https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Sun, 12 Apr 2026 04:30:32 +0000 https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-is-self-weaning-like-how-did-you-know#post-2516237 Tue, 05 Apr 2016 14:27:45 +0000 Adira 2516237@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@ms. pug: Ooooh! Congratulations on that as well!!! :D </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-is-self-weaning-like-how-did-you-know#post-2516234 Tue, 05 Apr 2016 14:27:08 +0000 ms. pug 2516234@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Adira: thank you! Everyone here has been such a help. I've been absent on the boards a while but I'm back because I'm newly pregnant and feel like I forgot everything from last time, LOL! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-is-self-weaning-like-how-did-you-know#post-2516225 Tue, 05 Apr 2016 14:24:21 +0000 Adira 2516225@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@ms. pug: Yay! Congratulations on nursing for so long!! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-is-self-weaning-like-how-did-you-know#post-2516191 Tue, 05 Apr 2016 14:08:12 +0000 ms. pug 2516191@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>update in case anyone is interested- we are still nursing at 13 months- yay! Turned out he was not self-weaning, just going through a phase. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-is-self-weaning-like-how-did-you-know#post-2295245 Fri, 18 Sep 2015 17:02:43 +0000 sarac 2295245@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Ajsmommy: Honestly, I think that concept is just propaganda. Some babies are just far less interested, especially if they also get bottles, or they love their solid foods. I would not worry for a second about a baby who was gaining well and self weaned at 11 months. In fact - that would be awesome. My second daughter is already not a comfort nurser, at all, so I'm hoping for something like that. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-is-self-weaning-like-how-did-you-know#post-2295128 Fri, 18 Sep 2015 15:13:47 +0000 BabyTsMom 2295128@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Interesting, I had no idea that when my LO "self-weaned" at 6 months, it was actually a nursing strike. Semantics to me. So, when he pretty much flat-out refused for couple of days straight, I thought he was weaning himself, and we switched to formula. Simple as that. I never thought to wait it out; I was more concerned that he would starve! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-is-self-weaning-like-how-did-you-know#post-2295016 Fri, 18 Sep 2015 13:43:00 +0000 kes18 2295016@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I don't think babies under 14-18mo self wean. Anything sudden is a nursing strike. True self weaning will be very gradual (I have read) and they are older. It's very common for disinterest and refusals sometime from 6-12mo. I believe most would come back to it- though some women can definitely take advantage of this to wean (remember not offering the breast is a weaning technique). Also if you get pregnant, the change of milk back to colostrum can cause some babies to wean before they otherwise would have.</p> <p>Around 9 mo mine lost some interest and I had to pump on the weekends to maintain my supply for the workweek pumps. She took her bottles though. So we really did NOT nurse as much from 9-12 mo. She flat out refused some bedtime sessions and even whole days. Always drank the bottle though! </p> <p>At 12 mo I quit pumping so we just nursed morning, before bed, and sometimes once overnight. Around 15 mo she found a renewed interest in it and will often ask to nurse at other times (I usually tell her she needs to wait) and nurse for 30m ++ and get mad (for a few minutes) when I pull her off. She is 17mo now and still nursing, I am trying to X all overnight feedings (she sleeps through half the time and wakes up 1x the other half demanding milk).<br /> So mine has MORE interest in breastfeeding now at 17 mo and this hasn't happened since before 9months! I really didn't want to nurse past 2 so I'm not sure when she'll be ready or if I'll end up doing mother-led weaning.</p> <p>If your baby is under a year and you're not pregnant I wouldn't take anything as being self weaning, personally. I've even read that some people think true self weaning happens between 2-4 but I don't know that I'm cut out for that! <a href="http://kellymom.com/ages/weaning/considering-weaning/how_weaning_happens/" rel="nofollow">http://kellymom.com/ages/weaning/considering-weaning/how_weaning_happens/</a> </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-is-self-weaning-like-how-did-you-know#post-2294958 Fri, 18 Sep 2015 13:08:04 +0000 Ajsmommy 2294958@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Oy, the whole concept of babies won't self wean before 12 mos or 18 mos really, really depressed me and made me feel like a failure when I was bf'ing. You see, I WOH and my DD self weaned at 11 mos... Yup before that magic 12 month mark and I felt soo bad b/c "everyone" says it shouldn't happen.... well it did.</p> <p>My LO was a champ nurser, always was. She gained weight like mad and was a happy chubby baby. She was EBF until we began introducing solids at 6 months. She thrived with solids and BLW and thus she began to self wean. It got to the point where we were nursing upon wake up, then when I got home and then for bed. Then it was wake up and bed... then it was just bed.. then she didn't want even that and we'd just cuddle until she fell asleep. Anyway, that's what it looked like for us. