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Infant feeding

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

reasons to carry on bfing after 12 mths?

50 replies

MissChief · 01/08/2006 09:52

..as a) i'm back at work (p/t) so might all go belly-up anyway
b) I'm starting to find people inc my own MIL being rather negative about carrying on (even past 6 mths wd you believe?). dh however is v supportive

Anyway, I'm wondering to what extent a baby post-12 mths still benefits from the antibodies in a mother's mils? Any other benefits other than the lovely closeness/comfort??
Also benefits to me - believe breast cancer rates only reduced if mother's under 30 (unfortunately I@m not) so other than convenience, no benefit to me as such

OP posts:
PrettyCandles · 04/08/2006 22:45

It's nice for you and for the baby.

If you're happy to feed then it does no harm to either of you - and anyone who has a negative opinion can go take a long stroll off a short pier.

Enjoy .

FrannyandZooey · 04/08/2006 22:47

I love this page from Kellymom

I printed it out and often read it in that 'wilderness year' between 1 and 2. Once you get past age two you just think "oh stuff it I am doing it anyway"

shazronnie · 04/08/2006 22:49

I'm still bfing at 18mths, and the main reason is laziness!
Why should I get up at 6 am to go to the fridge when I have better milk on tap which can be served lying down half asleep?

Also DS2 likes it!

Choose selective deafness when people make negative comments.

mum2jemima · 08/08/2006 15:14

Just joined this site today and finding it very interesting. I am bfeeding my little girl still at 14m which seems quite young compared to a lot of you devoted breastfeeders. I have a few friends who I think find it all a bit weird that she is still bfeeding. Even my husband is getting a little bit edgy about it and suggesting I give her cow's milk more often. However, bfeeding her keeps her in bed in the morning and happy until about 9am and it also gets her to sleep more easily at night. Also, I have not returned to work so see no urgency in ending such a lovely closeness. I would prefer she just got fed up with it and stopped that way as I don't want to start telling her no she can't have mummy's milk anymore. I really don't see why people view it as their business how long a woman is breastfeeding for. It is not as if we are subjecting them to harmful chemicals; just providing them with the best possible start in life they can have. The WHO recommend feeding for the first two years of life yet only 22% of women in this country are still bfeeding at 6 months.

lazycow · 08/08/2006 18:29

I wonder if this all applies if you are only feeding a couple of times a day which a lot of women seem to do in the second year (i.e.not on demand).

Although I am breastfeeding still at 21 months I do somehow feel that I'm not a real breastfeeder IYSWIM for the following reasons:

I have found that I can now be away from ds for 2-3 days but he will still bfeed when I am back.
I never get any symptoms of feeling full etc.

My supply seems pretty robust (though not very copius obviously) so I don't particularly feel tied by it , hence my feeling is if I am not tied down by it I can't be actually breastfeeding (weird or what!!). On the nights I'm not there ds just takes a cup of milk off dh instead and is apparantly not that bothered.

I never feed outdoors. I have recently tried this again as ds was so insistent and had to stop as DS insisted on sipping for 30 seconds and then tweaking my nipple, running away, latching on again for another 30 secs etc.. - so I won't be doing that again .

Also ds often asks for milk in a cup - drinks that than asks for num num, so I don't really see breastmilk and cows milk as mutually exclusive, he seems to do both now, though until about 14 months old he wouldn't drink cows milk at all.
He will also often breastfeed while holding a cup of milk or water and alternate between sipping the cup and breastfeeding.

Finally - I really pretty much loathe the whole experience of breastfeeding and always have. I spend a lot of feeds with toes curled through the entire thing from the pain. I also find the whole experience more like a wrestling match than a calm, peaceful one.

Why do I do it? - Well that is a good question - I'm not sure other than on the very rare occasions that bfeeding is not painful I do see what people mean about how lovely it is, also even when it hurts ds seems to like it so much I find it hard to think of stopping completely.

busimumi · 11/08/2006 19:24

hi i have just joined this site and am finding it really useful hearing others comments about how long they have bf for. my ds is now 15 mths and i was feeling pressure from others to think about stopping. now i think i will just wait for my ds to selfwean. i do however feel self conscious bf in public although he is small (only 22lbs).

lucy5 · 11/08/2006 19:33

I caried on until 17 months when dd just stopped, i was heartbroken. I carried on that long because both dd and I enjoyed it. She kept dropping feeds until she was just having a morning one.

popsycal · 11/08/2006 19:42

I had a simialr thread recently (which turned into more f a relationship thread but theere wasa good link....let me see if I can findit...

popsycal · 11/08/2006 19:46

www.promom.org/101/

busimumi · 13/08/2006 10:57

thanks for those links they are really interesting.

