11.5mo DS refusing milk (formula/cows) and i want to wean off the breast - any ideas?

[FlowerBee]

I really want to wean my lovely baby boy off the breast, as although i have loved BF, i've just got to the point where i really want to stop. My supply is dwindling, he favours one side (and that nipple is sore with all his teeth now) and i just want to get my body/mind back.... I feel a little sad about it though.

We co-sleep, and he still BFs in the night (usually midnight and 4am, sometimes more) and has 3-4 BFs feeds in the day (6-7am, 10am, 3pm, 8pm) and eats 3/4 solid meals, and has water in a sippy cup.

If we are at home he will only go to sleep off the breast, otherwise i have to put him in the car seat and drive or put him in the pram and go for a walk to get him to sleep.

He is currently refusing either cows or formula milk from the bottle or by any other cups/beakers and i'm worried i wont be able to wean him off the breast. 5 nights ago he took 5fl oz of formula in the bottle for a night feed then snuggled to sleep (and missed his midnight BF!) and i though BINGO!, but ever since he's taken less and less and now he literally batts the bottle away and roots around for my breast.

Does anyone have a similar experience with a positive outcome? Any advice?

[hugeleyoutnumbered]

you could try expressing for a while and give it to dc in a cup beaker and introduce cows milk into it gradually?

having said that my two olderest ds 5 and 6 wouldn't take any other milk except bm, and it did them no harm, lots of cheese yoghurt fromage frais etc, ds3 nearly 9 months and we are working on weaning as i have to go bk to work, but will feed him about 4am at breakfast and about 3pm

[RitaMorgan]

My 10.5 month old is exactly the same - he's been away from me overnight twice recently and refused all milk each time

I've started just not breastfeeding from first thing til after lunch. Mid-morning when he would have had a breastfeed I have offered milk in a cup - started 3.5 weeks ago. Only in the last couple of days has he actually drunk any, and today he had about 50 ml which was amazing! I experimented with a few different things and have had success with cow's milk mixed 50/50 with hot water, plus a bit of sugar (I am going to drop the sugar when I can).

[FlowerBee]

He has taken formula before for the 8pm feed when his Gran/Aunty/Nanny has looked after him on the 5 or so occasions i have gone out! I know i know i haven't been out much!

Also, i don't have much of a supply now and i don't think i would be able to express anything .

[itsastrawpoll]

Cold turkey?

He's almost 12 months. My eldest started refusing bottles at 11.5 months which I figured was close enough to 12 months to not worry too much about milk intake and just made sure she had plenty of yogurts and dairy.

In your shoes, I would just go cold turkey.

[KD0706]

I'd worry about cold turkey as given how many feeds he's having a day I would have thought it won't be great for your boobs.

You say you don't have much of a supply. Do you think he's just sucking for comfort then and not getting much milk? I wonder whether you could try to drop the breast feeds one at a time, I think one a week is recommended. And replace with a snack or a distraction, or if he's feeding to sleep for naps take him out in the buggy to get him to sleep.

As far as the nutrition thing goes, my understanding is that so long as he has a good diet and has plenty cheese and yoghurt (and cows milk in cereal if he'll take that?) then it's fine if all he drinks is water from his sippy cup

[mrsravelstein]

it took me til 13 months to get my younger 2dc off the breast, but when i finally managed it, it was with goats milk rather than cows milk. they are now 3 and 17 months and neither of them will drink cows milk at all. might be worth a try!

[beanlet]

No one needs to drink cows milk ever. The Japanese don't - they think we're weird and smell funny. If he doesn't want to drink cows milk or formula, don't make him. Just give him water to drink and plenty of cheese, yoghurt, etc for calcium.

[FlowerBee]

It's likely ill try soon to drop the day feeds one at a time and replace them with, ... well, nothing, i'll just feed him more solids and offer more water in a sippy cup.

It just feels strange not to give a baby milk. Even though he eats plenty of yoghurts and some cheese etc for calcium.

I also don't want to completely remove the idea of 'suckling' for 'comfort' (esp as the MMR jab and more teething are round the corner) and this is why really i'd like him to take milk from the bottle.