and over 12 months. I look forward to breastfeeding, I enjoy that time with my babies.

Edited my post erased an opinion and just left the facts.
:p
Dee

Im editing my post to say that I cant get Jaykob of bf lol

Sometimes I guess its more in the child hands :/

Hes almost 17 months old & i can remember saying i was only going to bf for 6 weeks, then it was 6 months then i said til 12 months lol

here i am, still going..

Hi Girls, it looks like I`m joining you all, Matthew is now just over 12 months and still breastfeeding quite happily.

When he was 11 months he became quite fussy and only wanted a bf once maybe twice a day, I thought he was weaning himself but at the same time he was also teething, all his molars came through plus another 2 teeth so no wonder he was out of sorts, then suddenly he got back into the swing of things and wanted a bf 2 - 3 times a day, he has had a viral infection in the last week and has been feeding about 4 times a day, poor Mummy is full of milk again.

Take Care

Dee

im still going - i thought eliana would have self weaned by now as she cut right back to one feed a day at 12 months - she is now 18months & usually just has a feed in the morning though the last few weeks she has been asking for boobie around lunchtime & sometimes again at bedtime!

Yep - I'm still going - not sure how I feel about it. Its just easier I guess. But I have packed away almost all the bottles and feedings stuff. Just left out one bottle and my breastpump, so its going to be lots harder to express and feed if that needs to happen. Hopefully if I have to be away from her for a night she will take a sippy cup of cows milk. Its still all in the too hard basket for me. I know I will get terrible, terrible sore boobies when I finally drop one of these feeds. I can't be bothered!!

I too am bf my dd and she is also a real booby girl! But have always thought that I'd like to have her weaned off it around 2ish.
We plan on having another baby so it would be nice if she were completely weaned off by then. Might make it easier on me by the time the next one comes along.
Although not sure of how to go about it without causing too much upset on her behalf!
Any ideas would be appreciated heaps.
She hasn't had booby exclusively as I wasn't able to 'supply' enough for her and she was dropping weight. So we do bottlefeed as well.
But she always finishes on the bb and seems to settle off to sleep there too. So I'm really afraid of disturbing this routine and am afraid too that it will take a lot longer to get her off to sleep.
Will I need to replace bb with something else? I dont want to start her on the dummy since she has never had it and I dont want her to start this habit just to have to break that one later on!

Ideas please?

:help:

Woo Hoo - I get to join this club :dance:

If anyone had said to me in the first few weeks of Maggie's life that I would still be breastfeeding at 12 months, I would not have beleived them, she was so close to having to be formula fed. Looking at her now, I doubt I will ever be able to get her off.

I'll be in here soon girls!! Emma's just over 11 months old now & we are still b/f. I am very happy with our journey, and feel very good about making it this far. I have just cut out the middle of the day feed, only because we would like to TTC #2 7 I still don't have AF. Hopefully that will be enough.

I remember reading this thread when Emma was a newborn & 12 months sounded SO old! LOL. But she is still my baby & doesn't seem old at all. I think we'll probably keep going until around 18 months? But I guess I won't know until we get there. Ideally I'd love to fall p/g & then see what happens...

I breastfed #1 until he self weaned at between 14 and 15 months. At the time felt devastated and rejected as I'd hoped to do 2 years, but now I'm satisfied that he went as long as he needed to. #2 will be 15 months this month and shows no signs of wanting to wean, so I'm not sure how long I'll breastfeed her for.

Hindonly, how often does your little girl feed? And how old old is she now?

Whoohoooo time to join this club!!! Sammy and I have a fantastic b/feeding relationship. He is starting to squirm and move around alot though. It so sweet when hes getting snuggly and I ask him if he wants booboo and he giggles and cuddles in like its the best treat ever!!!

Hiddonly I only ever replaced bb with a big girl cup and drink of water at bedtime after the girls had weaned. No fuss or drama at all.

Jo

I'm gonna be in here soon too... OMG, after my first experience of feeding maddy for 7 days I never imagined I'd be able to breastfeed, but to feed Indah as well as being back at work since mid Jan, I am SO proud of my achievements...
Indah is now only wnating booby when she wakes in the morning & after her bath at night, but will have a quick thirst quenching drink during the day on weekends if she wants it & if she falls over or hurts herself she tries to dig boobies out!!!
She has cows milk in a sippy cup during the day & is happy & healthy!!!

Only 15 days to go til I have made it to 1 year!!!!!

man I am stoked!!!!

Ooh I just found this thread too!

Coleman is now 14months and still breastfed - whether I like it or not! :) He is such a boob man, and a mummy's boy, loves his cuddles and has refused to drink EBM from a bottle since he was abot 4months old so we just muddled our way through (even though I was at uni full time and on teaching rounds - sometimes had to dash home early with dripping boobs!)

