How to wean a child from the breast 1. What happens to the breast. Frequent nighttime awakenings

Two years of age is when many mothers feel the need to stop breastfeeding. This desire in most cases is dictated by the need to go to work or other circumstances. Some women simply feel very tired, so they want to stop breastfeeding. When making this decision, they ask - how to wean a child from breastfeeding at 2 years old? The child is used to it, so women understand that just like that, he most likely will not want to change the way he feeds. One way or another, but it needs to happen. "Popular about health" will tell you several ways how this can be done.

According to doctors, breast milk is especially valuable for a child up to one year of age. At this time, the diet of the crumbs is still quite meager, therefore most of nutrients he receives with mother's milk. In addition, it contains antibodies that help the child's body cope with infections from the external environment. Pediatricians insist that a woman continue breastfeeding for at least a year, and preferably longer if circumstances permit. They advise to do it before two years of age baby. Why?

At 2 years old, the diet of the crumbs is already becoming diverse, kids eat almost everything - vegetables, fruits, meat, dairy products, cottage cheese, bread. Children's body already receives all the necessary substances from food, while breast milk by this time loses its original value. Children from one and a half to two years old need the breast more as a means of communication with their mother, and not as a source of nutrition. They feel tactile contact, play with the breast, calm down with it, fall asleep, that is, children at the age of 2 experience a purely psychological attachment to the breast. If a nursing woman is tired or she has a need to go to work, then 2 years - suitable age when it is time to wean your baby from breastfeeding, without depriving the baby of something valuable. But how to do that? Consider some effective ways cessation of lactation.

How to wean a child from breastfeeding at 2 years?

It is known that our grandmothers used not the most safe means to stop lactation. Among them were such - bandaging of the mammary glands, lubricating the nipples with mustard, garlic and other substances with an unpleasant taste and smell. However modern girls rarely resort to such methods. First, bandaging the breast is dangerous for the health of the mother. Stagnation of blood and milk will lead to mastitis, and this is very serious illness. Why take the risk when there are more gentle methods of weaning.

We send mom to grandma for a week

This method is the easiest and most painless, but it is suitable if you have already left the baby with other relatives. As a rule, upon the return of the mother, the child quite calmly manages without a breast.

This method requires a preliminary reduction in the number of feedings. That is, it cannot be used sharply, so as not to provoke lactostasis. Ideally, you should gradually come to the fact that the child suckles only before bedtime.

Medical method

If you want to wean your baby quickly, consult a gynecologist about taking hormonal drugs which reduce the production of prolactin. There are several drugs to stop lactation, but they have side effects.

Gradual reduction of lactation

If time permits, start preparing your baby in advance for parting with the breast. It requires effort, patience, but the result will be justified. Reduce feeds gradually. Do not let the child just “hang on the chest” for the sake of fun. At 2 years old, children already understand everything, they can be explained that sisya is not a toy, she is tired. Allow suckling milk only before daytime and nighttime sleep. Stop feeding at night, which will significantly reduce milk production. If you manage to do this, then a short-term departure will be very useful, the baby will painlessly transfer it and forget about the chest.

How to reduce milk production?

So that the mother does not suffer in the process of weaning, you need to use techniques to reduce the production of milk in the glands. How?

1. Drink less liquid.

2. Get fit (when physical activity less milk comes in).

3. Don't pump.

4. Reduce the number of attachments.

5. Completely refuse feeding at night.

Reducing the number of attachments will certainly affect the baby - his need for tactile contact will be unsatisfied. How to compensate?

Increase your time with your baby

Since the baby will lose the breast, which is a source of comfort for him, it is necessary to pay more attention to the baby. Every time he asks for boobs, distract him, play together, hug and kiss. When putting the baby to bed, lie down next to him, stroke the child so that he feels your warmth and closeness. This will help satisfy psychological need crumbs in tactile contact.

It is easier to wean a child at 2 years old than a younger one, since he already has more understanding. You will have to show patience and perseverance. Relatives - dad or grandmother can help with this. Let them also devote more time to playing with the child and caresses, so that he feels psychological support from various sources, and not just from mom and her breasts.

Breastfeeding your baby is truly wonderful. It is known that unique vitamins and minerals are transferred to the child with it, immunity and health are laid for life. But there comes a time when the mother’s head is brewing the question “how to wean a child from breastfeeding?”

