To think BF-ing a 2yr old is, um, weird?

[Lucy85]

Well what do you think? I know it's a very emotive subject, but I've seen it a couple of times and it makes me come over all strange.
I BFed my baby exclusively until 7 months when I went back to work, but the thought of doing it now is just plain odd, - not wrong, it's just I can't imagine doing it to someone who can walk, talk, get their own drinks, eats proper food and is too big to lie sideways on my lap.

Here is the link.

www.sscnet.ucla.edu/anthro/faculty/kennedy/sdarticle.pdf

I have a stack of papers at home on breastfeeding ages and the weanling's dilemma, but I am away for a month. I will save them up for the next thread like this, as these strange threads happen so often.

yabu(although I understand where you are coming from)
I am sure the mother is only doing it because her child needs it.
IMO it might not be because the child needs "food" but for other reasons, but the child still needs it.

Interesting, anything which is not the norm is 'weird'.
So that would be anyone in a wheelchair, anyone driving an ice cream van, anyone with a beard, anyone with... well I don't think I need to give any more examples.
If you think anything which is not the norm is weird, you are in danger of being considered weird yourself.

Right, now I am all fecking sad about the poor calves. Cheers Lenin!

I bf DD2, who is 17 months. Plan to carry on for a bit....until she loses interest. Dunno when that will be.

Why do I carry on, when she can walk (in shoes) and talk (well, the odd word here and there)?

Apart from all the excllent health reasons already listed, because several times a day, I get to sit down, put my feet up, flick to MN on my iphone, relax....all the while multi-tasking: giving my child perfectly balanced nutrition AND comfort.

Am I doing it for me? Maybe. I'd get to do alot less MN if I was not bfing.

To those who say the mother derives a sexual benefit....how very odd. Should we also assume that when a woman puts a tampon in her vagina (physically akin to intercourse, as bfing is akin to sexually kissing breasts), she gets turned on? I don't. Nor do I get turned on by feeding my child.

Btw, bfing DD as I type and she us really snuggly and happy and totally comfortable, ready to latch off (abruptly) and roll over back to sleep.

I haven't read even a 10th of this thread but did a little 'duck for cover' as soon as I saw the title.

I think the initial response of swearing was uncalled for though! Everyone has their own opinions/limitations on what they consider reasonable or appropriate! So the OP places their bar at 2yrs....it's higher than most! My DS1 self weaned at 23mths, 3 days before DS2 was born, I had resigned myself to tandem feeding, although wasnt keen on the idea, but was doing it for him rather than me. The same attitude i adopt for every aspect of parenting as it's not about us first!

Incidentally I read a thread where someone was still feeding a 5 yr old which I found odd. No disrespect to whoever that was but I think I found my own personal bar

P'd MSL at the sheeps eyes comment - I have often thought that!!!!

I fed DD til 5mo getting up in the middle of the night 10mins each side (approx) but gave up at when it seemed she needed topping up with formula.

4 years later I fed DS till he was 8mo and would have continued if I didn't have to start a course of medication. I had him in bed with me, he seemed satisfied and all round it was a lovely experience.

Am wondering if anyone noticed much difference in feeding DSs or DDs.

Am pg with No3 and looking forward to breastfeeding againg and hopefully I'll have enough guts to continue for as long as I see fit. The WHO guidelines are very comforting.

What is with the problem people have with breasts for feeding. As someone else said on a different thread, there is wall to wall tits in the newsagent and on telly but god forbid anyone making any (mostly undercover) moves to feed a baby with one.

Freaking hypocrites.

I fed DD til 5mo getting up in the middle of the night 10mins each side (approx) but gave up at when it seemed she needed topping up with formula.

4 years later I fed DS till he was 8mo and would have continued if I didn't have to start a course of medication. I had him in bed with me, he seemed satisfied and all round it was a lovely experience.

Am wondering if anyone noticed much difference in feeding DSs or DDs.

Am pg with No3 and looking forward to breastfeeding againg and hopefully I'll have enough guts to continue for as long as I see fit. The WHO guidelines are very comforting.

What is with the problem people have with breasts for feeding. As someone else said on a different thread, there is wall to wall tits in the newsagent and on telly but god forbid anyone making any (mostly undercover) moves to feed a baby with one.

Freaking hypocrites.

I fed DD til 5mo getting up in the middle of the night 10mins each side (approx) but gave up at when it seemed she needed topping up with formula.

4 years later I fed DS till he was 8mo and would have continued if I didn't have to start a course of medication. I had him in bed with me, he seemed satisfied and all round it was a lovely experience.

Am wondering if anyone noticed much difference in feeding DSs or DDs.

