To Wean Or Not To Wean | Giftie Etcetera: To Wean Or Not To Wean

Thursday, April 16, 2009

To Wean Or Not To Wean

Loki will be 7 months old on the 19th. He has two teeth, and more certainly on the way, but no biting so far. He is communciating a little. He does the milk sign sporadically. He shakes his head "no" when you tell him "no no." He definitely knows how to get what he wants.

I was planning to be WAY DONE nursing by now. I don't enjoy it. I have a freezer full of milk. If I had kept pumping like I was, and weaned today, I'd have enough milk to last through one year old.


I was a slacker about pumping for the last month and a half. I literally only pump if I miss three bottles in a day, which only happens if Loki spends the night away. Which happened, oh, maybe once. So now I have plenty of milk to supplement two bottles a day until one year, but that's about it.

I have weaned out about two feedings a day on weekdays. He gets frozen milk in a bottle. On the weekends, I mostly nurse the whole time. My dilemma is whether to wean another feeding. (I have to wean slowly, because I get infections very easily.) If I do, I won't have enough milk to last until one year. And if I pump, there's no point in weaning (for my body). But if I don't, how do I wean slowly without going past a year old, which I am really not wanting to do? Honestly, I am wishing I was already weaned. I planned to be, but my body is struggling so much and not cooperating. I still have overproduction, even just nursing morning, after work, and evening.

Do I pump? Do I not?

Ugh. This is not supposed to be so complicated.



Mommy said...

this is really the sort of situation for which only you know the answer.

but since you asked :)

I don't think you should pump to have enough milk for the rest of the year. given your over supply problems i think this would be a source of woe in your life. unless of course you want to start donating milk to premies or something.

the more solid foods Loki eats over the next 5 months the less milk he is going to want from you and from a bottle. it will be gradual which will be good for your boobies.

you aren't going to be able to go cold turkey without getting an infection so i think whatever plan you make needs keep that in mind.

Good luck!

G in Berlin said...

And I have just wandered over here from Shakeswille and Elle and, as a perfect stranger, will give you my .02 which you can totally ignore.
I think you should pump and breastfeed and know that WHO thinks breastfeeding until 4 is perfectly ok, that 1 should be the minimum and that 2 is preferable. Although children can digest cow's milk at a year plus, that doesn't mean that they need to. And wow- I pumped for 11 months with a terrible undersupply problem and I am so envious of your problem.

Giftie Etcetera said...

G - EBeth probably would suggest the same thing, but she knows I don't have it in me. Lol. That I, girl who hates breastfeeding and only did it because I am educated, am still nursing a 7 month old is AMAZING. Ha ha. But more power to the mommies who outlast me!

I hope you are right, Beth, about the food. Right now, he pretty much refuses food. If I am lucky, he eats about half a stage 1 jar A DAY! But if he does slow down on feeding, I should be able to slow down, too, and wean by one year.

I KNOW (in my head) that overproduction is mostly a blessing, but I am so done with this! At the same time, I'd really like to go to one year on boobie juice.

Gretchen said...

Ok, here's my .02 cents, for what it's worth...

Feed him food first, then nurse, that'll slowly cut down on how much he drinks.

Pump some to build up enough to go a year, but not to take yourself to dry. That way your body will still start makeing less.

And add me to the envious list, I too struggled with under supply.

I also cut her off one feeding at a time, going a week or two before cutting off the next one. It worked fine. After the "last" one I got engorged, after waiting a bit, I gaver her one last nurse for relief, and that did it. No more engorgment.

Anonymous said...

Are you calculating the year based on his current milk consumption? Keep in mind that as Loki gets older, he'll be eating more and more solid foods. His milk consumption will go down.

I know it doesn't seem like it right now, but this is a problem that will likely solve itself over time. He will probably wean himself. - DM.