New mothers have a hard time. After all, there are many opinions and ways to make weaning less sensitive for mom and baby. But what is the right way to wean a child? Let's talk about everything in order.

It is pointless to be afraid that with the cessation of breastfeeding the child will receive something less. If the baby is healthy and energetic, then with the introduction of complementary foods, he receives all the benefits of vegetables, fruits, juices, protein, etc. Closer to 1 year, the child consistently receives complementary foods 3 times a day, and breast-feeding remains only an addition. And this is quite enough.

The need for babies after 1 year is more psychological. At the moment of feeding, the baby needs connection with the mother, not food. According to pediatricians, weaning a child from breastfeeding should be no earlier than two years. Psychologists call other numbers - from a year to a year and a half. In any case wean one year old baby from breastfeeding will be more difficult than a 1.5 or 2 year old.

But the most correct decision will be to listen to yourself and to your child.

Pediatricians brought out a list of signs. They will help determine that the baby is ready to exist without breast milk:

the child got out more than 8 milk teeth;
in the diet of the baby there are 4 full meals and 2 short applications between them;
the baby is easily distracted from the chest by toys;
the baby falls asleep on its own without sucking.

Weaning methods

Lactation crises are the most auspicious time for the female body to stop lactation. The amount of milk produced is reduced, and colostrum appears instead. This period falls on 1 or 1.5 years after the birth of the child.

But if the time of weaning does not coincide with lactation crisis? How to be then?

Sharp way

As for the abrupt cessation of breastfeeding, is it necessary? It's hard for mom emotionally and may cause psychological harm to the child. If you choose fast way weaning from breastfeeding, then it is necessary to leave the child to the grandmother, sister or other relative for a couple of days.

Abrupt cessation of lactation can cause problems with the mammary glands. To avoid them, you must:

reduce the amount of fluid you drink;
reduce the intake of hot food and drink;
pull the chest with a tight bra;
periodically express and prevent stagnation of milk in the chest.

Soft or natural weaning

Gradually curtailing breastfeeding is the most comfortable process for weaning children from breastfeeding. Be prepared that this is a long period. In general, it can take up to six months.

For maximum harmony, the child must be prepared for it in advance.

Gradual refusal of morning feeding. Offer him breakfast cereal instead of breasts.
Gradually remove feedings in daytime. Switch your child's attention to toys, walks or entertainment. If the baby is tired and he needs maternal attention, he will certainly want to take his “food”. Connect dad to this process. Let him put the baby down during the day and read a fairy tale during this period. Many fathers are happy to help their wives.
Withdrawal from evening breast sucking. Offer the baby a hearty dinner in advance and continue to distract the baby from the chest with lullabies and motion sickness.
Avoid feeding at night. This stage is the most difficult. After all, to convince a tired baby that mother's hugs are better than the usual portion of "food" is not an easy task. But doable. The main thing is to be calm and consistent.

Thanks to smoothly changing stages, a woman's breasts will produce less milk. This will happen due to a decrease in the frequency of applications. A woman will experience minimal discomfort and hormonal disruptions. This method is most favorable for mother and baby. But a woman will need a lot of patience and time.

With the help of medicines

About the benefits soft weaning we talked. But there is a more crude way - medication. It is rarely used to stop lactation. Breastfeeding is a natural process of interaction between mother and child. Any medicines artificially affect him. In addition, after taking the pill, you should not count on a sharp cessation of milk production.

Drugs to suppress lactation are used in medicine in the following cases: termination of pregnancy in the 3rd trimester, stillborn, serious condition of a woman, complicated by purulent mastitis, pathology of the mother and the newborn.

But if it is necessary to stop lactation, then gynecologists and mammologists offer pills containing female sex hormones for this. They affect prolactin, which is controlled by the pituitary gland.

Change hormonal background in a nursing woman causes short-term or long-term side effects:

nausea;
dizziness;
pressure reduction;
fainting.

The drugs are taken from 10 days to two weeks. During the reception, the woman will have to take care of the baby, as before, but it will be doubly difficult for her. So, if possible, it is better to choose a natural curtailment of lactation.

So, about what preparations goes speech:

Estrogen. It is a female sex hormone. It is used in conjunction with testosterone. It is rarely used by doctors.
Bromocriptine.
Cabergoline.
Bergolac.
Dostinex.
Agalates.