I cant see him weaning any time soon and dont really see a need to be honest - he is fed twice a day, first thing in the morning and before bed at night, and if he wakes during the night he sometimes wants a quick suck to calm him down to go back to sleep. He is asthmatic too and I find when he is having an attack breastfeeding calms him and his breathing down enough to use his ventolin spacer, otherwise it scares him too much.

Anywway, thats us!

I'm stoked to have been able to get so far too. Kynan is now just over 15 months and still has 2-3 feeds each day even though I am PG again. Any changes haven't bothered him at all. He is such a booby boy! He has started signing 'milk' recently too and he just gets SO excited about booby time.

I had 5 children and breastfed most of them until they were 3 years old. The oldest pretty much refused anything but the breast until he was 12 months old. He was the chubbiest of all my babies. I used to get a few unfavourable comments but I assured people that I'm sure he would be over it before he was a teenager! He stopped at aged 3 when I was pregnant with my next child. He's now 21 years old and very healthy. I understand it can be difficult for women who have to work in jobs that don't support breastfeeding and expressing is not as effective as a baby's suck. If you do need to express it is important to express as frequently as you would feed or your milk supply will decrease and there is an increased chance of engorgement and developing mastitis

Yay - i get to join this club too!!!!!!! I'm b/f Ella first thing in the morn and in the afternoon. Am currently TTC #2 so we'll see if this affects the feeding. Am not in a hurry to stop with the b/f...which is funny for me as i expected i'd feed til 12months max. Would like to continue til the end of the year if all goes well :D

I fed Noah until he was 20 months old when I was recommended to stop as I needed to have dental surgery...

Tehya is still going very strong atm and she is 18 months old. I have no plan on when we will stop. It's all up to her.

Big pats on the backs girls on being so persistant in feeding our bubby's for so long. The trials and tribulations we may have came across. More power to us :)

I feed DD till she was 2 and plan on feeding DS for as long as he wants. He is only 8 months atm but still going strong.

I am still breastfeeding Charlotte and she is 18 months old. I am working full-time but I still manage to feed her in the morning and before bed. We are both still enjoying it so it will go on for as long as Charlotte wants to.

Its so fantastic...seems like there are so many of us!!! I b/fed my girls til 18 months but felt like that was sooo unusual...its great its becoming more and more common.

Jo

I was so sad when Jack self-weaned at 14 months. I am now convinced it was due to me being pg again and I think my milk just dried up. I was surprised to conceive again as I was losing weight with bfing and I thought my body wouldn't support it. But I think intead, once I was about 3 months pg, my body decided to nourish bub rather than toddler.

I still feel sad that Jack didn't get to feed for longer, but I also feel proud that I fed for as long as I did. I got through a terrible first week where tongue-tied bub couldn't attach at all (and screamed with hunger), then fed with nipple shields for a further 3 weeks during which time I had mastitis twice, cracked nipples and almost every other cause of pain possible. Things improved after the tongue-tie was snipped but I still had intermittent bouts of pain. I also returned to work initially full time, then 4 days a week when Jack was 7 months and not yet taking solids, but I managed to avoid formula by going to feed him at lunch times and expressing twice a day (I was blessed with a very good milk supply).

I might also say that I fed through a lot of pressure to wean Jack once I was pg again, but lasted another couple of months until the milk went and Jack decided he was ready to stop. But I am definitely hoping this one feeds longer than 14 months!

Hi everyone, yep I am doing it, but am tired. If I weren't preg I would keep going til age 2 minimum. But am thinming of weaning him before bub comes in December
A

Morv & Melanie...
It's so hard once we return to work full time, but it makes me feel better for having to leave Indah 5 days a week to be able to walk in the door & she wants my milk & knows she can have it....
I also had a good supply & could get 200+ml per expressing session 2-3 times a day...

I am so stoked that second time around I have breastfed, let alone a whole year (well in 2 wks!)

I agree Tracey. So much nicer to have that special "booby time" with them after being apart. I'm so glad I kept bfing after returning to work. I suspect that more women would if they knew that some of us have done it successfully.

Hi A - you would be tired!!! I really admire the mums who are growing a new baby and are still nourishing another. It must really take it's toll on your body. You should all be very proud of yourselves - and when the time comes to wean just remember what a terrific gift you have given to your child :hug: I'm currently TTC #2 and am hoping to be able to bf til the end of the year- so you ladies are an inspiration :)
I'm really excited to be apart of this thread!

With my daughter (first bub) breastfeeding was a real hurdle to say the least. I was convinced that I would breastfeed (didn't really even factor in bottlefeeding) but it turned out to be the most difficult thing I have ever endured (both emotionally and physically). I persisted and after 10 weeks of toe curling pain and dreading her waking for a feed it gradually got better (slowly!). I then went on to feed her until she
was 14 months, even after going back to work 3 day per week when she was 5 months old and only then stopped because she wasn't really interested any more. It was a sad day to end it all, especially after the rough start that still brings tears to my eyes as I write about it.

