Weaning at 2.5 Years

Vitamin B supplement (though be careful about taking too much).
Tell him he is a big boy now too. Not easy if they love it -- but really want attention at this age - snuggling with a book. Someone said cabbage...eating it too will change the taste - coleslaw, etc. Or get pregnant again, ha, ha.

Just tell him that big boys drink milk from a cup. He is well old enough to understand no.

I weaned my daughter at 20 months and it wasn't too bad but she didn't wake at night to nurse really. One thing we did at night was to snuggle in the rocking chair with a warm sippy cup of milk. Your son is old enough that you could tell him it's all gone. He might not be happy about it for a bit given that toddlers like to have their way.

They don't use the shots or medication to dry up breastmilk anymore as they had serious side effects for some women and didn't always work.

Before you wean, you might want to read up on toddler sleep and how you can help your son learn to sleep without nursing. Try Dr. Sears Baby Sleep book (there is a section on toddlers) and I haven't read this one but the Baby Whisperer has one for toddlers too. I liked most of what she had to say in the baby book.

Congrats on reaching the 2 year mark!!!

Two times a day is too often? Many toddlers use nursing as a wind down mechanism and they can do so because they feel safe, comforted and loved by you while they nurse. This is usually around the time where night-time fears emerge, so the nursing at night when he wakes up may be soothing his mind after dreams.

Warm milk and snuggle as Dori said is one of the methods I used to help wean mine a couple weeks ago. He is 20mos

Have someone else put him to bed for 3 nights in a row and leave the house so you are nowhere nearby and don't text or call about how it is going. He'll probably still want to nurse in the morning. That is fine for those 3 days. Then, it's time for the final push. What does he love that you never let him eat? Ghiradelli chocolate? I used animal crackers. Everytime he wants to nurse, give him that amazing something - but never let him nurse. Get him outside playing, visiting friends, go to the children's museums and parks. He will be over it in three days. It is hard work at those times when he is used to nursing, but if you are clear then you can persevere!

Cabbage worked wonders for me, just a warning though that it might dry up in 2 days as mine did. It's basically putting cabbage leaves in your bra and voila, milk gone in a couple of days. It's a bit uncomfortable having cabbage there but it does the job. Make sure if you try this you are prepared to have him face cold turkey from bfding. I nursed mine until 24 months and it was not as bad as I thought it would go, I weaned him first then I did the cabbage thing and my milk was gone in 2 days. PM if you want anymore details on how I weaned.

If it's bedtime and nighttime that he's still nursing, I'd suggest making yourself unavailable. If you are married/partnered, be out of the house at bedtime - go to the gym, coffee house, take a class, whatever and leave dad in charge of bedtime. Dad can start a new bedtime routine that after a few weeks, you can do as well. Have dad go in when your little guy wakes up in the night and offer him a cup of water, which he/you can then start leaving in your son's bed/crib.
Good luck and good for you to bf for 2+ years!

The best way to dry it up is to lessen the amount of times you nurse, and eventually stop. Your son does not need to nurse during the night. Believe me I can relate. I went through that with my son who is 12 months old. He'd wake up to nurse, and I would let him, then he'd zonk out. I finally grew strong and stopped letting him at night. I guess around 7 or 8 months. It took him a short time (few days) to realize he was not getting milk and he got used to it. He would wake for a short time, and I would rub or pat him and refuse the milk. You should try. He might scream but he is only waking up for it out of routine, he is NOT hungry if he eats and drinks during the day. Best way to do it is to stop. I started weaning and thought it would be hard. It's been about 3 weeks and we dropped down to 1 or 2 nursings either when he wakes or goes to sleep. I give him sippy cups, and he is doing well. Good luck.

Tell him it hurts you and graadually do it less and less... your milk poduction will reduce accordingly and when you stop you wont have as much as an engorgement problem.