How to make it easier to stop breastfeeding

Curtailment of breastfeeding is associated with the transition of mother and baby to completely new level. When making decisions to end breastfeeding, do so thoughtfully. The following tips will help make this period as comfortable as possible.

Be mentally prepared for the difficulties of curtailing breastfeeding. Realize how your life will change after the termination of the process laid down by nature. For example, the topic “how to replace the child’s need for sucking” is relevant. Many people remember the pacifier. baby after final stage breastfeeding can become even more dependent on you and restless. Perhaps in such a situation, you rushed to completely stop breastfeeding.

Agree with the child about the time and place of feeding. Of course, this recommendation is acceptable for children over 1.5 years old. If you begin to discuss these points with the baby, the result will not be long in coming.

Distract baby from thinking about breasts . This applies to older children. They may want to breastfeed when they are bored. If you notice this trend, then try to walk more often, go to classes in early development or to the pool. But it also happens vice versa, the child sucks the breast when he gets tired. Distracting the baby in this case will be more difficult.

Replace feeding with petting and physical contact. This applies to children over one year old. The nutritional function of breast milk is replaced by an invaluable contact with the mother.

Find the cause of frequent breast sucking. If you notice that the baby is applied to the breast too often, perhaps he lacks your attention? In fact, you are at home with the child, walking with him. But are you completely dedicated to him? Perhaps you are more often than necessary, distracted from it? Or, say, your relationship with your husband leaves much to be desired. The kid feels it and demands it heightened attention.

Talk to your mother, mother-in-law or husband. Are they ready to help you wean your baby off morning feeds? They only need to distract the child from the chest in the morning with a delicious breakfast in the kitchen. The same can be done with evening styling. It is possible that the process will not immediately give results.

Skip some feedings. It also happens that mothers want to stop breastfeeding too soon. Not because they are tired of it. And because of the discomfort associated with specific hours of feeding. For example, for toddlers, morning and night feedings will only benefit. They will support fragile immunity during the adaptation period in kindergarten.

Don't insist. If you are determined to stop lactation, and the baby is protesting too actively, do not insist. Perhaps, while breast milk is vital for him. Stop trying and come back to them in a couple of weeks. The process can go a lot easier.

What not to do when weaning

Let's say your smooth weaning of your baby from breastfeeding is going well. But at some point, the baby turns on a clear protest. If the mother continues to insist on curtailing breastfeeding, then the child will want to suckle even more.

Why does this happen and what is the mother's mistake:

Setting the timing of the cessation of feeding. It should always be mutual agreement with baby.
Weaning a baby from the breast during recovery from an illness, on the eve of moving or entering kindergarten.
Weaning from sucking after suffering a shock: shock, fright or prolonged absence of mother.
Smearing the nipples with brilliant green or mustard. This is a huge stress for the baby. After all, your chest is the personification of confidence and calmness. Also, you may damage delicate skin around the baby's mouth.
Replacement of night feedings with milk or water with sugar. The baby may form. Better offer him some plain water.

Dear mothers, do not worry and be afraid of the stage of completion of breastfeeding. Next, no less wonderful periods await you, associated with the growth and development of your crumbs. Let breastfeeding be the best for you favorably. Health to you and your children!

Useful video on how to wean a child from breastfeeding

Answers

Breastfeeding a baby is a very touching moment of unity between mother and child. One can talk endlessly about the importance of this process, but, sooner or later, there comes a moment when it is time to stop breastfeeding. It is very important for both mother and baby to competently complete the lactation process. What options exist and how to do it right choice- you will find out by reading our article.

Possible ways of weaning

If you decide that it is time to stop lactation and wean your baby from the breast, then there are three ways to do this:

"Soft" weaning- this method is based on the gradual reduction of breastfeeding until complete cessation. It requires patience from the mother and some time for a smooth weaning.
Reception hormonal drugs - after taking special pills in the body, the production of the hormone prolactin, which is necessary for the formation of breast milk, stops. This method is not suitable for all women, has many side effects and requires consultation with a gynecologist.
"Grandma" or folk method- you leave home for a while, and leave the baby with a close family member. This method can frighten the baby and put him in a state of stress.

The Best Way: How to Wean Your Baby Naturally

IN last years"soft" and gradual weaning from breastfeeding choose more and more modern mothers.
This is not at all surprising, because it is this method that allows you to smooth out as much as possible stressful condition in a baby without a mother's breast, and for the female body, to nullify the appearance of mastitis and lactostasis. Let's find out what the essence of this method is.

