Dropping feeds - how to get from 3 to 0?!

[Lowkeyloopy]

I have a 10 month old DS.

Exclusively breast fed, never taken to a bottle, occasionally has some expressed milk from a cup.

On three meals a day, though obviously his appetite goes up and down and some food he only picks at while some he hoovers down. Starting to wonder whether I should introduce a snack.

Three feeds a day at the moment - one after breakfast/before first nap, one after lunch / before second nap and one before bed.

Going back to work in March and would ideally like him to be fully weaned and on cow’s milk only by then (he’ll be 13 months). Also to give me a bit more freedom..!

I don’t want to go faster than he’s happy with but how would you suggest I encourage him towards only one or two feeds a day? I think I don’t really understand how to stop breastfeeding basically… will he gradually just lose interest?

TIA!

I stopped the day feeds cold turkey as soon as mine turned one, and just wore inaccessible tops and distracted them. They weren't too bothered.

For the bedtime feed I stopped when they were 18 months, and changed up the routine (so instead of them getting changed in their room and then story then feed, they got charged in our bedroom and had a story and then a song). Again, they weren't bothered but they'd also never refused even offered so I don't know how long it would have been until they lost interest themselves.

I think they usually say do one feed at a time and leave it a few days in-between stopping each for your own comfort, so you could decide which feed is least enjoyable/useful and drop that first. I'm not sure I'd start until 12 months though so you don't have to replace with formula and can just use cows milk as it's less faff.

I think stopping at a younger age is often easier.

They never had bottles when they went into cow's milk, just from a sippy cup, and just had it with actual meals.

*changed in our bedroom not charged!

"Try to give your child at least 350ml (12oz) of milk a day,"
www.nhs.uk/conditions/baby/weaning-and-feeding/what-to-feed-young-children/

Could you drop the middle of the day one first? You might need to find another way to get him to nap though.