Weaning a 12 Month Old

You don't really have to quit, breastfeeding beyond a year can be great for you and your baby. I think a lot of people stop because they are worried about what people think, and that they will still have to breastfeed as often. As your child gets older, he will want it less often. My 20 month old only nurses 3 or 4 times a day, and he could be down to 2 nursings on most days (morning and night), but I always throw an extra nursing in. He never wants it when we are out anymore, he's too busy exploring. Just wanted to let you know that you have options.

I'm sorry, I'm not sure because I don't force-wean my kids. But, from what I have read, you don't need to replace nursing because they should be shifting to getting all their nutrition from their meals. Milk with meals, water in between with snacks, 3 meals, 2-3 snacks.
Good Luck:)

I am an advocate of child-led weaning. Why is the child being weaned by 12 months? New guidelines are moving toward 24 month minimum for a breastfeeding baby.

All babies will eventually wean themselves if given a chance. If your child is very-much in love with the boobie, I suggest continuing to nurse him. Breastfeeding is such an intimate, soothing, calming, protective, nourishing time in our lives and that of our children. Force weaning a child who is not ready can be traumatic for them.

Don't wean because you think you have to - most of the world breastfeeds their babies far beyond 12 months. The actually weaning age of a human child is between 2 and 7 YEARS of age. Some babies do wean easily, and perhaps your son is one of them. But if he is nursing 5 times a day, I would be very surprised if he is going to give up the tatas easily. Breastmilk beyond 12 months still offers an amazing array of protection and nourishment for a child.

My son is 22 months and quite the boob man (my daughter weaned at 3.5 years). I recently had Shingles and he had not had the chicken pox vaccine. When I called my pediatrician, she asked if I was still nursing him and I said yes. She said he most likely won't come down with chicken pox because I am giving him antibodies through my milk. She said, "It is great that you are still nursing - it protects him from the world in ways you couldn't imagine." And nope - no pox for him :)

You can also continue to breastfeed safely while pregnant (though some babies WILL wean when you are pregnant because the milk changes taste and consistency). I know many moms who tandem nurse toddlers and newborns happily.

:)

You should replace the nursings with meals / snacks. So, when you're down to a morning & b/4 bed nursing, the baby should get 3 meals per day of baby food or table foods. Then also give him a morning snack & afternoon snack. It can be baby food or table food, whatever you choose. I gave my kids a sippy cup with formula for meals (breakfast, lunch and dinner) when they were your baby's age, then switched to cow's milk at 1year. Then a sippy cup of water for snacks (mid morning & mid afternoon). I don't think you need to do 5 cups milk to replace 5 feedings. Have the baby on a set meal schedule, do milk (formula if <1) w/ meals & water with snacks. This is how I weaned both my children, and I nursed both until 12 and 13 months.

im sorry i dont have an anwser, but im glad im not the only one with this problem. My daughter is 10 months also and I have her down to night and morning nursings and 1 more in the middle of the day. The next step would be to cut out the middle of the day but if i do, she wont take a nap... I'd love to know what ends up working for you. good luck

If you're cutting nursing out around a year old, just start offering milk in a cup at meal time. Most babies struggle most with weaning before sleep, but it is fine to just offer milk at meals, water with snack, and nursing before sleep. If you start adding bottles it is just one more transition to make. My younger boy struggled most with losing the afternoon nursing--he need to reconnect when I got home from work more than he needed it before bed. Ask your doctor how many ounces of milk he should be drinking each day by a year and spread that out. He will be getting most of what he needs from solid food. Be careful also about milk in a cup or bottle before bed. Try to feed him earlier when you take that last feeding away and just let him have water after you clean his teeth. My boys also did better with a sippy cup of water in their cribs so they could have that handy if they woke up thirsty at night.

Yes Just replace the feedings that hes missed with other Nourishment, Milk or food. There is a chart where it says the OZ needed per age group of milk a day. I believe it is 24 OZ but I am not exact on that. It depends on what else he is eating and his weight and all that.

Make sure to give him lots of extra cuddles, eyecontact and face time.
When my son was 12 months he weaned me :) Then he hit 13 months and got all his teeth.

Is he taking solids? By 12 months, he should be eating 3 solid meals a day, plus a morning and afternoon snack. He should have milk in the a.m., at snacktime (about 3pm) and at dinner.
So, start weaning him down gradually and replacing those feedings with solids.
Eventually, you'll be down to one feeding per day and start to dry up a bit. I just quit cold turkey at that point. She was too busy to even notice. We never did bottles. I started her on her sippy at 5 months old for water/juice and so she just went straight to cup from breast.

Usually by age 1 they are able to drink whole milk. Start replacing the feedings with whole milk, little by little so you don't cold turkey one and start the other. I'd give him a sippy cup if he will take it. Using the bottle will only give you another transition to break in a year's time. My daughter was on a cup at 7 1/2 months. If you don't get the same number of feedings in, that's okay. He should be eating other foods as well now such as cheese, cereal, fruits, and veggies, of course cut into safe, childsize pieces. Hope this helps!