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-is-self-weaning-like-how-did-you-know#post-2294814 Fri, 18 Sep 2015 11:57:55 +0000 Foodnerd81 2294814@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>My LO self weaned around 20 months. She was always a big comfort nurser, though, and rarely got expressed milk since I am home with her. For us, she gradually stopped asking for feeds- it had been that as soon as she woke up in the morning and after nap she would ask for it, then one day after nap, she didn't ask and I didn't offer and she just had an earlier snack than usual from then on. So we were down to just morning and bedtime. One morning, we got her up and she didn't ask for milk, I didn't offer, and again, just did breakfast a little earlier. We were on just once a day for about a month or so when it got harder to get her to nurse. Before as soon as I would take out the nursing pillow or ask if she wanted milk, she would get really excited and run over. I started having to ask a couple of times, but then she would still happily nurse for a full session, so I knew it was coming to an end. One night I didn't ask and she didn't ask and we were done. She asked once a few days later but wasn't upset when I offered cows milk instead. </p> <p>It was very gradual and natural and since I was almost as attached to t as she was, I was glad I knew it was coming. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-is-self-weaning-like-how-did-you-know#post-2294765 Fri, 18 Sep 2015 11:03:42 +0000 pui 2294765@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@ksnow: I've also read that if a baby isn't nursing before 18 months to consider it a "nursing strike" instead of an attempt to self-wean. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-is-self-weaning-like-how-did-you-know#post-2294760 Fri, 18 Sep 2015 11:01:15 +0000 ksnow 2294760@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I've also read babies don't typically self wean under 12 months (and other places I've read 18 months...)</p> <p>We certainly went through periods of distracted eating or shortened feedings. I'd just keep offering I've heard that they can decline for several days and then get back to it (for one reason or another). If you're dealing with distraction/barely eating...may be nurse in a calmer environment (if possible) or may be time to drop a feeding.</p> <p>My DD self-weaned at 19 months. At that point she was down to 1 feeding a day. The 'first' day she barely ate, and then started playing around...the next day didn't eat and gave me a pretty good bite...I tried for probably a week just to be sure it was what she wanted and she would refuse to latch/just swat at me. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-is-self-weaning-like-how-did-you-know#post-2294730 Fri, 18 Sep 2015 10:37:58 +0000 Boogs 2294730@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I'm curious about the responses, I'm hoping my 12m old will start self weaning soon! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-is-self-weaning-like-how-did-you-know#post-2294724 Fri, 18 Sep 2015 10:35:43 +0000 pui 2294724@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I'd definitely keep nursing up until at least a year.</p> <p>My daughter is 12 months now and still nurses a lot... I figure I'll just kind of know when she'll want to wean. I'll simply nurse her until she doesn't want to nurse anymore. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-is-self-weaning-like-how-did-you-know#post-2294716 Fri, 18 Sep 2015 10:29:40 +0000 psw27 2294716@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>My LO self weaned around 10 months. He wasn't a comfort nurser either and was only nursing in the AM and at night because I WOHM. He just started flipping around and not paying attention or nursing for 5 minutes and then wanting to go play. Finally, I just didn't try anymore. I didn't make a big thing of it cause I didn't want to be all "wahh this is the last time ever." I just stopped one day, I don't know the date and it wasn't a big ceremony. He still got pumped milk until 13 months and I have no regrets. :happy: </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-is-self-weaning-like-how-did-you-know#post-2294705 Fri, 18 Sep 2015 10:19:01 +0000 Adira 2294705@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I read that babies under 12 months don't self-wean, so whenever I had trouble with my babies, I just pushed through it. Past a year though, I was willing to let them self-wean.</p> <p>With Xander, he self-weaned at 14.5 months. We were only nursing once a day at this point in the morning. He was always a good morning nurser, since he was usually still fairly sleepy, and wasn't as easily distracted as he was during the day. Leading up to him weaning, he just started nursing less and less. We went from 15 minute nursing sessions down to 5. I would get him up to nurse and he's usually willingly come nurse, and then one day, he just didn't seem interested. I put him on the floor and sat in the rocking chair, boobs out, ready to nurse, and he just walked away, and I knew we were done. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-is-self-weaning-like-how-did-you-know#post-2294694 Fri, 18 Sep 2015 10:03:39 +0000 ms. pug 2294694@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>LO is nearing 7 months and I'm planning on letting him self-wean. Right now he is EBF but only nurses in the MOTN and in the morning, and gets pumped bottles of breastmilk during the day since I work. He's never been a comfort nurser, and many times the act of getting him to nurse is a struggle. I don't expect him to last past a year with nursing.</p> <p>My question is, how will I know when he is trying to self-wean? I know that around this time babies get extra distracted and it makes nursing more difficult. I'm afraid I won't be able to tell between weaning behavior and normal behavior? </p> <p>We went through a nursing strike that lasted 7 full days at 3 months and that was just awful. I pushed through it because I know it's very rare for a baby to self-wean that young. It turns out I was right since he now nurses happily. I'm scared, though, that if he shows the same behavior in a few months I may interpret that as weaning?!</p> <p>Sorry for the novel but- how will I know?! I want to nurse as long as possible but also don't want to force him. </p>