my ds is going through a terrible separation anxiety phase which started a few months ago. i have only been out on my own twice and both times he has been in hysterics. friends and family want to help but he will not take a bottle when looked after by someone else. help im due to return to work next month!

princessmel · 13/08/2006 11:41

Lazycow, I dont bf on demand either, just first thing, last thing, 1 in afternoon and if dd wakes in night. I think all those benefits still apply though don't they?
Misschief, My twin sis is always making "jokey" comments about how it freaks her out that I'm still feeding dd at 12 months but I just ignore her. I think my MIL would be over the moon if dd took a bottle but she's never had one. Dh is v supportive and so are some of my friends. Some friends not. If its time for the afternoon one (she doesn't always need it) and I'm out I just feed her wherever I am and ignore everyone else. Dd is v quick though. 5 mins max one side only in day. I was beggining to wonder what the benefits were though at this stage so I'm glad you did this thread. I don't know when I'll stop. Maybe when dd doesn't want it anymore

Highlander · 13/08/2006 11:45

I just couldn't be arsed stopping . It gave me a few extra quiet moments in the morning. Stopped the day before my amnio, when DS was 18mo. Didn't bother either of us in the sligtest.

mamaberta · 14/08/2006 16:44

Hi - just joined this site today. Can't think what might have drawn me to the MN website !! Glad to find some fellow extended b/fers. We are "newbies" in that DD is yet to turn 13months but fellow RL b/fers peeled off months ago. Can't see the point in denying her what makes her happy and healthy and is good for me because some ignorant people don't understand that boobs can be for sex and milk (stupid people don't like complicated ideas like that . Anyway, they're mine and I get to decide. Never thought I'd be in this position cos NHS forced me to use formula when DD born because said she musn't lose any weight - thought it was all kaput but we got there in the end..... and are still going!!

princessmel · 15/08/2006 09:58

Hi Mamaberta, Welcome to MN! Good for you with the bf. Just do what feels right for you and your baby.

thinkingaboutit · 15/08/2006 10:44

Hello,

sorry if this sounds completely ignorant - don't have a baby and just ttc at the mo. What impact does feeding that long have on you? I am sporty and although i like the idea of feeding for ages I am worried that milky boobs might stop me exercising, esp as i heard that lactic acid is released into the milk and the wee ones don't like that.

really sorry if this is the stupidest question in the world but i has been on my mind a lot.

thanks

ratclare · 15/08/2006 11:47

I breast fed until 13months ,when i had to leave the country for a week without dd ,it was the only way to stop !!! Did spend the first three days hunched up in pain which rather spoilt my honeymoon!!!

kiskidee · 15/08/2006 11:51

the lactic acid thing is a myth.

you can exercise quite actively and be an extended bf. your boobs may be a little bigger but nothing that a good sport bra couldn't cope with. its not like they are huge and engorged. they are quite close to whatt non-bf boobs are like.

Quootiepie · 15/08/2006 11:53

dont know if someones asked this but does breastmilk have the same fat as cows milk?

kiskidee · 15/08/2006 11:57

no, it has less but the fat in breastmilk is much more digestible by the baby so less is more. its the same with how much iron etc. it contains less but baby digest everything so no wastage.

kiskidee · 15/08/2006 11:58

oops, i was comparing bm with formula.

thinkingaboutit · 15/08/2006 13:01

thanks kiskidee

princessmel · 15/08/2006 16:15

Hi thinkingaboutit. My boobs are almost back to how they were after ds before getting pg with dd. They are normal looking and hardly ever leak now, except from the other side sometimes when she's feeding. Dd is 12 months. I'm sure a sports bra would hold them all in. My bf doesn't stop me doing anything really. I just have to make sure dd is asleep in bed before I go out in the eve. Good Luck with ttc. x

Pidge · 15/08/2006 16:30

thinkingabout it - I'm feeding my dd2 who is 17 months 2-3 times a day, I run 3-4 times a week (preparing for a 1/2 marathon in September) also cycle for an hour 3 days per week.

Lovely to hear of so many others doing what I've done. I'm stubbornly defensive about carrying on, but definitely keep quiet about it with a lot of people if I sense they'll be negative.

BellaVictoria · 19/08/2006 03:54

I'm an American that just loves this web site! Through my pregnancy & now dealign with a 27 month old......you have been part of my support group. I am back because I am bf at bedtime now, considering weaning....for no good reason except maybe it's just time.....(I must confess, after reading all this I'm thinking I won't for a while longer ....... I'm just looking for tipson weaning from a once a day bf session. I stopped a day before yesterday, it really hasn't bothered her, but my bbobs are very sensitive...not gorging yet, but somewhat uncomfortable. Thanks.

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