Stopping breastfeeding - how gradual?

[Maveta]

My ds is 7 months old and I feel ready to drop a few feeds a day. At the moment he is mostly breastfed but 3 times a week he has 2 bottles ( 1 x ebm and 1 x formula) when I am at work).

He has approx 4/5 feeds during the day and a couple during the night. Last night I introduced a bottle of formula for his 10pm dreamfeed. I would like to start dropping feeds and end up just doing his morning and evening (7pm) feed which I would hope to continue for a while longer.

How gradual should you fade feeds out? Drop one a week?

[choolie]

At 7 months would say be guided by your body. Maybe start by dropping the afternoon feed, so this will bump up your milk at his bedtime, then see how your boobs feel after a few days. Once they get used to it, drop the next one.

My DS is 9m now and doesn't really take much milk in the day at all, but I only now offer formula. He still wants to BF at night, but isn't bothered in the day and he ended up just taking less and less each time. If you feel that your boobs are full when you want to give a bottle/cup, maybe give a small BF then top up with formula so the milk reduces down gradually. I think it can be different for everybody depending on how much your DS guzzles at each feed, so it might take a few days longer on a bigger feed, IYSWIM.

My boobs have adjusted quite quickly, I've just dropped his bedtime BF in favour of a bottle of formula, after a particularly painful clamping incident last week with his brand new 4 shiny teeth he wanted to start using, and after a couple of days my boobs were fine, and that was his biggest feed.

Now i'm just dreaming of the day he stops the night feeds (they're the last to go for me as I couldn't face the thought of getting up to prepare a btl in the middle of the night!)

I do miss his bedtime feeds I have to say, it's not quite the same holding him in my arms whilst he stares adoringly at a bottle, but my rule was once he drew blood it was time to switch!

good luck. HTH

[love2sleep]

Hmm.
I'm wondering about this one as well. ds2 is also 7 months.

At the moment I alternate milk feeds and solid feeds so that he has 4 bfeeds (early morning, mid morning, mid afternoon and bedtime) plus 3 solid meals (breakfast, lunch, tea). I think he is ready to go down to 3 bfs which is what ds1 was doing at this age. I can't remember the exact milk require ments at this age but I seem to remember that 3 feeds about covers it.

Have you tried dropping the dream feed? Both ds1&2 slept much better once I dropped this. With the day time feeds you could try replacing them with a milky snack like yogurt or cereal.

Good luck.

[love2sleep]

choolie - lol at the "clamping incident"
with ds1 I was "clamped" once and I shrieked so loud he never did it again. We kept the bedtime feed going until 16 months when I was execting ds2. This time round I think I will still be doing it when ds2 starts school as I can't imagine giving it up.

[Maveta]

lol choolie - i like your rule

love2sleep - he does have 4 feeds in the day with me but when i work he always squeezes in a 'welcome home' feed when i get in..lol.. i call the 10pm feed a dreamfeed because that's what everyone calls a feed at that time it seems but I don't lift him, he wakes and cries for it. he only started doing this at about 4 months, before that he went from about 8pm - 4am with no waking! grrrr

[choolie]

maveta, my DS wakes for his 10pm feed too. I hate to admit, we used to wake him for it at the beginning and I fear that's why it's ingrained in his body clock now. He always woke religiously at 9.25pm for it, but after giving him formula at bedtime for the last week, he's been going till nearer 10.30 - 11pm, so I'm hoping he'll start filling up a bit more now.

love2sleep, I've shouted out in pain a few times when he's nipped me, alas, he just sees my nipple as fair game to sharpen the teeth up. He does it with the bottle teat too, bites, then pulls it with his teeth clamped. I really miss the bedtime feed I must admit, but I'm not risking it again .