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Infant feeding

Get advice and support with infant feeding from other users here.

How was bf for you after 1yr?

61 replies

Tatties · 30/03/2006 11:58

Ds will be 1 next week. I'm pretty much planning to carry on as usual with bf, but am interested to hear your experiences of bf past 1 yr. Obviously I realise that things won't change just because he is 1, but at the same time I know that we will eventually reach the point where he is having more solids than milk! So how did you get there? Did you actively reduce feeds, or were they dropped (or increased!) spontaneously? If you fed at night did that change?

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roseyposey · 31/03/2006 15:16

I didn't know that but it certainly did the trick. The diarrhoea didn't seem to bother her that much (although it did me - the nappies were truly stomach-churningly vile), but the vomiting was a bit alarming and really knocked her for six. I was really worried about fluids etc and had nightmarish visions of her ending up in hospital on a drip. So thank God for b-f!

brian2 · 31/03/2006 17:57

one of the main reasons i am reluctant to stop breast feeding to early is that ds has had several viral and chest inf this winter and the only thing he has wanted to do through out is b.f. mainly for comfort i think.... he will b.f through out a temp even if it takes an hour to come down,it is nice to no something helps him feel better and i guess if he refuses to b.f at least i have a bit of an indicater that something a bit more serious is going on.

koolkat · 31/03/2006 19:38

rosey - I am reading a fascinating book at the moment - the author says that the biggest killer of infants in poor countries is diarrhoea.

I was shocked that it is also totally preventable, because it kills mainly formula fed infants. The babies that are breastfed also get diarrhoea (lack of clean water, poor facilities for clean food and housing, etc), but they don't usually die from it and continued bf helps them recover and survive.

Tatties · 31/03/2006 19:55

Hooray for bf!

Which book are you reading Koolkat?

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koolkat · 31/03/2006 20:07

taties - it is very very left wing so not to everyone's taste Grin but it is called the "Politics of Breastfeeding" by Gabrielle Palmer - a friend recommended it to me. Fascinating and at times very disturbing, but very encouraging if you are a bf mum Smile

Psychobabble · 31/03/2006 20:55

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roseyposey · 31/03/2006 21:02

Hi koolkat, I HAVE READ THAT BOOK! Well, delved in and read bits and pieces as much as you can when you've just had a baby. I was particularly interested in the social history of b-feeding, and of course horrified by the statistic she mentions in her introduction - I think she says 3,000 babies die EACH DAY worldwide as a result of poor feeding methods (dirty water = dirty bottles). The book made me angry and even more determined to b-f.

koolkat · 31/03/2006 21:48

rosey - that's great ! Yes, I agree, really fascinating social history of bf.

BornBerry · 01/04/2006 09:18

The politics of breastfeeding made me cry :( I think its awful how hospitals deliberately try and seperate mum and baby to assist breastfeeding in failing to financial gain....:(

Tatties · 01/04/2006 11:05

I thought it might have been the Politics of Breastfeeding. I have wanted to read it for a while but I've found it hard to get hold of.

Psychobabble I'm pleased the nights are improving for you, what are you doing? Ds will often have a good week of his own accord but then teething or a cold always seems to take us back to square one!

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koolkat · 01/04/2006 11:33

tatties - I bought my copy from abebooks.com They specialise in out of print books.

Psychobabble · 01/04/2006 12:54

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BornBerry · 01/04/2006 18:16

Hiya
Being a bit nosey can I ask why you are trying to stop him falling to sleep when feeding? It was my best weapon at getting DD to sleep! hehe :O
Then again I'm super lazy and used to take DD into bed with us if she was teething or unwell, night wanderings drive me scatty Wink

Psychobabble · 01/04/2006 19:41

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BornBerry · 01/04/2006 20:18

ahh think I have heard a similar theory now you explain it. Never worked for us though, dd slept through from 10 months - 18 mths feeding to sleep, then weaned herself from feeding to sleep (they all do so when naturally ready even if you dont "teach" them) and from then on started having broken nights rolls eyes - mind you she always was a contrary madam lol
I do also think from speaking to friends some children do still need their mums at nights, this is why most cultures co-sleep. It's only us westeners expect them to be sleeping long periods alone so young.

Tatties · 01/04/2006 20:36

Have just been discussing this with dp today - my ds is just like yours Psychobabble, won't settle for anyone but me and my boobs. I am fine with this, I don't mind him feeding at night, etc.. but it is really hard isn't it, when just occasionally you want a day/night off. I am with ds all day every day, rarely get a break. Even at weekends when dp is there, I am still 'on duty'. I know it is my choice to do things this way (carrying on bf), and I honestly wouldn't have it any other way but I have to admit the constant need for me in particular can be quite draining. And I think because most people I know have already weaned by now or have undergone some form of sleep training (or they have dream babies who sleep anyway Envy), I feel like I don't really have anyone who understands what this feels like Sad
Apart from you lot of course Smile

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Psychobabble · 02/04/2006 12:44

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Tipex · 02/04/2006 13:31

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koolkat · 02/04/2006 14:18

tipex -

I feel a lot of sympathy for you and everyone else here who is not able to get enough rest. I didn't sleep properly for an entire year either, DS was up very often for the first 10 months and it looked like he needed me around all the time.

