To ask when you gave up breastfeeding?

[pestov]

DD is rapidly approaching 6 months, and after 5 weeks of mixed feeding hell at the beginning thanks to a missed tongue tie, exclusively breastfed. I had always said before I had her that I'd do the 6 months breastfeeding, then switch to bottles, but am second guessing myself. When and why did you give up? Is there any point in moving to formula when breastfeeding is going so well?

2 years and 8 months. She self weaned after a bout of chicken pox

10 months, 20 months and still going at 12 months. I'm too lazy to stop

6 months.

For various reasons, giving up BF was the one of best things I've ever done.

7 months, and for us it was best decision ever

12 months and 14 months. Both went straight to cows milk from BF. It gets much easier and I wouldn't bother switching if I was you. By 9 months my DC were having just 3 breast feeds a day (morning, pre afternoon nap time and bed time). At 11 months I replaced the daytime feed with a snack so they were on 2 feeds a day. Ds1 self weaned at 12 months and ds2 dropped to just bedtime at 12 months and totally self weaned at 14 months.

Starting solids allows you to structure your breastfeeding a bit more in line with meal times (without being too regimented about it obviously). So the amount of breastfeeding you will do over the next few months will go down a lot in all likelihood (aware for some babies this is different.)

Just-4 and DS2 is winding down now at 3.7. We're down to once in the morning every couple of days.

DD1 - a year. I stopped the day after her first birthday - she had lost interest and I wanted my body back, she wasn't bothered at all. She was a staunch bottle refuser throughout.
DD2 - 11 months, having started mix feeding at 9 months when I went back to work. I expressed every day from when she was one week old with the aim of 'training' her to like a bottle so that I wouldn't end up tied like I was with DD1. Utter waste of time - she refused bottles from 10 weeks until 8 months, when she finally took it just in time for my return to work. Started out with expressed bottles then moved to formula at 9 months for convenience. Making up 2 bottles a day for when she was at nursery was a massive pain in the arse, never again! Now expecting DC3 and don't plan to fanny round with breast pumps or bottles, I'm too lazy - will just feed him until he is one, then hopefully stop before I go back to work (taking the full year off this time).

Still going at 17 months. The first 3 months were difficult due to a tongue tie which wasn't snipped until 5 weeks old. I had it in mind to attempt bf to 6 months but by that point, I wasn't going to give up after I'd done all the hard work. It's so much easier than formula feeding. No faffing about with sterilising and making sure the bottle is the right temperature.

He only really feeds at bedtime and through the night now and although part of me wishes he slept through so I could leave him with grandma overnight, I know from my first child that ff doesn't necessarily equate to sleeping and good self-settling.

He went straight to sippy cup at 6 months and I returned to work at 9 months. In fairness, if I'd returned full time rather than part time, I don't know if we'd still be bf.

13 months with both. By that time they were only having it morning and before bed and I now wish I'd carried on with that for longer, but it wasn't difficult to wean them.

BF really worked for me and I'm lazy, so I just stuck with it.

2.5 years with dc1 and just after 3 with Dc2.

was never meant to BF that long but it just worked out that way for us.

13m and 20m.

I stopped first time as I had a weekend away coming up and didn't realise that my supply would survive it. I was ready to TTC and my periods didn't return until two months after stopping (both times).

Second time, I had more confidence in my supply and we fed around work and a 4 day trip away when he was 1. He was a milk addict, and I got a bit fed up of him demanding me and faffing around so called it a day.

Both were bottle refusers. I had some pointless battles with DS1. Second time, I didn't try hard because I could live around his feeds. After 6 months, the feeds space out. There can be hiccups like teething or biting, but they tend to be less intense than the problems that are common early on.

If BFing suits you both then feel free to carry on. There's no need to introduce bottles or formula just because they are there (if that suits your needs better then that's a different situation).

We don't hear so much about BFing beyond 6 months, partly because of the numbers involved, but also because there is less need to feed in public. Many towards a year will often only have feeds at the start and end of the day that naturally take place at home, so we don't see it around to realise how many are still going.

