Can I just clarify my pov here? I in no way intend to make anybody feel guilty. Nobody can make you feel guilty if you've made the right decision by your child.
What is particularly difficult for many posters- and I include myself in this - is that this topic is discussed again and again and many myths are touted as fact (as I pointed out earlier things like the size of a baby or it needing night feeds being anything to do with weaning readiness). And what we know is that there are more lurkers than posters on MN so good, factual advice and info should be offered alongside opinion.
The most erroneous thing reiterated time and again is the rigidity of the guidelines. Let me stress here that they are 'guidelines' not rules. People who counter their usefulness with 'but aren't all babies different' aren't acknowledging that they don't say all babies must be weaned exactly at 26 weeks. You will see that the official guidelines say 'around six months' and 'at about six months' and then documents the signs that they are ready. The official guidelines explain that the waking up more between 3 and 5 months thing is a red herring and states that the true external signs of gut maturity are sitting up, development of a pincer grasp, ability to put food in their mouth and chew and swallow with a loss of the tongue thrust reflex. They advise that you watch your child, that you know these signs and that you respond to them as an individual. It actively encourages responding to your baby when it shows the signs of readiness and enjoying the process at a time when they are developmentally ready for it.
And instinct. Yes, as I said earlier, instinct is a very important tool in all aspects of parenting and my first port of call. You are right to look at the research and guidelines and then judge your baby's needs alongside this using your own discretion. But like I said earlier there are many of us who have heard instinct trotted out almost as an excuse. My SIL and her very early weaning ideas are not unique. 'Mummy knows best' is rolled out as the reasoning for many poor parenting decisions and in areas such as weaning it's important to acknowledge what 'instinct' means. Because yes you read the minute cues and signs displayed by your baby. You know before anybody that they are unsettled or perhaps not as content as before. Others may not notice. They're rooting more often, settled less, just fractionally altered. Yes instinct tells you your baby is changing, developing more suddenly, rolling and babbling is taking it out of them, they need more. But research and good sense tells us that they need more calories in this instance. We have no window into their guts. Perhaps they are not sitting unaided, still have the tongue thrust reflex. You know that milk has the calories in it, it's there in your breasts (or bottle) and will provide them with what they need and you avoid any question of gut readiness. You respond to the cues with the information available to you.
And I do take exception to all encompassing statements such as 'weaning will stop night feeds'. Because research just does not show this to be true. And I don't mean comfort sucking in the night. Milk remains the main source of nutrition for 12 months. Milk is always offered before food. Night feeds are still when some of the best milk is made in terms of bfing. It's night feeds that are still important in helping your breasts respond to your baby's changing needs. And when somebody reads that weaning should have stopped the night feeds, perhaps they panic that they aren't offering enough solids. Solids are NOT a replacement, they are a complement. They are not meant to signify the end of milk feeds. Milk feeds should remain to requirement and in the second 6 months of a child's life the developmental changes, the still small size of their stomachs and factors such as the heat for example, mean that night feeds are still very important. Yes some babies don't need them but if your child does then that's fine and normal. We must acknowledge that instead of making women feel they are doing something wrong or failing the weaning process if their child is still dependent upon milk. This is as it should be.
Weaning is an enjoyable process and one that we all do differently. It's also a very emotive subject and one that many people feel judged for. Truly, the ones that wait are also made to feel guilty for 'starving that poor baby'. Nobody in parenting gets off scott free it seems. And it's also very difficult because nobody's experience in general terms can inform somebody elses. I can say 'well I did this and dd is fine' but that's just an anecdote. The body of research is there for a reason and provides this need for an awareness of what is true and normal for the majority with a nod to scientific basis and objectivity. We are all in the midst of it and as is demonstrated here, all stand by our ways as the right way. Which they are. For us.
Do I judge people for weaning before 26 weeks? Not a speck. Are many babies ready before 26 weeks? Absolutely. Are many babies weaned before they are ready? Well yes.
All people try to do time and again on these threads is dispel the myths and offer the facts. It can be frustrating and it's a timely lesson to remember to temper your responses accordingly. We are all just parents trying to do our very best.
I'm sorry if I inadvertantly offended anybody.