How long to breast feed for?

[cocojo]

Hello, How long did you all breast feed for? my wee one is 9 months and am thinking i could stop breast feeds around a year.
Can't wait to burn these bloody nursing bras! but not sure if a year is too soon.
My eldst was bottle fed and I'm sure she stopped taking formla about then.
Any advice? x

Its up to you. I breast fed No 1 for 6 months and No 2 for 14 months and Now breast feeding No 3 seven months and still going. I have been led by my babies.

I have to admit I wanted to do over a year as it is belived to protect you from breast cancer if you feed over a year. Not quite sure how true that is as their isnt alot of data supporting this claim.

I started back in underwired bra's this summer and pull the cup up (or Dd does!) but I don't need to feed in public now, so not affected that way.

I was planning on going to two years (4 months now) and then will prob want to be pregnant again - I know you can combine the two but would prefer not to.

DS is 7 months and i'm planning to bf until 12 months when he can have cows milk, but I may continue night feeding. But I want to get to 12 months. I'll probably end up like SirBoobAlot though and DH will go mad!

I have started wearing an underwired bra this week, i've shrunk back into my (4 months pregnant) honeymoon bra and its so pretty I have to wear it! Its mesh, so easy to get them out.

ds1: I gave up BF at 7 months. I went back to work on shifts and it just phased out quite quickly as my work times were so erratic.

ds2: was working more stable hours and had cut down to part time so carried on while back at work but he lost interest at 1yr and so we stopped.

dd: will be 1 this month and is still a very keen breastfeeder so don't think will be stopping anytime soon. Will just see how it goes and carry on as long as it is suiting us both.

LadyV, why will your DH go mad, out of curiosity?

DS is 15 months and is down to 1 feed a day (at my insistence). If I hadn't orchestrated the dropping of the other feeds he would happily have it 4 times a day still. I don't know how much longer we'll go for, will just have to see.

I think stopping at a year because it's a year is just sort of arbitrary. Initially I concentrated on getting through first 6 months, then it was 12 months, and then just decided to see what happened. I don't think it is something you can put a 'stop date' on.

Mine's 15 months () and still practically lives on the stuff (about 5-6 times a day, virtually no solid food). She is knee-high to a grasshopper mind you but that's more why than because of. I have some flipping gorgeous Hot Milk bras that are way nicer than my usual ones.

Ds1 - 13 months
Ds2 - 2 years and at age 4 he still mourns the loss of his mommy milk ...

I finally stopped tandem feeding in september, ds2 (15 months) is still on 2 feeds a day and once during the night.

I've had 4 dc's and I'm now on month 67 of breastfeeding :)

I originally aimed at 6 months with dd1....

i ditched nursing bras after first month.

i think at least a year, as then absolutely no need for any kind of formula (its expensive stuff)

ds after 7.5 months
dd 1y and counting, planning to wean in spring when cold season is over

KKQ- 71 months and counting over 4 babies for me. Competitive, me?

Flipping heck, that's nearly 6 years of my life. Mind you that's also six years during which I haven't had to prepare and warm bottles or make complicated arrangements for feeding the baby when going out for the day... Just as well as all my children seem to have a problem with cow juice.

Duchesse and KAQ - I'm on month 92 over 3 DDs so shit that's a lot of bra unclipping!

DD1 - 3.6y/o - 42m (now 4.9y/o)
DD2 - 3y - 36m (still nursing)
DD3 - 14m

18 mths and still DS shows no sign of losing interest.
I like the calculation of £500 savings. I'd never thought to work it out .

DD1 - had expressed milk full time til 14 months via freezer stash (got pregnant with DD2 when DD1 9 months old). Then has resumed drinking EBM since sister's birth (when DD1 17 months): is now 2 years 2 months and still going strong. Drinks around 10oz per day. Hope to be giving her EBM right through nursery and early years of school - am too lazy a parent to cope with all the horrible colds and bugs she'd get otherwise.

DD2 - ten months and we're going for natural term so goodness knows.

I feel like everyone benefits in this situation and am dreading the thought of stopping one day

I'm still feeding dd at 13 months.

As for bras, I love my Elle MacPherson La Mere ones, they look like normal bras tbh.

(must go and get some new ones, they have a couple of new colours out...)

Organiccarrotcake, not sure if you'll check this thread again but just incase you do, How long do you plan on giving all your children EBM? Will you carry on expressing once the youngest has stopped breastfeeding or have you made no real plan?

I'm just very curious as I don't know anyone who's breastfed past two years, for some reason it seems like a taboo nowadays.

My friend is breastfeeding her 18month old DD and says she feels embarrassed about it. I think thats such a shame :(

My DD is 5 months so I know I have a long way to go, but am planning on bf until at least a year, then we'll see where we go from there. I have had a very positive experience breastfeeding with no real problems so am hopeful.

TruthSweet, Duchesse and KAQ

I am up to 52 + 28 + 3 = 83 months. Not bad considering I was aiming for 6 weeks !

Babieseverywhere - obviously something went very very wrong then . It's amazing how after umpteen years bfing it becomes second nature.

When DD3 was about 4m, we went to a big family dinner to celebrate my Grandpa's 95th, DD3 had been passed around for cuddles with various family member between courses. Dessert arrived and everyone sat down. I hissed to DH 'Where's the baby gone - I can't see her?', he started laughing and said 'She's feeding, you idiot!' Oops! She'd been handed back and I just latched her on with out even clocking what I was doing......

LOL, It does get so automatic after a while. I have looked for DC3 whilst nursing her, daft aren't we. ~Never asked DH where she was mind, that would be embarrassing.

TBH I didn't ever think I would get to 6 weeks as we had so many problems, both had thrush, traumatic birth, loads of stitches getting very little sleep, cracked painful nipples, swollen breasts due to massive over supply issue etc

Now I have a little queue when I try and sit down. :)

Love the queue image! I do feel like an 'all you can eat 24hr milk buffet' sometimes but it is worth it. Though DD2 asked for 'bah' today and then changed her mind for a cup of banana milk, finished that and then asked for 'bah' again like the banana milk never happened

wow, some of you mums are bf veterans! I'm just taking each day as it comes right now - dd2 is 6 wks.....
by the way, I can vouch for hotmilk bras - I even bought some of their PJ's with a nursing top and they are divine! Also, I have a few bras from Cake Lingerie.....incidentally, can I have a 'proud' moment and say that if you go to mamma la rocca's website, I am one of the models for cake lingerie :)