Just given last ever feed - please help, so sad :(

[MamaBeale1976]

Hi there ladies

My LO is now 14 months old, has demand fed since birth and slept in our bed since then too.  He will never take a bottle and only recently started taking a sports type bottle with water, which he loves but will not take any milk in it at all.
We have tonight started the pick up put down method and have put him in his cot (hubby is doing this for first few days).  I am also weaning him at the same time to get it all done in one swoop.  When we made the decision to do this a few weeks ago, I was all up for it but now the thought os him never feeding from me again is so upsetting.  He had his last feed from me around 8.15pm and went to bed at 8.30.  It took around 40 minutes for him to go off so that wasn't too bad.
The thing I will find really difficult tomorrow is the fact that I will not be able to let him feed from me. He has had really bad flu 2 weeks ago and since then will not each much in the way of solids (not that he ate too much prior to this).  Can anyone suggest how I go about not feeding him when I know he will be clawing at my top and really upset that he can't feed.  Any advice will be so very gratefully received.
Thanks for reading ladies.

Jo xx

[Roseii]

((hugs)) sweetie, can I ask, is it necessary to completely wean cold turkey? We could help you sleep train and still continue to bf if that's what you wanted? xx

[Fiver]

Oh, I feel so sad for you   Sounds like you're really having second thoughts about this now.

If neither you or he are ready to stop now is there a good reason not to carry on feeding?

[MamaBeale1976]

Hi there

I think it is time he was weaned as he is substituting proper food with breast milk too much and he is waayyyy to reliant on me.  I can barely leave the room without him wanting to be clinging on to me and I don't think this is good for him, he needs to be more independent and, to be able to leave him with other people.  He won't stay with my hubby (his dad) or grandparents for too long before he coming searching for me.  I am hoping that by having him in his own room and not feeding on me about 10 times a day, that he will be a lot better.  He is now at the stage that he will just come up to me and put his arm down my top and fiddle with my nipples and he doesn this in front of people and whilst we are out.

Thanks though and any advice will be appreciated.

Jo xx

[~Karen~]

Hugs sweetie.  I stopped feeding ds2 at 13 months but we were down to only the morning feed by then anyway.  It was really hard at first as if I took him in our bed he'd cry for it.  So dh would get him up and take him downstairs.  Tbh after about a week he seemed to totally forget about it.  Can you take him out of situations that he links to bf'ing for a while?  Will be harder for you do doubt though with the number of feeds you're still doing a day.  Hope it goes smoothly for you x

[Roseii]

ok hun sounds like you're certain in your decision, that's good I don't have personal experience but I would think in the daytime you just need pure distraction distraction distraction! New toys? Little snacks he might like to chomp on such as rice cakes? Make sure you wear a top he can't easily "get" into. Night time, can dad deal with all the NWs so that the option of milk simply isn't there? I would think that if you do stick to cold turkey it shouldn't take him long to forget about the b.milk.

Also you might want to post on the toddler sleep board

x

[MamaBeale1976]

Haha, I wish!! Every situation to him is a situation he can feed in, unless I am driving!!  I knew nothing about feeding or routines or anything when he was born and I'd heard a lot about demand feeding on the forum I was on at the time so thought it was the way to go.  Boy was I wrong!  If we have another one I would do everything differently!!

Jo xx

[Roseii]

You haven't done it "wrong" hun, and you've given your boy a fantastic start to life with all that gold top! x

[MamaBeale1976]

Thanks Charlibob.  Hubby is going to do all the sleep training so I won;t have that feed to worry about (he always has to feed on me to get to sleep and in the day he sleeps on the sofa).  I was going to wear a bra and 2 tops so it's harder for him, it's just that I am so soft with him that I don't want to give in.  Thank God hubby is home for another week and a half to help out!
Jo xx

[Roseii]

good luck, be strong! And maybe start going out for short periods of time and leaving him with hubby...And you could dress him up really warm and go for a looooong walk!! xx

[Fiver]

Ah, ok, decision made   Can't really advise much as DS just lost interest at 12m and DD hasn't got to a stage where she's ready to stop yet and doesn't feed that much during the day

[Tay]

hiya,
(((hugs))) stopping BF is always hard, even when you feel it's the right move for you and your LO.
I see this post was a couple of days ago: how did the last 24/36hrs go? Did you feed him at all?
Xx

[Roseii]

Wondering how you're getting on too