How I weaned my breastfeeding toddler without any tears ❤️
Breastmilk is undoubtedly the most precious thing in the world as we all know with the breastfeeding awareness generated globally each year. At the same time, it need not be compulsory for every mom to continue breastfeeding her child due to several personal reasons. Again weaning off is a difficult milestone which mostly ends up in tears for both the mother and her child. I always wished it to be a pleasant journey for both of us.
.
,
For me it was a personal wish to breast feed my child atleast till he attains 2 years(as per the WHO regulations). I could achieve it successfully only with the support of my husband who stood by me at every crossroads of my life. There were times when I was discouraged, laughed at, humiliated,shamed by own relatives and friends when they saw me exclusively breastfeeding my son beyond 6 months. I just ignored and shut their mouths with a reply that I will stop only when my son and I feel that it's the correct time.
.
.
So as soon as we turned 'two', we started the process of weaning off . But I observed and understood that he was at a crucial phase of attaining growth spurt, so keeping him off the breast would do more harm than any help. So I simply continued with the flow but at the same time kept giving verbal enforcement that he is gonna be a big boy and shall be going to school soon and big boys don't drink mama's milk, instead they drink in their own special glasses.
1. Take your child along to buy a fancy glass of his own choice and make him feel grown up and special.
.
Few days the' grown up boy' pretended to have really grown up and refused his night shot but on other days, refused other drinks to have only breast milk.
.
So quickly we moved on to the next step:
.
2. Making a bedtime routine of reading books and telling stories.
.
Every night we would take a book to bed and read stories and end up nursing to sleep. It was a nice bonding time for me and my son and at the same time he also felt secure and loved. We also included drinking warm milk in his favourite glass in this routine.
.
.
3. Involving the husband in the weaning off period was the best thing for me.
Slowly lil one got into the routine of sleeping with books and milk in his special glass...but ..waking up in the middle of the night and crying for nursing still existed. So the father took turns to make the baby sleep making him feel loved and secure while the sleeping ( read 'acting') mom didn't budge. (Mind you,the baby wakes up as a part of habit and not due to hunger always. Ps.Kindly keep your emotions in control .Sigh!). So, a bit of gentle patting and lots of hugging with mild humming of lullaby by the father is all it takes to console the cranky toddler.(yayyy!)
.
.
4. Dr.Jay Gordon's weaning methods.
.
.
This worked brilliantly for us. It took exactly 3 difficult nights for us but by 7 days, all three of us were sleeping peacefully throughout the night. It was indeed a miracle for a mom whose child used to wake up every 2 hours earlier.(God bless Dr.gordon). Please read it as many times as you want and follow it completely to get a happy and cheerfully weaned baby.
.
.
5. Keep yourself strong and consistent.
.
.
A mother knows the best for her child and would do nothing under the sun that would harm him. So just keep yourself composed and do not give in. The child is not going to remember anything. So stay strong and focus on the pu
pose. Shower lots of love on the child and spend more time with him in making beautiful memories forever instead.
.
.
All these things helped me to night wean my toddler in a nuclear setup but it was possible only when my son was ready at around 2.5 years . Also soon thereafter a vacation at inlaws place automatically day weaned my toddler because he totally forgot about breastfeeding part amidst the running and playing with his cousins. He used to
exhausted that he easily went off to sleep as well.
.
.
Well,these are just a few suggestions for any mommy out there like me struggling to wean her baby. I would be glad if it works out for you. But if it doesn't , I wish the best for you and send more positive vibes your way so that your struggle ends soon.❤
#bbcreatorsclub #anjalisays #anjaliwrites #physioanjali
Breastmilk is undoubtedly the most precious thing in the world as we all know with the breastfeeding awareness generated globally each year. At the same time, it need not be compulsory for every mom to continue breastfeeding her child due to several personal reasons. Again weaning off is a difficult milestone which mostly ends up in tears for both the mother and her child. I always wished it to be a pleasant journey for both of us.
.
,
For me it was a personal wish to breast feed my child atleast till he attains 2 years(as per the WHO regulations). I could achieve it successfully only with the support of my husband who stood by me at every crossroads of my life. There were times when I was discouraged, laughed at, humiliated,shamed by own relatives and friends when they saw me exclusively breastfeeding my son beyond 6 months. I just ignored and shut their mouths with a reply that I will stop only when my son and I feel that it's the correct time.
.
.
So as soon as we turned 'two', we started the process of weaning off . But I observed and understood that he was at a crucial phase of attaining growth spurt, so keeping him off the breast would do more harm than any help. So I simply continued with the flow but at the same time kept giving verbal enforcement that he is gonna be a big boy and shall be going to school soon and big boys don't drink mama's milk, instead they drink in their own special glasses.
1. Take your child along to buy a fancy glass of his own choice and make him feel grown up and special.
.
Few days the' grown up boy' pretended to have really grown up and refused his night shot but on other days, refused other drinks to have only breast milk.
.
So quickly we moved on to the next step:
.
2. Making a bedtime routine of reading books and telling stories.
.
Every night we would take a book to bed and read stories and end up nursing to sleep. It was a nice bonding time for me and my son and at the same time he also felt secure and loved. We also included drinking warm milk in his favourite glass in this routine.
.
.
3. Involving the husband in the weaning off period was the best thing for me.
Slowly lil one got into the routine of sleeping with books and milk in his special glass...but ..waking up in the middle of the night and crying for nursing still existed. So the father took turns to make the baby sleep making him feel loved and secure while the sleeping ( read 'acting') mom didn't budge. (Mind you,the baby wakes up as a part of habit and not due to hunger always. Ps.Kindly keep your emotions in control .Sigh!). So, a bit of gentle patting and lots of hugging with mild humming of lullaby by the father is all it takes to console the cranky toddler.(yayyy!)
.
.
4. Dr.Jay Gordon's weaning methods.
.
.
This worked brilliantly for us. It took exactly 3 difficult nights for us but by 7 days, all three of us were sleeping peacefully throughout the night. It was indeed a miracle for a mom whose child used to wake up every 2 hours earlier.(God bless Dr.gordon). Please read it as many times as you want and follow it completely to get a happy and cheerfully weaned baby.
.
.
5. Keep yourself strong and consistent.
.
.
A mother knows the best for her child and would do nothing under the sun that would harm him. So just keep yourself composed and do not give in. The child is not going to remember anything. So stay strong and focus on the pu
pose. Shower lots of love on the child and spend more time with him in making beautiful memories forever instead.
.
.
All these things helped me to night wean my toddler in a nuclear setup but it was possible only when my son was ready at around 2.5 years . Also soon thereafter a vacation at inlaws place automatically day weaned my toddler because he totally forgot about breastfeeding part amidst the running and playing with his cousins. He used to
exhausted that he easily went off to sleep as well.
.
.
Well,these are just a few suggestions for any mommy out there like me struggling to wean her baby. I would be glad if it works out for you. But if it doesn't , I wish the best for you and send more positive vibes your way so that your struggle ends soon.❤
#bbcreatorsclub #anjalisays #anjaliwrites #physioanjali
Such an informative post Anjali, Yes I too read Gordon's method. Weaned off my 19 mo daughter from day feed by 1.5 yrs but struggling with night feeds. Even husband man couldn't control her, She is such a papa ki chamchi in day time. Always Doddy Doddy but night doesn't leave my side.
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Thanks for sharing
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It's very important post.. thanks for sharing
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I stopped daytime feeds first, but to wean off completely in the night too, took a bit longer for us. Eventually, we could do it 😊
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Laxmi Mishra
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22 May 2021