Anyone who weaned/is weaning early and wants to talk about it without getting their head bit off step this way

[RagingHormone]

Feel free to chat until your heart's content without being judged on this thread.

What made you decide to wean early? (My baby had awful reflux so I had to, and he was ready for it anyway).

What sort of things did/do you feed your baby at 6 months?

no need to 'shout' dude.

lol Dude, I love that

What?
GOC.
Where have I said that taking advice from your HV who you believed (understandably) to know what she was talking about is willingly putting your baby at risk?
Please don't project any of your own misplaced guilt onto me thankyou. All I am trying to do is make people aware of the REAL information out there. I'm not inflicting guilt on anyone.

I started weaning DS1 at 16weeks on the (wrong) advice of my so called professional Health Visitor at 16weeks because apparently, for a BF baby he was big .
He wasn't ready and didn't really start accepting foods til about 6mths anyway, but he did have some solids from 16wks.

Now at almost 4, he suffers with a prolapse rectum, which might have been from introducing solids too early. He may have to have an operation and I am so at my HV for giving out information that she shouldn't have given out. He was my first baby and I trusted her.

DS2 is 26weeks tomorrow and last night he had his first taste - a bit of banana! I was eating it and he made a grab for it and he loved it. He has been exclusively breastfed and I am so happy that I have done it my own way this time. We only go to the doctors surgery to get his jabs done and I ignore anything that that HV says - she's one for giving the old "top up" line! Absolutely useless! We get Baby Red weighed at our breastfeeding group, and avoid baby clinic at all costs.

Anyway, just because your HV advises it, it may not be the best course of action. If your HV says anything about weaning early, then you should ask to see the GP or a consultant first. She isn't supposed to suggest weaning until 26weeks and so you should see someone who knows what they are talking about first before you carry on.

Red, DD was also weaned 'early' on HV advice.
She has issues with digestion. I don't know for sure if the weaning had anything to do with it, but will, at all costs, make sure that my other children do not have this risk enforced on them.

Grumpy, you've made a very good point.

People wean early sometimes, it needs to be acknowledged. No point pretending it doesn't happen.

This is fast descending into yet another weaning dispute, please can we just keep the thread to what it was intending for? Maybe people could start a weaning dispute on another thread?

but then youd have to have a disclaimer saying that although its what you want to do its going against guidlines etc.because if you look at how did you come across mn thread lots will say i googled weaning advice etc.most people will use there head and research but some may take this thread as gospel.iyswim.

RH, Do you not understand why people will always comment on an early weaning thread?

Imagine you're a new mum, nervous as hell about everything, suffering from sleep exhaustion and baby is going through a growth spurt. You've heard that you should wait til 26 weeks but have no idea why.

You have a bit of a google or browse MN, whatever. Somehow you arrive at a thread entitled 'Anyone who weaned/is weaning early and wants to talk about it without getting their head bit off step this way'.

You have a look at the thread and it's full of people talking about weaning early. No-one has mentioned the guidelines, or the fact that your baby actually lacks certain enzymes, or that the kidneys just are not physically ready to cope, or that iron absorption can be hindered. They say nothing at all of the possible illnesses that could occur, or that as baby has not got the ability to self-regulate food it can stop them ever learning how to regulate and lead to obesity.

You then, on the basis of that thread go ahead to wean your baby. You follow the advice of people whose babies seem to have been the lucky ones.
Your baby, however isn't so lucky. Your baby is not ready for food. Your baby grows up with an illness you later discover could be because of weaning early. Do you not think those people deserve the right to the proper information?

The only way you will get an early weaning thread that does not end up with arguments is if you word it similarly to the post I made earlier.

thats what i would have said if i could put it into words better vs

Plenty of practice cheesesarnie

I'm not entering into a weaning dispute RagingHormone, I am telling you what made me decide to wean early - my HV, and the person I mistakingly trusted. And now DS1 has problems. Part of his rectum protrudes through his anus every now and then and it is so upsetting. It stings him. I was heartbroken a few weeks ago because his nursery teacher had told him off for not sitting on his seat at story time. He was crying when i went to pick him up (which is not like him at all - he is such a confident little boy) when I asked him he said "the inside of my bum came out and I called for the teacher and nobody came and I had to put it in myself - Mrs X made me sit on the seat and it was stinging me"
I cried
It hurt me
It hurt to know that this might be happening because of what I had done - weaned early.

I know people do it - but if they had their child's best interests at heart and knew the risks, then I just can't see why they would do it. Why anyone would willingly risk what happens to my little boy just because they feel that their child is ready, is completely and utterly beyond me.

RagingHormone you are right - there's no point pretending early weaning doesn't happen, but on the same note - there's no point pretending that complications don't happen as a direct result of that early weaning.