Well, hon, it generally won't dry up if it's still being used! I would try taking him to the store and letting him pick out his very own, super-special sippy cup just for bedtime. Put whatever beverage of choice he has in it, and make a big deal out of his new big boy bedtime routine. It might not hurt to add a very super special new stuffed animal to sleep with, also...

Aaaahh...I know the tooth police will yell at me for what I just wrote. You may have to take the cup away from him when he gets sleepy, but to me getting him weaned would be the first step, followed by the drink getting further and further from the actual sleepytime...

Best wishes and blessings,

Hi N.,
I don't think that you have to worry about eliminating milk production (that will happen on its on as you stop nursing). If you're ready, you have to help your son to adjust to going to bed and/or waking up in the middle of night without nursing. Perhaps it would be easier to discontinue a little at a time. I recently stopped completely when my daughter was a little over 3 (for the year prior, we were only nursing right before bed). I found that it was easier to eliminate the middle of the night nursing and maintain just the "before bed" time together. I elected to discontinue the middle of the night times b/c I was exhausted. It was rough for her the first few nights, but then she adjusted and slept much better. I would go to her and comfort her when she cried, but then encourage her to go back to sleep (we share a room....for a couple of nights, I had to go out to the couch and sleep). I found that when we were both sleeping better, the before-bed nursing by itself became even more special and we were both ok with continuing with only that. I have no idea when my daughter would have self-weaned! If it weren't for the coxsackie virus a few weeks ago (which caused her to have extremely painful mouth sores and to avoid opening her mouth for anything) I think that she would still be nursing at 3 years + 2 months (and I must say that although I never thought that I would be one of "those Moms" who did extended nursing, I was a happy and peaceful member of the club!) I think that it was more emotional for me at the end than her!

I wish you all the best !

Sorry, no hints on drying up, unless you could get your doctor to prescribe the dry-up pills they give moms who aren't going to nurse. Try to reduce the demand for milk, so that the supply will go down.

Kudos to you for nursing this long! Maybe if you could get rid of the middle of the night nursings you could keep the bedtime one? Just a thought--this time is so precious, and really rather short, in the scheme of things.

You could try substituting water for the nighttime wakings, also if Dad can handle those it might help (don't know if that is an option for you). You could also contact La Leche League for advice. 1-800-LA LECHE or www.llli.com

Enjoy your remaining nursings!

K. Z.

My twin daughters were around your son's age when they fully weaned. By that time, we were down to just once a day. I had a cold and I took an antihistimine, and that actually did dry my milk up some. My girls were nursing and one of them said there wasn't any milk. So I told her that mommies have milk for their babies, but when the babies grow up they don't have milk any more. And that seemed to satisfy them and we just stopped.

Good luck!

Okay... both my kids self-weaned. My choice.

My daughter self-weaned at about 2.5 years old.
Along the way... I talked to her about it... one day she will be a big girl and not need it, I taught her manners about it (ie: NOT in public, not to demand it, to ask nicely, it is MY body, etc.), also when she'd ask I would say "In a minute, Mommy is busy..." then I would NOT sit down and would make myself busy. She then got distracted and forgot about it.

Then one day out of the blue, she told me "I don't drink from you anymore..." and she giggled like she thought it was so ridiculous she did that. And that was it. She stopped.

My son on the other hand was more matter of fact about it. At about 1 years old... he would just HATE when I tried to nurse him... he would literally scream and SLAP my boobs away... rejecting it. Period. So I then stopped. He was all done, with me.

My friends, who had self-weaned their kids... and their kids did so at about 2.5 years old, did this: They put Band-Aids on their nipples and told their child "Mommy doesn't have milk anymore..." or, "Mommy has a boo-boo...." and they said that worked for them WELL. The used the Band-Aids on their nipples... until their kid, was stopped and didn't bother asking to nurse anymore. They said it didn't take long.

Next, you might give your son or let him have a lovey.
Substitute something else... for comfort.

all the best,
Susan