How long does a soft weaning last?

Weaning a baby from the breast natural way It takes a month and a half - about one week for each of the stages. Let's consider them in more detail.

Main stages

Lactation consultants have conventionally divided the process of "soft" weaning into four stages:

At the very beginning, you should exclude all attachments of the baby to your breast without the purpose of further falling asleep. If during the day the child tries to climb under the T-shirt on his own, you should in every possible way distract him from this activity. Go to visit, to the park, look at colorful illustrations in books, draw - come up with any activities that will distract the "lover of my mother's sissy."
The next stage is the replacement of feeding after waking up from daytime sleep. At this stage, you will again come to the aid of distracting the attention of the child.
Keep handy interesting book Or a toy that will please him. Remind your child that he is expected exciting adventures and immediately proceed to the intended program after his awakening. Starting from the age of one and a half years, you can try to negotiate with children.
Explain that you will not breastfeed. Do not raise your voice, do not hit on the hands and do not punish the baby for trying to get his mother's breast, so familiar to him. Gently but firmly, refuse him, take the children's hands away from your T-shirt and switch the child's attention to other things.
The next step is to teach the baby to fall asleep without the help of the breast. Here, the creation of rituals for the night and the help of loved ones will come to your aid. Creating bedtime rituals is a daily repetitive activity that will precede falling asleep in the evening.
It could be joint reading books, bathing, watching a cartoon - in general, any quiet and calm actions, after which the baby will know - soon he will sleep.
The creation of such rituals has a calming effect on the children's nervous system, because the baby is already consciously preparing for actions that he has already mastered well. It is the routine performance of actions at the same time that develops a sense of habit in the baby.

As a variant of falling asleep without a breast - the help of loved ones. Dad or grandmothers can prepare him for bed - bathe, change into pajamas, sing a lullaby and be around until the baby sleeps. Not seeing his mother, he will not be nervous about the lack of breasts before bed, so falling asleep should be more relaxed.

If falling asleep is possible only with mom, then lie down next to the child, kiss, stroke, hug - let him feel that the absence of a breast does not mean the absence of a mother nearby. Do not forget that during the period of weaning from breastfeeding, you should wear tight T-shirts or even golf - such clothes will not provoke additional interest in your breasts.
The final step is to remove night feedings. If your child is used to waking up several times at night to drink mother's milk, then now the most important thing for you is not to breastfeed.
Take the awakened baby in your arms or put it next to you and put him back to sleep. A bottle of water or milk sometimes helps to replace the breast at night, but control the amount of liquid you drink at night.
Over time, as soon as the baby woke up, do not rush to immediately put a bottle of drink in his hands - try to give him the opportunity to learn to fall asleep on his own. If you can’t immediately completely remove breastfeeding at night, do not despair.

Gradually reduce the time the baby stays under the breast, replace this process with drinking water or let dad get up to him at night. As a rule, after 2-3 nights, the baby will stop demanding his mother's breast at night, and each time his sleep becomes calmer and stronger - to the delight of his parents.

Important! Do not give your baby sugary drinks, compotes and other goodies in a bottle as a substitute for nightly breastfeeding. The child will like their taste and he will specially wake up at night in order to drink them, in addition, do not forget that sugar destroys the thin tooth enamel in children.

Video: how to wean a baby from the breast

The benefits and harms of the method for mother and child

Using the method of "soft" weaning, it is difficult to find cons. A gradual decrease in the number of attachments to the breast triggers a decrease in the level of prolactin in the blood, which leads to a natural extinction of lactation.

For the baby, this process is also painless - interest in mother's breast is replaced by others. interesting things, gradually and gently, mother's milk first fades into the background, and then completely disappears.

The only drawback is that not every mother is able to resist the crying of her baby. But do not give up, especially if you notice progress in this matter. If it's important to you quick result and you do not have time to organize a gradual weaning, then there is another way - with the help of hormonal drugs to stop lactation.

Did you know? After completion of lactation, female breast can be kept for half a year minimal amount milk, this is due to the restructuring of the body. In this case, the most important thing is not to express it, so as not to provoke the production of new portions of breast milk.

Is it possible to wean a child from the breast with medication?

Medical cessation of lactation should be used in rare cases when it is necessary to abruptly stop the production of milk by the female body.

