breast feeding

[Kimmi23]

Need help to stop breast feeding by February 2016 advice needed

[CultureSucksDownWords]

That's quite a long time away. How old is your baby/child now?

[Kimmi23]

She is just over 5 months I wanted to do it over a period of time to get use not breast feeding and also to give her time to get use to it also.

[CultureSucksDownWords]

Presumably you mean changing to bottle feeding expressed milk or formula because you're returning to work or similar?

Your baby will be about 10 months in February, yes? So you don't necessarily have to stop breastfeeding if you don't want to. Of course it depends on what you'll be doing in Feb. If it's a 9 to 5 type thing you can breastfeed as usual in the mornings and evening, and give bottles (or sippy cups) in the daytime (expressed milk or formula) in whatever childcare setting you're using.

[Kimmi23]

Yes she will be around ten months but o would like to completely stop as I have another child and it takes quite a bit of my time up. I have bought a electric pump but I can only get one bottle a day which would never be enough for one day.

[moggle]

It shouldn't take up as much time by 10 months- at 5m my DD was feeding probably 6 times during the day and maybe 1-2 at night for up to 20 mins each time it was very time consuming! Now it's 3 mins after waking up and 5 mins before bed and maybe a quick couple of minutes when she wakes in the night. But not all babies are like this...
DD also happily took formula from 8m and now is mix fed- she has a small bottle in the afternoons at nursery as I couldn't be bothered to restart pumping again after stopping at 6m, and she has a bottle after BF before bed.

I would think, wait til nearer the time to try and come up with a plan, if she's still feeding a LOT at say 8 or 9 months. Still gives you plenty of time if she's not naturally cut down by then.

[CultureSucksDownWords]

It sounds then like you should be swapping a breastfeed for formula, so that by 10 months all of the feeds are formula. If you leave about 2 weeks before swapping the next feed to formula, your supply should adjust gradually so that you don't get mastitis.

[Eminybob]

I know all babies are different but I managed to switch from breast to formula almost cold turkey at around 8/9 months.

I started by switching the bed time bottle to formula for a couple of weeks, then all the day time feeds in one go. I planned to go cold turkey at this stage but my breasts were too painful so I continued to breast feed for night wakings and this seemed ease the pressure just enough.

Then he stopped waking in the night so I wasn't breast feeding at all. And it was fine, I didn't have any issues at that stage at all.

I don't think DS would have actually noticed or cared if I had just done a straight swap, he wasn't phased. But he had been taking expressed milk from a bottle occasionally since about 8 weeks and had no issue switching between the two.

[Kimmi23]

At the minute she's breast fed and has food she's absolutely loves her food too. She has food before every breast feed. I have no feeds during the night as she sleeps right through. I have tried to give her formula abut she really doesn't like it at all. She won't take to a bottle either just pushes it out.

[CultureSucksDownWords]

Maybe a sippy cup might work better then, when she's able to sit up in a high chair without slumping she might be ok with drinking from a cup. I'm not sure what else to suggest if she really won't have a bottle. Presumably you've tried some different teats/bottles? Also, different temperatures?

[Kimmi23]

Just bought a new bottle and milk she seemed to like it. Hopefully she will stay on it now thanks for all the advice x