10 months, 10 months, 4 months

11 months. I was v lucky as my son cut down a feed a week himself and weaned when he wanted!

MrsMook - I went back to work when DS was 7 months and expressed (it was oddly marvellous - ok, I had an electric pump going which wasn't exactly nice, but time on my own in a locked room with nobody interrupting? Wow!). Still fed him on weekends so if we were out and about I happily fed him in public. You don't see it much though and some people do seem to think its strange

15/16 months. Was only a bedtime feed by then.
I'd thought about giving up at 6 months but BF was well established and going well so was happy to continue. Besides apart fron a handful of times DD wouldn't have formula.

Still BF DD at 21 months and don't intend to stop any time soon. First few months were very tough due to severe TT, silent reflux, cpma and constant cluster feeding due to the reflux. I am glad it kept going though. BF alongside BLW was easy peasy and like others have said, it's such a useful tool for settling, calming upset or when she's ill - I just let her BF on demand and don't worry so much about food intake during those days.

Keep going for as long as you want to. You don't need to justify it to anyone

As an aside: Not rtft as BF/FF treads tend to go on and usually descent into a bun fight at some point but I just wanted to pick up on a point someone made:

After the age of 12 months children should not need any supplementary milk in their diet as their requirements should be met through a healthy balanced diet.

That's actually not true. Toddlers need milk until they're 2

who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs342/en/

3 weeks for me. I had the following problems:

PND, PTSD & post-natal psychosis
Huge tits (usually a FF-cup but when my milk came in they spilled out of a J-cup
Flat nipples
Baby with tongue-tie (which, under the advice of the paediatrician, we didn't get cut - the greatest regret of my life)
Painfully infected episiotomy stitches which meant it was painful to sit
Baby that only slept for 40 minutes at a time

I'm amazed I lasted as long as I did!

We were all much happier when we switched to formula, even though it was ruinously expensive and a faff.

My first baby was a big shock to me and it was all I could do to get my head around a baby let alone breastfeeding so he was formula fed.

With dd I tried but she had a 90% tongue tie plus a lip tie and they weren't diagnosed until day 10 and 18 months respectively so I only managed a few weeks of mixed feeding.

The third baby took to breastfeeding really easily and I fed him for 15 months when he self weaned. It was a very happy journey for us both.

Before babies is planned to stop at 6m too. Had 6 awful weeks establishing bf with DS1, then continued until he was 12m when I stopped because I'd heard stopping boosted your fertility. (Got pg 2 weeks later.)

DS2 was 16m, and very firmly said "NO" to my boob and that was that.

DD1 is 9m and I'm planning to carry on until she's 12m so I can skip formular entirely. Hopefully keep the evening feed going for a bit longer.

Did not have chance to breastfeed my last DC
"Wake up"
6 hours after DC was born and wasn't able to even move my hand (!!?)
DC was hungry so nurse decided to get formula bottle
I am still very upset about it

Am sorry to hear that greypinkandpurple, I hope you have recovered well.

BF DS1 until 22 months and had to stop bc I was pregnant and it was uncomfortable. Poor boy was distressed at night, I switched him to a bottle of formula then cow's milk. Nearly 7 months breastfeeding DD and counting. I don't really like to breastfeed but they clearly need it so am happy to carry on as long as possible.

5 weeks and I'm proud! No way could I produce 6oz every 2 and a half hours.
My baby had a good latch and slept well but I was late for the morning school run twice in 3 weeks and that couldn't continue.
Be happy of what you've achieved and enjoy a bit of freedom

After a year. Very reluctantly because of work

1st child 18 months
2nd child around 14 months, could have stopped earlier but I kept encouraging her - was more about me than her tbh

Why would you stop at 6 months? It's amazing the powers of formula marketing that they have people convinced there is a need to "move on" at 6 months!

Almost 2yo here and breastfeeding. Will continue for as long as DC wants to breastfeed.