Medications should be prescribed exclusively by obstetrician-gynecologists and only after personal consultations. It is important to understand that this method is based on intervention in the hormonal system of a woman, which carries certain risks.

Basic principles

The action of drugs that suppress lactation is based on slowing down and stopping the production of certain hormones, among which the hormone prolactin plays a special role - it is he who is responsible for the quantity and quality of milk produced.

Bromocriptine and cabergoline are the active ingredients that can make such major changes in the work hormonal system nursing woman.

Possible risks and side effects

First of all, you should familiarize yourself with the contraindications to the use of these drugs:

cardiovascular insufficiency;
high blood pressure;
stomach and duodenal ulcer;
kidney failure;
Raynaud's syndrome;
postpartum psychosis;
individual intolerance to the components contained in the preparations.

Taking drugs based on bromocriptine or cabergoline very often causes the appearance of side effects, among which: nausea, dizziness, sudden jumps blood pressure, resi in abdominal cavity, convulsions, vomiting, headaches, decreased vision, heart rhythm disturbance, irritability, lethargy and drowsiness.

It should be noted that the simultaneous use of alcohol, as well as certain antibiotics and drugs to suppress lactation, may increase the manifestation of adverse reactions.
Interfering with the production of hormones in the body can lead to hormonal disruptions after cessation of lactation. Often, after taking bromocriptine-containing drugs, women complained of seals in the chest, which soon turned into mastitis or even mastopathy.

Important! If your baby does not want to calm down and constantly cries without your breast, then perhaps his nervous system is not yet ready for weaning. If possible, postpone the process of cessation of lactation for several months. Thus, you will not injure the psyche of the baby, and also save your nerves.

How to wean a baby from the breast "grandmother's way"

A few decades ago, this method of weaning was considered the norm, and nursing mothers saw no other way than to leave home and leave the baby with someone close.

Video: folk ways cessation of lactation

The essence of the "separation" method

You will have to leave home for a while so that the baby does not see you and does not ask to suck on the breast. Over time, he will wean himself from this need and forget about his mother's sis. When mom comes home, he will no longer crawl under the T-shirt.

Is it worth using the method: advantages and disadvantages

This method can be called the most stressful for the child. Without seeing mom and her breasts with delicious milk, the baby is unlikely to think about something else. Period without moms will pass under great stress. Consequences from long separation with the closest person they can remind of themselves for a long time.

For a nursing mother, this method is no less difficult and dangerous - on the one hand, the experience and stress of separation from the baby, on the other hand, breasts full of milk, which can be very painful. This method of weaning often causes lactostasis.

When is it worth weaning a child: is it necessary to wait for involution?

The involution of lactation (involution of the mammary gland) is a natural process in the body of a nursing mother, when with a reduction in the number of attachments to the breast or with complete cessation breastfeeding in the mammary glands, the glandular tissues are converted into fatty tissues.
In other words, the chest is “rebuilt” into its previous form. Most often, the involution of lactation occurs in the period from 2 to 3 years. At this age, children no longer need their mother's milk so badly, their diet is varied, and their range of interests expands significantly.

The amount of milk produced by the female body becomes less and less, and gradually this process stops. Some mothers believe that after a year of breastfeeding there is nothing useful in milk, they say, milk becomes like water.

But that's not the case at all. Composition and appearance breast milk does change over time - at the very beginning it is sweeter and fatter, and closer to two years it is more watery. Such changes are due to the adaptation of milk to provide the necessary useful substances growing organism.
It has been proven that after a year it contains significantly more immunoglobulins, fats, trace elements and other active components, necessary for full development nervous system and intelligence in a child. Such completion of breastfeeding, according to modern pediatricians and mammologists, is the most correct for both the baby and the female body as a whole.

Specialists from World Organization Health (WHO) unanimously declare that in the first six months of a baby's life, his only food is exclusively mother's milk. Continue breastfeeding, but taking into account the timely introduction of complementary foods and with a gradual expansion of the diet, it is recommended up to two years.

Above this age - at the request and ability of the mother. At long period lactation has several undoubted advantages - a stronger the immune system in a child and the prevention of breast cancer and hormonal imbalances at his mom.

Moms opinion

And how do they treat prolonged feeding mother's breasts? In fact, feed up to two and more years- it's not easy. The cessation of lactation is often associated with reasons that are beyond the control of a nursing mother.

