Extended Breastfeeding the Older Baby or Toddler

Extended Breastfeeding the Older Baby or Toddler

I’m a huge extended breastfeeding advocate, and let my son Griffin nurse as long as he wanted to.

When he was first born, I found so many awesome books and online resources about breastfeeding. I learned about the proper latch, the appropriate amounts and times to nurse (any and all times!), the best breastfeeding positions, etc.

Griff and I sailed through nicely for the first 8 months because, up to that point, he really wasn’t eating a ton of solids.

Once he did start incorporating food, he dropped his afternoon feeding. Like any first time mom, I started wondering… “was this OK?” I then started looking for books and online sources to learn more about the process of weaning.

I didn’t find much information about breastfeeding the older baby or toddler…

What I did find was vague and theoretical… I wanted a plan! Unlike the 8-12 feedings in 24 hour period guideline for newborns, all I saw were general statements like “the baby and you will figure it out.”

So here’s where I’m at now with breastfeeding my 16-month old

Extended breastfeeding: what I’ve learned along the way

So, I stumbled through the weaning process, and will continue to, by talking to other moms, a lactation consultant and La Leche League members. What I’ve learned along the way is trust yourself and trust your baby. The baby will lead the way.

The weaning process certainly isn’t linear

There’s no set plan or program for extended breastfeeding. All we can do is share our experience. We need to talk more about this so that we aren’t alone though.

By 13 months, Griffin went down to one nap a day, and dropped another feeding. At this point, he had just three feedings during the day; however he was still getting up two times a night for feedings.

At 14 months, Griffin started sleeping through the night

Griffin sleeping through the night is a whole other (joyous) post. What it meant for his nursing was that he was down to just three sessions a day and zero in the night (yippee!). He nurses once when he wakes up, once before his midday nap, and once before bed. Easy peasy!

In between, he’s eating a good amount of food, mostly fruits, vegetables, whole yogurt, cottage cheese, raw cheeses and some soaked or sprouted grains.

I have not supplemented with any other milk (cow, goat, etc.) because Griff is getting 16-20 ounces a day of breast milk which is plenty.

He pretty much sticks to our little schedule, but occasionally he’ll nurse spontaneously if he’s upset or tired, which I love.

And that’s where we are now with extended breastfeeding at 16 months

In retrospect, I think the reason there isn’t really specific weaning protocols is because of the huge variances between babies. Some kiddos are still nursing 5 times a day at 2 1/2 years old. Some babies fully wean at 10 months despite their mamas wanting them to continue. And there’s everything in-between.

So, let’s talk about extended breastfeeding and learn from each other.

Need breastfeeding help?

I’m a huge extended breastfeeding advocate. But as I nursed my toddler past one year, I noticed that there wasn’t a lot of information on breastfeeding the older baby. So I created this video to share where I was with nursing, and to ask other moms how their journey was going too.Update!

I ended up weaning my extended breastfeeding toddler at 2 years of age. Click here to read and see how I did it.

How about you?

What’s your weaning experience been like? Are you extended breastfeeding on demand or setting limits?

Here are more breastfeeding resources:

• Lactation Consultant to the Rescue! (What they do and how to work with them)
• All About La Leche League

Original article and pictures take www.mamanatural.com site