Breastfeeding - 12 months

[Italianbride]

My DS will turn one next week and is still being breastfed. In fact he has never had any milk from any other source (apart from on cereal/cooking). I never thought I would get this far after a tricky start to bf and now we're here I'm not sure what to do next!

I had this vision that we'd just stop at 12 months but I don't know how or even if I want to stop completely. I am ready to have a bit of my life back though so would like to stop some feeds. So do I just try to start giving cows milk in a cup? If I drop some feeds will it affect my supply? I don't know anyone in RL who has fed beyond 6 months so I'm in new territory here!

im still bf my dd shes 2next month.just morn/eve as she flat out refuses cows milk but will have dairy foods.I think your supply adjusts,

Hi! Congratulations on making it this far, you've done really well.

As you've been feeding for a year, you're an "established" feeder so your milk supply won't stop (unless of course you stop feeding completely!).

Just take things as they come - maybe offer cows milk in a cup to replace a feed, or as a snack and just see how he goes. Some babies don't like cows milk, in which case you could try a non-dairy version, but steer clear of rice milk (arsenic) and be careful of too much soy milk (it can affect fertili in boys).

Good luck - btw I'm still feeding my 2 year-old (just morning and night)

Well done OP for getting this far! Like you I ended up being an extended breastfeeder by accident, it just sort of happened. But like you I got to 1 year and started thinking about cutting down. (There's no reason why you should of course, if both of you are happy and want to keep going.)

I started cutting down one feed at a time by offering cows milk in a cup. It helped that DS was good on solids by that point, so I cut out feeds near meals. We got down to three feeds a day (first thing, late afternoon and last thing) quite quickly, and my supply adjusted. We had that pattern for a couple of months, then I dropped the first and late afternoon feeds by substituting for milk in a cup.
The evening feed was the last one to go at 18 months but he self weaned for that one as I was pregnant (not recommended as a weaning strategy ).

So yes, offering milk in a cup is the way to go. Start with a feed at a time of day when he can take it or leave it, and then go from there until you get to a point you're both happy with.

Thanks for all your replies - it nice to know I'm not alone in getting this far a bit by accident!

He eats solids really well and we're down to first thing and last thing feeds already (have been for a few months now). So really I'm just looking to buy myself a bit of flexibility to no longer be the only one able to feed him.

He's not great at taking water from a cup so not sure how he'll react to having milk from one. I guess I'll just need to try different ones?

I also "accidently" found myself still breast feeding when dd got to 12mths. Like you just the morning and evening feed. She always refused a bottle and to this day (just turned 2) won't drink cows milk unless on cereal. So I dropped the morning feed first and replaced with milky cereal and sometimes yoghurt then she showed some reluctance re the night feed so I stopped and replaced it with nothing. I'm conscious she drinks no milk but do give her multi vits and try to push dairy if I can.

I know what you mean about not being great with a cup, but I would persevere if you can, I didn't and we had another year of using free flow bottles and lidded cups. By the time we decided to get rid of them, he was quite a tidy eater so it meant going back to making a mess for a few weeks.

I'd suggest an open cup at the table, and a lidded cup for elsewhere in the house (e.g. If giving a drink upstairs before bed).

I would think though that at 2 feeds a day, you could skip one if you need to (e.g. If going out in the evening) as he will be getting his nutrition and hydration during the rest of the day. For DS at that age it was mainly about routine and comfort - nothing wrong with that, but we did find that as long as the rest of bedtime was the same, he would be ok on the odd occasion I went out.

I also 'accidentally' BFd DD until a year. I was always told to switch to cows milk in a cup but she wouldn't take it. It took until she was about to start nursery for me to try her on formula in a bottle. For her it seemed an easier step from BF. Cows milk and a sippy cup came much later.