Taking antibiotics and hormonal drugs, health problems, the need to send the baby to a nursery, repeated pregnancy- all these factors significantly reduce the possibility of prolonged lactation. Do not forget that this process affects skeletal system, the condition of the hair and nails of a woman.

Many mothers note that over time they begin to get tired of breastfeeding. The once touching process of unity with the baby begins to be inappropriate, annoying and cause only irritation. Such a reaction can be a signal from the body that it is time to end breastfeeding, and you can find out further in our article how to understand whether the baby is ready for weaning.

Video: when to wean a baby from the breast

How to understand that a child does not need a breast: obvious signs

Observing the behavior of her child, an attentive mother may notice some signs by which it becomes clear that lactation can be stopped:

The teeth erupted, and the baby learned to chew solid food.
The baby does not suck on his fingers, bottom sponge or other objects.
There is at least one feeding - "adult" food adapted for the child.
If a child wants his mother's breast, it is easy to distract him with a book, a toy, or some other activity.
Your baby may fall asleep without your breast or her presence nearby.
The baby easily tolerates separation from his mother.
Waking up at night, the child can fall asleep again without application.
You breastfeed no more than three times a day.

In order for the mother to make such an important decision to stop lactation, it is important to listen to her own inner feelings and emotions.
If you have doubts about the correctness decision- do not rush, try to return to this issue in a month or two, because only a mother, like no one else, knows what exactly will be useful and necessary for her baby.

Weaning from breastfeeding: the opinion of Dr. Komarovsky

If you turn with this question to the chief expert on the part child health- Dr. Komarovsky, his advice on stopping breastfeeding is extremely simple. He suggests that his mother leave for a few days, and entrust the care of the child to her grandmother or husband.

Thus, having lived two or three nights without mother's milk, the baby will forget about his need for it. It is possible that after the mother returns home, the baby may try to get under the clothes in search of a breast, so it is very important to immediately stop these attempts and divert his attention to other interesting things.

Video: how to wean a child from breastfeeding To stop milk production female body, you can take special pills, which the attending gynecologist will help you choose.

Did you know? There are affordable folk ways to reduce milk production. For example, drinking sage tea - it contains phytoestrogen, which affects the production of prolactin, but is much "softer" than its medicinal counterparts.

When choosing a method of weaning from breastfeeding, do not forget about the psychological comfort for your baby. Abrupt cessation of lactation will adversely affect nervous system child, and may also be harmful to your health. Follow your intuition and the recommendations of modern doctors, and this process will be smooth and painless.

Weaning a baby from the breast is as serious a process as starting breastfeeding. So that, subsequently, neither the baby nor the mother has any health problems and deviations in the psycho-emotional sphere, it is necessary to wean the baby from the breast correctly.

Weaning: how to do it right?

There are always two people involved in breastfeeding: a mother and her baby. Therefore, the decision to stop breastfeeding should be made on the basis of mutual consent. Taking into account not only your desire, but also the physiological readiness of your child. How to understand that the baby is ripe for weaning? You will learn about this by watching him for a while and doing a few simple experiments.

A baby can be weaned if:

During the night, the baby very rarely wakes up for feedings.
The baby almost does not need comfort at his mother's breast when he is upset, scared or hurt.
The child is applied to the breast no more than 3 times a day.

Once you've made the decision that it's time to wean your little one, try not to rush things.

Ending breastfeeding is a gradual process. There is absolutely no rush here.

Third stage

Teach your baby to fall asleep without breastfeeding in the evening

Proceed in the same way as in the second step. It is very important that before going to bed the baby is not overexcited. His games in the evening should be calm. And the ritual of going to bed is familiar.

Only the father (or grandmother) should replace the mother next to the baby. But at night, you can still, if he so desires.

Fourth stage

Eliminate night feeds

On last step stopping breastfeeding at night, instead of mom, dad or someone else should respond to the call of the awakened little one. If the child refuses to fall asleep without kissing at night, let dad try to rock him and sing a lullaby to the baby. Usually, this stage is the most difficult and lengthy. But by keeping calm and acting purposefully, you will achieve your goal.

Be sure to pay attention to during weaning emotional condition child. If the baby suddenly began to suck his thumb or became afraid to let his mother go even for a short time, slow down, do not force things. Give your child time to adjust to new circumstances.

