when does it happen?

[caitlinlea]

My son is 2 yrs 8 months and still breastfeeds. I realize that all kids have their own timetables, but I'm just curious - for those of you that have nursed your child(ren) into their 3rd & 4th years, when did they wean themselves? Did you encourage them in any way or did it happen on its own? My son still nurses quite often, mostly in the late afternoons and during the night.

I'm not planning to wean BTW......just curious how long this could go on for.

[Tigeresse]

It varies greatly from what I've seen. I had 1 wean at just under 5 years, 1 just over 5 years, and 1 that went on, shall we say, a bit longer.

I had a pretty strong commitment to letting the kids lead the way with weaning, esp.the 2 younger kids (I did not nurse my dd, as she was adopted at almost a year). However, it was a 2-way street and there were times when I'd ask them if they thought they'd be stopping soon, or turn down a nursing session, place some limits, etc.

Now that they are all weaned, it is vastly satisfying for me to know that the decision to wean rested primarily with my kids. :

[Lovenest]

My son is 6 years 7 months and nurses at bedtime and that is it. I think it is coming very close to him ending the weaning journey.

[meemee]

GOSH!!!! you have asked the million dollar question which has no answer. its soooo different for each mama-child combo.

so here is my story. when i got pregnant i said come hail or highwater nothing was going to stop me from nursing my child. but i never had a number figure in my head. i had this idea of CLW but not the age. so when dd turned one i remember being surprised that i had carried on so long (lots of stuff happening in life along with WOH pumping). then 2 came and i was still surprised. by 4 i wasnt anymore. but if you told me that when i was pregnant that i would be nursing a 6 1/2 year old with no end in sight i would have told you GAH!!! no way!!! i would never have thought i could last that long.

my dd 6 1/2 nurses when she is with me which is every alternate weeknights and weekends - for about 30 - 60 secs before falling asleep (we still cosleep ). if for whatever reason my nipples are sore and i say no she is fine with it. once in a while she will nurse in teh am too upon wake up for 30-60 secs.

my milk dried up when she was almost 3. i find after 4 her intensity to nurse goes thru phases. when she is under stress - by which i mean going thru an emotional tough time - then she HAS to nurse even for that 30-60 secs. otherwise some nights (which is not that often) she doesnt ask to nurse.

i never offer. i dont really think i ever have after she was a baby.

at any time of the day seh still cant resist a naked boob. she quickly takes a couple seconds 'nursing'.

btw i have always enjoyed our nursing relationship and still do.

[alegna]

My dd is 4.5yrs and down to a couple of times a day, but no sign of weaning any time soon.

-Angela

[TiredX2]

With DD I partially nightweaned her at just over two (4-5 hours a night) so not CLW. She finished nursing at 4 years, 2 months. She continued trying (couldn't get anything, couldn't remember how) until she was about 5 years, 4 months.

DS weaned when he was 5 years, 8 months. He nightweaned on his own timeline as well.

[LPBC]

Well. Kathryn Dettwyler wrote that the natural age of weaning for humans is between the age of 2,5 to 7 years
With my kids it was 5, 3,5 and the youngest of 1 is still going strong.
With my first I wasn't so wise yet, so she was weaned at 9 mos, with my distress from me. She didn't seem to be too bothered as she had her dummy and bottle.
The dummy lasted till she was 5, I let that go child-led. So she would have non doubt weaned from the breast at that age. I still feel sad about weaning her :-(

[ChinaDoll]

My DD had tapered off completely by 3.5 years

My DS is slowly weaning at almost 5 years (in April); he still nurses 1-2 times a week, but just briefly.

[SundayCrepes]

My son is 3 years 3 months. I am nursing an adopted baby and have limited supply and must supplement her with donor milk so I have limited my son to nap and sleep times. I hated doing it, but I needed to protect my milk supply. Also, I just couldn't nurse him every time he wanted. If he only nursed for 10 minutes or so, no biggie, but he often wants to nurse for 40 minutes. Nursing two that much was just too much.

If he wakes up at night I let him nurse as much as he wants. Sometimes that's 6 times a night, though more often only a couple. So...he nurses before and after nap (if he naps,) at bedtime, a couple times at night, and upon waking in the morning. I turn him down many times during the day.

So, no weaning in site for him.

[IsaFrench]

a few years back I ordered a back copy of Mothering & in it found the results of a survey .... do I remember right ?
it seemed to indicate that on average CLWeaning would happen at 2,5 years of age ... according to about 4000 replies.
of course for an average you must have people below that value and above that value

for my second child I did CLW and it happened .... the week after my ds turned 2,5 (that's why I remember the survey .... I felt "normal" IN SPITE of little "troubles" I had here and there with people who had no idea CLW extisted/could be considered not a pathology for the mother/ not meaning the mother had to see a psychiatrist....!)

[graceshappymum]

DD is just over 3 and she night weened herself about a month ago.....daytime though she is still going strong.

[fabhare]

thanks

After reading all your replies I think I have changed my minde about starting my 6 month old twins on solid.I really want to make it to pass 2 years.

[mom2threenurslings]

My first self-weaned on his fifth birthday.
My second self-weaned just shy of his seventh birthday.
I'm currently nursing my almost-seven-year-old, my 3.5 year old and my 1 year old.

It varies from child to child, family to family.

[sapphire_chan]

Originally Posted by fabhare

After reading all your replies I think I have changed my minde about starting my 6 month old twins on solid.I really want to make it to pass 2 years.

You can introduce complementary foods without stopping breastfeeding. Just keep in mind that child-led weaning and baby-led solids are two different things even though they're both technically "weaning".