My BF goal was 6 mos. I really love it, but have to be honest that I fantasize about the freedom that FF would give... No time constraints when I'm out and about, no worries about feeding in public, getting to do hot yoga (my true fitness love), getting to use Obagi products (MISS you, Obagi!)....
But now that it's staring me in the face at 4.5 mos PP, I don't know if I can do it!
Did you stop BFing on your own terms, not bc of issues?
GOLD / squash / 13576 posts
I stopped BF because of work demands. I loved BF but I really love the freedom of not BF. I BF for 9 months.
pomegranate / 3225 posts
Maybe you can continue to do it 2x per day, morning and night, and have your days free?
squash / 13764 posts
6 months was my first long term goal, and I kind of thought I would want to stop then, but now that LO is 6 months old, I really have no desire to quit...we are in a groove, after such a rough start, and he still seems so little to me (I guess I am also having a tough time with the idea that he's 6 months old!). I also love the cuddle time I get with him. The past 6 months flew by, so it's not like I feel like I've been counting down to when I would wean him...so now I'm juust going to do it as long as it works for both of us!
blogger / pineapple / 12381 posts
I was sure I would stop at a year... I got there and decided that I'd just go until she was ready. That took another year 
persimmon / 1026 posts
I officially stopped at 6.5 months (we started slowly supplementing at 4 months). I was tired of my LO being so distracted during nursing sessions that he wouldn't eat enough (and then stress that he wasn't gaining weight). It wasn't a great bonding experience for us anymore. And then I decided I didn't want to just pump all the time, so we basically stopped on my terms. I'm sure I could have tried things to up my supply or maybe tried other techniques to keep him less distracted during sessions but I decided 6 months was long enough, as my original goal was 3 months. I'm happy with how things turned out, though I wished we could have EBF for 6 full months before starting to supplement and slowly transition to formula full-time. All I can say is don't feel guilty because you're not stopping "early" - I remember feeling selfish but I had to keep reminding myself how far we had gotten. I remember wanting to give up after 2 weeks and we made it much further than that!!!
GOLD / pineapple / 12662 posts
I am in the process of day weaning. I still plan to BF at night/early mornings. It's just too disruptive during the day at work (pumping) and a HUGE stressor for me (whether I will pump enough). So I plan to stop pumping around 9 months. LO is 7.5 months now.
I can't wait to get my body back (my body has held on to weight despite BFing(!), and to be able to get something off my plate!
grapefruit / 4066 posts
When i first started BFing, I thought it would a) be a miracle if i even made it to 6 months, and b) thought 6 months would be plenty of time to BF and was my long term goal. Now that LO is almost 6 months, I am no where near ready to stop! To be honest, I am terrified of stopping....the boob is my secret weapon!! I can instantly calm her or get her to fall asleep so easily! BFing just seems so much easier to me than preparing formula at night or when out and about. I'm also afraid of gaining weight back once I stop BFing (totally selfish reason lol). I'm curious as to why you can't do hot yoga or use your Obagi products while BFing? Either way, you've gotten really far already and shouldn't feel guilty if you want to stop. As long as your LO is fed, whether by BM or formula, that's all that matters!
coconut / 8305 posts
My original goal was a year, which I just met. About 5-6 months ago though I decided it was best just to let her decide, we'll see how long we keep going.
pomegranate / 3008 posts
My goal was a year and I made it to 9 months. At 8 months we had to start supplementing with formula when I couldn't get my supply back up.
GOLD / pineapple / 12662 posts
@NovBaby1112: Some Obagi products contain prescription-strength hydroquinone and/or a retinoid (Retin A), which are not recommended for use during pregnancy and breastfeeding.
LOVE Obagi!
pomegranate / 3917 posts
@PrincessBaby: I quit cold turkey at 4m. I needed it for my own (selfish) sanity. The freedom of FF helped me mentally bigtime and I have no regrets. Not sure what I'd do next time, just going to go with the flow!
cantaloupe / 6610 posts
@NovBaby1112: I think I have the same fear - the boob IS my secret weapon! If she's crying, fussy, upset, whatever - just stick a boob in her mouth = Instant Happiness! I can't do hot yoga because it causes SO MUCH SWEATING and is such a vigorous workout, I think it would make supply tank, or so I've read. And ditto what @mslipgloss said about Obagi - I love the full-of-chemical blast-every-last-spot-and-wrinkle-off-your-face Obagi stuff:) Also throw some Retin A in the mix and my skin looks it's best! I got some melasma during pregnancy - I looked like a total freckle face over my nose and cheeks! I've been using Shiseido white lucent and Caudalie and that's taken care of a lot of it, but Obagi would have it totally perfect in like 5 days. I'm not even joking. It eats the flaws off your face...With chemicals, yes. But I don't care!
GOLD / wonderful apricot / 22646 posts
@PrincessBaby: LOVE bikram yoga, how i miss it so!
I'm with a lot of the PPs, 6 months was my first long term goal, but i can't imagine stopping in a month---i'll reassess at a year and see how DS is doing and go from there... while i hate pumping on office days-- it is SO convenient to bf/nurse... and i LOVE our nighttime nursing sessions. I want to make it last as long as possible because I know this time is limited and it will be over before I know it!
eggplant / 11716 posts
@PrincessBaby: I need to look into to this Obagi stuff! DO you buy it online?
coconut / 8861 posts
I made my 6 month goal. Things were going great until recently at 8 months old where he's just not getting full enough with breast alone. We had a tough weekend where he was crying and hungry. A bottle of formula at bedtime really calmed him down. So, he's letting me know that he's ready. I can't wait to fully get rid of the pump since it's so time consuming at work.
wonderful clementine / 24134 posts
@PrincessBaby: I would say try to give it some time after 6 months. That was my goal for a while, but once I got there and she started on solids a bit of the stress from being her only food source was lifted. Plus nursing sessions got much shorter. I revised my goal to be a year.
Once I hit a year of BFing, I couldn't just cut her off at that point because she was still so attached. But around 18 months when we were down to just like 2 times a day and I'm sure I didn't have much milk, I did kinda force her to stop. She has been ok with it, but she did start taking a paci and has been very attached to me for skin to skin contact.
grapefruit / 4066 posts
@PrincessBaby: LOL, I'll have to look into this Obagi stuff when I am done BFing! and yes, Instant Happiness is the best way to describe it. I LOVE that feeling of me being able to calm her or get her to sleep and I just cant imagine not being able to do that! The way I look at it is, as long as I am producing enough for her and she still is still wanting to nurse, I will let her decide when she wants to wean. I know right now she still needs/wants it because it IS so calming for her. Either way, you will make the right decision for you and your LO, whatever that may be.
| Today | Monthly Record | |
|---|---|---|
| Topics | 1 | 0 |
| Posts | 0 | 1 |
Ask for Help
Make a Suggestion
Frequently Asked Questions
Bee Levels
Acronyms
Most Viewed Posts
Hellobee Gold
Hellobee Recipes
Hellobee Features
Hellobee Contests
Baby-led Weaning
Bento Boxes
Breastfeeding
Newborn Essentials
Parties
Postpartum Care Essentials
Sensory Play Activities
Sleep Training
Starting Solids Gear
Transitioning to Toddler Bed
All Series
Who We Are
About the Bloggers
About the Hostesses
Contributing Bloggers
Apply to Blog
Apply to Hostess
Submit a Guest Blog
Hellobee Buttons
How We Make Money
Community Policies
- Google Plus
- Stumbleupon
- Twitter
- Facebook
- Pinterest
- Favorite0
19 comments