I am now breastfeeding my 5 month old son and plan to do so until he doesn't want to any more. Again the start was rough. Again I sat in tears as I fed him - but knew I could do it (although I did have real doubt at times).

I just wish that more information was out there before you have bub to really prepare you for the ups and downs. I went to breastfeeding class before my daughter was born and after the first time round thought the second time may have been easier (it was a little, but not much). Nobody said about how much it could hurt - all the information says it shouldn't if you are doing it right. I went to midwives and lactation consultants who all agreed that everything seemed OK - but it HURT and took perseverance and determination. Starting breastfeeding is the hardest thing I have done in my life, but I am very proud of being so damn stubborn and not giving up. I am also proud that I went on to get to 14 months.

I am glad that others think like me and feed their babies 12months plus. So many people are surprised that I fed my daughter until 14 months and intend on doing so with my son.

Congratualations all who do what is best for their children and stand up against the stigma (for want of a better word) of breastfeeding for longer than what is perceived a baby.

Sim, good on you hun. Funny how when you are shown things about bfing how happy anc comfortable the mum is feeding her brand new baby. Perhaps they should say, you nkow what, yes it is going ot hurt or be uncomfortable for a couple of weeks. BUT, it truely is worth all of the pain. Abit like childbirth really :)

What a great post Sim. I completely agree. There really is not enough information out there. Its not like we all chat about breastfeeding and the expectations of it. I think its great though that so many of us are breastfeeding longer and that it is becoming more normal to do so...it breaks down walls so to speak.

I also had very sore bbs in the first few weeks despite correct attachment. I think that is very normal. Any ongoing contact on bbs that are not used to it no doubt causes tenderness. I didnt like being told that i mustnt be doing it right if its hurting (one midwife said this) when I could see that she was and that she was gulping and putting on substantial weight.

I think this site is great because its women supporting women doing what women naturally are able to do.

Jo

i thinks its great so many of us are Bfing. I went back to work PT when Jordan was 3 months old and was expressing up until 2 weeks ago. He is still have 2 feeds from me when I am at work and 3 when I am home.
A lot of the people at work think its abnormal I would want to continue feeding him, they think I should just have bottle fed him.
I guess until you are BFing you dont realise what a lovely thing it really is. I never thought I would enjoy it as much as I do and I would like to continue Bfing until Jordan decides he doesnt want it. I know I will be devasted when he does stop though

Thanks so much for sharing that with us Sim - if only more people had the same determination as you...well done!

Tracey - good on you for continuing the feeding whilst working as well. It really is great to see that there are woman who are b/f past 12 months. It's a wonderful and very rewarding achievement.

I'm starting to fear that my b/f time with Ella is coming to an end. She really is loosing interest and is beginning to fuss at the 2 times a day i feed her. The morn feed is ok but the afternoon is almost impossible to keep her on. I'm beginning to think i actually might be pg (well hope so cause at least i'll have an explanation for Ella's lack of interest).

Hi Girls,

I breastfed my DD until she was almost 16 months. The only reason we stopped is because I had to stay in hospital for a few days following the loss of our second baby (fell prg with #2 when DD was 12 months and continued to breastfeed) and I was just in too much physical (due to complications) and emotional pain to continue, it was just getting too hard.

I am very proud for getting as far as I could but sometimes the circumstances of her weaning are a little upsetting.

I'd like to breastfeed for even longer next time if I can manage it!

9 months and going strong!!

I can now post in here & say I HAVE made it past 12 months!!!!!

YAY to you and Indah, Tracey. Well done sweety.
Are you up for another 12 ? ;)

Trish if she wants toi keep feeding in mornings & before bed I'll happily continue for as long as she wishes!!!
So yep... But I hope to be preg within next 6ish months!!!

Well done Tracey!!! I hope I'm in here with you next week! :)

I'm in!!!! Yippee!!!

It seems pretty quiet in here....who else is in here?

YAY Linda, you have made it to 12 months !!!

I'm still here, although I rarely post in here. Should make the effort I guess.

Tehya is still going strong on the booby at 19 months. Not sure when we will wean. I am leaving it up to her.

Thanks Trish! :)

That's great - how often does she feed? Also - how long did it take you to get AF back? I'm still waiting...

I got Af at about 7 months & I was feeding still 5 times a day...
Now Indah will wake around 7ish & if she is grizzly will wnat booby, but like today she saw her cup of milk that I was preparing for her bag to go to my Mum's & she pointed saying 'dink' so I gave her the cup of milk instead & she had that this morning, bt she always has boob before bed & that's susu (milk in Indonesian).
She has a bath with Maddy or shower with me or Dh & then goes on potty, get dried & dressed & then crawls to me saying choo choo, then tries to lift up my top!!! It's very cute!!!
I let her lead me, NI still love feeding her too!

CONGRAT's on making it to 12 mths!!!!

Congrats Linda!

We're still in here too @ 2 BF a day. AF arrived for me just after Kynan was 11 months old. I think he was down to 4 feeds a day then (but none overnight).