How long would a mother not breastfeed her baby, nevertheless, in certain time, she is faced with the question of how to wean a child from the breast. At the same time, every woman wants to carry out weaning so that everything goes as simply and painlessly as possible for the baby. Below we will talk about how to practice stopping breastfeeding and what new mothers need to remember in order to breastfeeding completed easily and without problems.

When to start this process?

One of the most important tips about when it is better to wean a child from breastfeeding, it sounds like this: you need to make this decision yourself. No need to listen to the advice of friends and relatives about when to finish. After all, weaning from breastfeeding occurs in all different time, and due to various factors, each mother tries to wean the baby in certain period.

Someone can’t wait to finally stop being closely dependent on the baby, someone seeks to quickly restore “pre-pregnant” forms, someone else needs to get involved in the work schedule at some point. However, there are less understood reasons why a baby stops breastfeeding at a certain period. For example, one can still hear the belief that after some time milk becomes not only useless for the baby, but even harmful. To believe such incomprehensible theories, no doubt, is not worth it.

Those for whom the question is relevant, when and how to wean a child from breastfeeding correctly, need to rely on the evidence of science and medicine. Therefore, it is important to understand exactly how milk is produced in the body. It is produced due to the action of a hormone. If the mother feeds the baby regularly, then the amount of milk does not decrease even after long time. And if the mother's nutrition is complete, then the composition mother's milk will be as rich as in the first months after the start of feeding.

Therefore, weaning a child from breastfeeding is carried out no earlier than the baby is one year old, of course, if there are no emergency reasons. If you follow the WHO recommendations, then you need to stop natural feeding no earlier than the baby is 1.5-2 years old. However, when weaning, you must first of all be guided by individual characteristics. It is very important that both mother and child are ready for this process.

Feeding is a process that unites a woman and her baby. Therefore, she must be psychologically prepared for the fact that such contact will be broken.

It is not recommended to stop natural feeding too early, because up to 1-1.5 years the baby may not be ready for this. In addition, in such a situation, there may be Negative consequences and for the mother, who under such conditions increases the risk lactostasis , the appearance of painful seals in the chest. With premature weaning, an early restructuring occurs in the body, which is fraught with the development hormonal disorders, as well as the prolonged release of milk from the breasts after the cessation of feeding.

emergency weaning

In life, situations may arise when it is necessary to stop breastfeeding on an emergency basis. Due to some reasons, natural feeding has to be stopped completely, sometimes it is enough to suspend it for a certain time, taking a break.

If it is possible to resume lactation after a break, it is imperative to do this, especially if the baby is not yet 1-1.5 years old.

Emergency weaning is necessary if the following reasons occur:

open form ;
hepatitis ;
oncological processes;
treatment with drugs incompatible with lactation;
purulent .

With mastitis and the use of drugs that are incompatible with feeding, lactation can be stopped only for a while. To maintain milk production, it must be expressed regularly during the treatment period. When the treatment is over, the woman can continue to breastfeed her baby. Gradually, milk will begin to be produced in the same volumes, and the baby will again receive a sufficient amount of it.

How do you know when it's time to stop breastfeeding your baby?

Answering this question, you need to consider it from the position of both mother and baby, since this process is not easy for both.

So, for a woman, the main factor indicating readiness to stop feeding is the lack of breast filling for a long time - from 12 hours.

There are several ways to determine how long milk has not been produced. It will be very easy for mothers of toddlers who go to kindergarten to understand that milk is not coming. If the mother does not feed the baby at night, then in the absence of milk in the breast during the day, you can understand that it is decreasing. At the same time, a woman should not feel pain in the mammary glands, they should not form seals.

Sometimes it is difficult for a woman to resist not to feed her baby during the day. In this case, you can leave the baby to one of the relatives so that there is no temptation to feed the baby.

If the mother fails for certain reasons to apply the methods described above, then it is possible to feed the baby only from one breast during the day, and observe the second.

Provided that the breast is not filled within 12 hours, it is necessary to count from 8 to 12 weeks, and after that the time will come when the woman's body will be completely ready to stop lactation.

But determining whether the baby is ready for weaning is more difficult. But still, every mother feels exactly what and when her baby needs, so it is for her, sometimes even on intuitive level the easiest way is to determine when the baby is ready to wean.

