Extended BFers - any top tips for night weaning?

[pollyperkins]

DD is 25 mo and I've just cut her Bfeeds during the day from on demand (and I'd say probably 8+ feeds a day easily) to once in the morning and at bedtime. I've done this over the last 7 days. Now I'd like to cut out her feeding at night time in the hope that a) she'll sleep better and b)I might get my periods back as we're hoping to ttc DC2. DD usually wakes 2-4 times a night for milk and is pretty quickly settled. She'll only be settled by me and has always been like that.

Anyway, I've been absolutely dreading night weaning and have been putting it off for nearly three months now - has anyone got any suggestions/fab stories to share with me to help me.

Thanks v much

My friend has just stopped feeding her 2 year old at night. Every time he woke up she just offered a cuddle instead of milk. She said he grizzled for a few minutes then fell back to sleep. After about a week of this he doesn't wake her for milk at all in the night.

Thanks Theagedparent - that sounds very positive. I am hoping for something similar and mainly hoping for my first full night's sleep in what feels like one ice age! I thought I might try offering her cow's milk but am wondering if that might just be a bit of distraction.

Anyone else got any experiences of night weaning at this stage?

At 2yrs 4 months (son was having feeds only at night as we co-sleep), I just said to him when we got into bed, mummy does not have any milk now (I'd given him warm cows milk in a cup before bed). He didn't cry, as I had expected, and went to sleep just holding my breast tissue. When he woke in night and tried to latch on, he realised I had clothes and a bra on, but I soothed him back to sleep.

I could not believe he did not cry at all about it, I thought, before I did it, that it would be a nightmare!! Now he touches my 'micktars' regularly for comfort, although, he knows he is not allowed to touch the 'pink bit'! at various times of the day and night. He still goes to sleep holding the fleshy part.

I suppose, how easy it is depends on how ready they are to let go of such a big comfort.

Good luck.

like theagedparent's friend we did cuddles instead of milk on the grounds that what dd actually wanted was security/reassurance rather than to satisfy hunger, iyswim.
I was inspired by this article of Jay Gordon's, but we did each 'step' for significantly longer than the 3 days he suggests - a week or more. DD was 18m at the time.