Self weaning at 15 months?

[RachelG]

Sorry if this question has been asked a million times before, but I wondered what sort of age babies wean themselves off the breast.

DS is 15 months. I returned to work when he was 8 months old, but carried on expressing milk at work. He would have breast feeds whenever I was around, and expressed milk during the day when I worked (3 days per week). At a year old, I stopped expressing because it was getting harder to find the time at work, and since then he's had breast feeds morning and evening, and bottles of cows milk the rest of the time.

In the last couple of weeks he seems to be losing interest in breast feeding. He often just chews my nipple, so I assume he's not hungry. Then if I offer him a bottle instead, he gulps it down.

I'm guessing the milk isn't flowing as readily now, so it could be harder work for him. Is this self-weaning? Is it worth me trying to do anything about it (is there anything I can do?), or should I just accept it?

Any advice gratefully received!

Rachel

[Gem13]

DD shook her head one day when she was 18 months old and had been having 3 feeds a day. I asked if she wanted milk and she shook her head. That was the end and she never made any attempt to feed again.

DS started to feed reluctantly at about 11 months (I was pregnant with DD at the time) and one day I gave him a beaker of cows milk and he gulped it down. That was the end of it for him, although I was quite relieved as I was feeling grotty with morning sickness.

[RachelG]

Thank you Gem, it's very reassuring to hear other people's experiences.

Anyone else got any thoughts?

Also, is it possible to search for previous posts on this subject? I'm sure this question has been asked before, and it would save people having to reply now if I could find previous posts.

Thanks

[Judy1234]

Mine were all the same. I never had any of the 5 feed as long as I might have wanted them to and that may be because I was back at work and expressing or just that at that sort of age they got interested in other food. So I never consciously weaned a baby. They all just gave it up. The last feed they gave up was last thing at night. I was quite happy about it as I felt it was child led weaning.