However, every mother should in this case think correctly. An important criterion is the refusal of the baby from the bottle, nipple, pacifiers. Attachments to the chest should be carried out from 1 to 3 per day. Moreover, it is this amount that should be constant for 1-2 months. As a rule, such a period comes and, accordingly, weaning from breastfeeding at 2 years. True, one should take into account the individuality of the process and understand that this can happen a little earlier and a little later.

When should the end of the GW be postponed?

It is important for every mother to understand not only how to wean a child from breastfeeding correctly, but also when you should not rush into this. After all, such situations also happen.

You should not start weaning from breastfeeding if the baby is going through a period of stress for some reason or this can happen in the near future. For example, this does not need to be done if a move is to take place in the near future, the mother plans to go to work and invite a nanny to take care of the child, the baby is going to go to a nursery, etc. All of these changes are stressful for a little person. The weaning process should be carried out either a few months before the expected stressful situations, or 2-3 months after such events.

According to Dr. Komarovsky and other pediatricians, feeding should not be stopped even at a time when the baby is experiencing crisis period. This happens when the child is one year old, after a year, at three years old.

Also, do not stop feeding immediately before vaccination and after this process. In the warm season, such changes are also not recommended, since at this time the risk of developing intestinal infections increases sharply. The baby, after the suspension of breastfeeding, becomes especially vulnerable to such infections.

If a young mother is already both mentally and physically ready to stop natural feeding, and the baby is applied to the breast no more than three times a day, you can complete this process.

You can stop lactation gradually or immediately and abruptly. However, it is the gradual weaning that is preferable for the baby, since he tolerates it less traumatically. Without a doubt, when contact with the mother becomes less close due to the cessation of feeding, the baby will feel it.

But still, it is important that a woman be confident and not hesitate in her intention. The baby will immediately feel mom's doubts, and this will further aggravate the difficult process.

Frequency reduction

When the frequency of feedings is seduced, this is already the stage of weaning. At this time, it is important for the mother to completely exclude all the moments that provoke her to feed the child. For example, you should not change clothes in front of a child so that he does not see the breast and does not seek to suck on it. Sometimes children may simply ask for breasts - not for the sake of satiety, but to play, or just out of boredom. In this case, you should distract the baby.

Weaning from falling asleep with the breast during the day

Children who are used to falling asleep with their mother's breasts need to be gradually weaned from this. First, you should teach the child to sleep without a breast during the day. Several times you can try to “talk” the child by putting him to bed and leaving, saying that mom needs to do something. Returning in a minute, assess the situation: if the baby requires a breast, it must be given. However, every day the period of mother's absence should increase, and after a while the baby will get used to falling asleep without a mother.

Sometimes a child can catch up with mom when she leaves. In this case, you should not be angry, but calmly take the baby back to the crib.

Weaning from falling asleep with the breast in the evening

When the child gets used to falling asleep during the day without whims about the chest, gradually you need to start accustoming him to fall asleep in the same way in the evening.

Provided that the baby no longer requires mother's milk during the day, it is necessary to reduce the duration and number of night feedings. But if at night you have to feed your baby, on the contrary, more and more often, this means that it is too early to think about how to complete breastfeeding. It is necessary to “step back” a little back and wait.

Unwillingness to wean can also be determined by the fact that the baby regularly sucks lower lip, finger, any object. This is how his inner feelings and unwillingness to stop close contact with his mother are expressed.

How can you not act?

No need to succumb to the persuasion of grandmothers and smear mustard on the chest. Such actions will provoke serious stress in the baby, and, moreover, the ingestion of mustard in the digestive tract can adversely affect the stomach.

You should not deprive the baby of increased attention during the period of weaning. Since this change in the baby's life is very serious for him, the mother should hug and kiss him more and more often, stroke his head, play with him. Such attention will help the baby find peace, reduce stress and anxiety.

You can't get mad at a child if something goes wrong. Indeed, in most cases, excommunication does not go according to plan - often something breaks down, and you have to start all over again. But in any case, it is important not to be nervous, but to calmly assess the situation and try to make this time easier for the child.

When milk stops flowing completely

As a rule, with the smooth end of feeding, lactation also gradually stops. So the question is what to do with breast milk after weaning, as a rule, is not relevant. Provided that milk is secreted, and the woman skips feeding, it must be expressed. Pumping is carried out only until a feeling of relief appears. When decanting, the amount of milk decreases every day. After decanting, it is recommended to make a cold compress or apply cold cabbage leaves to the chest.