If it's any comfort though, I really do think it depends on the baby/child and sleeping arrangments rather than the feeding method. I have asked so many people about this (in my insomnia days) and they all seem to say that what a baby has in his stomach and whether he is a good sleeper or not have no connection.

If any thing formula can cause constipation, upset tummies, and all sorts of other things which will wake a baby up as often or more often than bm which is wonderfully good for the tummy Smile

I thought DS would sleep better once he was on solids past 6 months, but he didn't. So that was a myth out of the way Grin

I know it's really tough, and I hate to be an advocate of it as I am very much an attachment parenting sort, but have any of you tried a gentle method of cc ? I did this with DS when he was 10 months old (I would not have done it sooner) and it worked for us. I started putting him into bed when he was still awake (after his last boob feed) and he would cry of course, but he was only upset for 3 nights and that was that. He cried 16 mins, the 1st night, 16 mins. the 2nd night and only 5 mins. the third night, he was then fast asleep. I checked on him every 3 - 4 mins in the interval, I never let him cry without checking on him. I would stroke his face and speak loveingly to him, but would not pick up. He got used to it after a few days. I know I am probably very lucky, but it might be worth a try if you haven't tried it before.

Even now at 21 months, we put him in his cot at 8:00 pm every night, he doesn't sleep until around 9:30 - 10:00 but he will play with his toys and books until he falls asleep. We very rarely have to go in because he is upset. If he cries its usually due to teeth and of course we always go to him immediatley when he is not well and I bf.

The one thing I have noticed though is that co-sleeping although a wonderful thing, past the first few months makes it more difficult to stop bf in the middle of the night. Our DS was in his own cot in my room by 3 months, so has no memory of sleeping in my bed, which I think has made it easier. If he needed a bf, which of course he always did as a baby, I would bf him lying down until he fell asleep and put him straight back into his cot. This would sometimes happen as often as 6 - 8 times per night, but he would always end up in his own cot.

It was by chance mind you, because I have suffered from severe insomnia since I was a teenager, so was never ever able to sleep next to DS in the same bed, although I would have loved to.

I think older babies and toddlers do get into the habit that if you are very very close by and they can smell you and feel you they will wake up out of habit.

I wish you all better sleep in the near future !

koolkat · 02/04/2006 14:18

sorry for extremely long post !

singersgirl · 02/04/2006 14:46

I was the same as Harpsichordcarrier, so around the time he was one DS2 had 4 feeds a day - when he woke up, before both naps and at bedtime. He slept 12 hours through the night from 10 weeks, so night-time feeding hardly happened for us.

He would only ask for the breast when we were out if he wanted to go to sleep. When he was in hospital with asthma a couple of times he would have extra feeds to calm him.

As he dropped the naps, so he dropped the daytime feeds. I decided I wanted to stop when he was about 2, but by then he was only feeding at naptime and bedtime.

lazycow · 03/04/2006 10:57

Forgot to say I do offer the breast more often if I'm at home and he is ill particularly if he is not eating well.

As for going out - because I work 3 days a week hr is used to going without bfeeding for a long time during the day. He just asks to feed as soon as I get back usually. He does drink water from a cup (I introduced this at 6 months though it took about 2 months for him to get the hang of it) but has never liked any other sort of milk cows or formula.

ds does prefer me to put him to bed but if dh is home in time he does this about 1-2 times a week minimum. Sometimes ds cries a lot (but he also cries with me sometimes) but on the whole he is fine with it as he is so used to it. This does mean I can go out and not worry if dh has to put ds to bed.

Tatties · 03/04/2006 14:38

Tipex and Psychobabble - it is so nice to know I am not alone! Really makes me feel so much better.

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Psychobabble · 03/04/2006 18:25

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koolkat · 03/04/2006 18:48

psychobabble - I know - I hated myself for it although he only got upset for 16 mins. max and it only lasted 3 nights. If he had carried on for any longer than 30 mins. I would have stopped. I have heard horrible stories of babies vomitting when left to cry for too long and it gave me nightmares for a very long time.

I am a big softy really and I think bf mums generally are softies so I can see why cc is so hard for us Smile

I know it is very annoying when people tell you they have babies who sleep thro' from day 1 ! There is no such thing !

Best of luck !