VS and all like-minded evangelicals who know everything about everybody's baby EVER

Why don't you leave these people alone to talk about their experiences instead of bullying and lecturing them?????

for the record : I think weaning is probably best around 5-6 months and 16 weeks is too early

I recorded my experience -- why the hell shouldn't I do that without qualifying it to death

these are intelligent women not dullards

I don't know everythign about everyone's baby EVER.
I do know that you cannot tell for sure that your baby is ready for weaning before 26 weeks.
That's all I'm saying.
I'm not bullying anyone and I don't appreciate that tone either. So you don't see the problem. Fine. But that doesn't mean me stating FACTS is bullying anyone.

blueskyandsunshine I was talking about my experiences.

I wish I had known about the risks when I was advised to wean early. If only I knew about MN then, VS's FACTS would have been greatly appreciated.

blueskyandsunshine if we all sat here saying, "of course you know your baby needs solids at x weeks of age - it'll do them no harm - they'll be fine" "hun" then we'll run the risk of becoming a Bounty forum! How awful would that be !!!!

There are risks involved in weaning early and people who post on a thread for early weaning should know that others will post advice and experiences about NOT weaning early.

I am neither bullying, nor lecturing anyone. Just saying what happened in my experience and wish it had not.

I really feel for these girls.. obviously they see the problem.. obviously they know about the advice.. but you are hectoring them and all they want to do is chat about their issues

you are blackmailing them saying : unless you put up this heavily worded warning approved of by us we will barge your thread

I'm off.. i'm going to leave them alone.. if you want to discuss elsewhere I am very happy to. Not at all afraid of this conversation.

And yes there are other possible benefits to early weaning. It cured my baby's constipation. Do I recommend it? No -- because I don't know anybody's baby as well as I know my own.

fgs

This exactly what I didn't want. Just forget it. Obviously you just can't support each other in this way on MN. There's a million things on this thread now, everyone gets the jist, it's dangerous, but we just cannot seem to get on with discussing it.

Let's just leave it after all.

sorry
was cross on your behalf but did it all wrong, I know

Sorry bluesky, I actually cross posted. Had I read what you wrote, I wouldn't have posted that.

You've actually said exactly what I wanted to say, but better than I could put it across. So there are people who actually want to discuss it! Thanks God. Lets get onto it then.

Can anyone tell me if it's ok to give a baby lots of fruit in a day? As my baby's poop stinks of fruit and I worry that I'm giving hi too much. He's having a pint of milk again.

'a day' not again. Typing with baby on my knee and so the spelling was horrific in that last post

A portion of fruit is what your baby can fit into his/her hand so for us, an apple size fruit is a portion, but for a baby it would probably be the size of a grape. They say about 5 portions of fruit and veg a day, but if it's griping your baby or giving diahhorhea then try a differnt fruit, or stew it in a little water so it isn't as difficult to digest.

I am absolutely horrified with the women on this thread who can not keep their opinions to themselves. They clearly have very empty little lives that they cannot leave the rest of us alone to provide very necessary support, surely the entire purpose of MN.

Also get a grip ladies. When I think about some of the things that happen in this world and the lives that some children have your endless sanctimonious posts look really pathetic.
Reflux has caused untold misery in our house but clearly MN is no longer a place for support, just bullying by misguided women. Remember a little information is a dangerous thing.

I am quite positive I will be lambasted for this but all you can do to bullies is stand up to them.

I am so sorry OP that you can not get a sensible conversation going to help you. Perhaps it is time to leave MN for the extremists.

hotwaterbottlesrule
I am not a bully
Have you read my post about what happened to my DS?
Reflux was nothing compared to what he is going though now.

It's not an opinion. But never mind, that's just semantics.

No-one is stopping anyone discussing early weaning, and unless you can see how it is beneficial to people who are reading this thread other than the one or two posting, that the FACTS and RISKS are mentioned then I'm really not sure why you are bothering to try and argue the toss.

As for Reflux, if you had read the thread rather than jump in with both feet spouting about how hard done by you are then maybe you;d see that I AGREED babies with reflux can need weaning early because the risks outweigh the benefits.

I also suggested the way to start the thread so it didn't kick off. In fact. I know little about reflux or FTT so I shall start that thread myself as it's something I would really like to write about on my blog.

I dunno.

The facts are on here for anyone who cares to read them.

If people want to slap each other on the back for weaning early then let em. You're not going to change their opinions, are you?

(DISCLAIMER: I am obviously not talking about people who have weaned early under close medical supervision)

It's not slapping on the back. It is helping each other, which is what mumsnet is for.

Can anyone help me out getting past this and actually discuss the weaning?