Am pg with No3 and looking forward to breastfeeding againg and hopefully I'll have enough guts to continue for as long as I see fit. The WHO guidelines are very comforting.

What is with the problem people have with breasts for feeding. As someone else said on a different thread, there is wall to wall tits in the newsagent and on telly but god forbid anyone making any (mostly undercover) moves to feed a baby with one.

Freaking hypocrites.

Wow, hit the post button once at same time server shut down for back up!

FWIW DS was very hard to wean off the breast and it was heartbreaking almost to force a bottle on him, he refused to take it for weeks. People said he's just not hungry enough if he's not taking the bottle. Make him hungrier - starve him?

OK, so tell me thats more about the mother wanting to bf than the child.

While I was reading this my 3.8 year old woke up, came for a cuddle and then said, "Can I have some mummy milk please". When she had finished we talked about the fact she will stop having mummy milk at some point and she wanted to know why.

Before I had DS, I thought I would stop as soon as DS got teeth. Then I had DS - kept going past him getting teeth. Then I thought I might stop at a year. Then I thought I would just keep going until he was ready to stop - which happened at 23m.

He is now 2.6yo and I have to admit the thought of still doing it now feels odd to me too - but that doesn't mean I consider it odd in anyone else. We just reached a natural conclusion to out bf'ing time - other people will reach that point earlier, others later.

Each to their own.

Although the 9yo young Emperor in the Last Emperor was still being wet-nursed - now that really does seem wrong.

Hello again secondcoming!! Can't keep way from me...{hmm}

Jamiki, it was worth repeating three times.

It's worth remembering that an extended breastfeeder didn't just one day look at her three year old and decide it would be a good idea to give her breastmilk. It's a continuation of something that's been going on for a long time. To a mother, the changes in a child are so gradual as well, my almost two year old still seems like such a little baby to me, yet others comment on how grown up she seems now.

not read whole thread but fwiw I bf my first 2 dc till 18 months but only at night. I too felt that I couldn't cope with a child who asked iyswim. but am bf dc3 now who is 20 months old and he is a child who is has allergies to various things including dairy. the doctor and dietician both say to carry on feeding. plus the fact he doesn't want to come off and is very demanding. so although you may think it odd or wierd - sometimes mums mayhave a good reason.

I am astonished that some here do not see that a three year old being laughed at because they are being BF is not harmful to that child! Kids will not 'forget it in a week' for goodness sake, that child would be labelled (I shan't use the imflammatory 'weird' word, I do understand that it's hurtful and offensive) for a loooonnng time.
It is totally unfair on a nursery age child to BF in public.
Let's get real here, children do not need breast milk for health reasons past the first few months (the WHO is the WORLD health organisation ie covers swathes of the world where it WOULD be beneficial - that is NOT being snobby JohnScotland, we DO live in a rich country with abundance of food and clean water etc) and should they really rely on the breast for emotional/comfort reasons at this age? In my opinion not.
And to the posters who say 'it's not for me, my dc wept and wailed when I tried to wean her/him'. Of course, they don't like their baby comforts taken away - dummies, bottle to cup, co-sleeping etc etc - and will find it a hard adjustment at first.

what the heck were all the parents doing while these children stood around and jeered?

and you'd better tell the WHO of your findings that children don't need breastmilk after the first few months proudandsad, because they have this weird idea that white middle class affluent infants are biologically identical to poor black third world infants, and get the exact same benefits from being breastfed

19 month old DS2 BFs, in public most days, I hadn't given it a second thought really, just what we do. Still have 3 feeds a day or so. He doesn't always have his shoes on, though, so that's OK/

I can't imagine why people are uncomfortable, it is not just about an older child doing babyish things - seeing 3 year olds with dummies doesn't make people cringe (well, it might, but I see lots more of those than I do BFing 3 year olds, of which I see none. So clearly fewer people cringe at it.)

If it's because it's "sexual," then that is really, really sad.

It is a sexual act in the same way as giving birth is a sexual act - it involves the love hormone, and it involves organs that are also used for sex.

It is not a sexual act in the semi-porno, "breasts belong to men, if you are EBF you are denying your Poor Man his Rightful Place ie, your breasts belong to him and the baby is borrowing them" way. It just isn't.

The poster who said about extended co-sleeping and BFing interfering in the "marital bed," I think you were inferring that BFing interferes with the sexual relationship with a partner? Well, if it does, so what. If a man can't manage with reduced/ lower sex drive/ less sex for a few months to a year or so (realistically, most babies, even extended BF ones are sleeping through by the time they are 2) then he has his expectations all screwed up. And so do you, if you subscribe to the belief that men "need" sex in order to function. They don't. But they do like women to think they do.

And I don't even think that is all about BF, as most parents of toddlers are too knackered to shag like teenagers.