If Your Child Was an Avid Nurser at 4 Years Old, When Did They Wean?

[revolting]

Right now, my almost four year old daughter nurses on request. She is nightweaned, but during the day, she often nurses 6-10 times a day, with several of these nursing sessions lasting a half an hour. She has a younger brother nursing, too. If you had a four year old who nursed a LOT like this and chose to continue nursing on request, when did they wean?

[SnowSparrow]

My 8y/o was 5-6 times in the day and 1-3 at night when she was about 4. She stopped nursing at 5yrs, 3 months, and for the last... 4, maybe 5 months, she hardly nursed at all. There was no gradual decline, she kind of just dropped off!

There's really no telling.

[ChinaDoll]

my DS also weaned at 5 years old; I could never imagined how easily he would self-wean when he was still 4 and nursing a lot!

[SoCaliMommy]

 My 4 yr old nursed quick frequently, i didn't think he'd self wean when he did. He self weaned at 4yrs 3months old.

[Pookietooth]

Ds didn't actually nurse all that much at 4, but he's still going and is almost 8. I almost wonder had I nursed him more at 4 maybe he would have been done by now. Who knows?

[Tuckoo]

DD showed absolutely NO interest in stopping at 4 and at 5. She eventually stopped almost overnight right after turning 6. She's turned 6 in October and has not nursed since, so I think we're done.

I never, ever, would have guessed she'd wean so suddenly, but there you go...

[cheenya]

My DS1 is almost 5 and still nursing avidly, less during the day than he did a year ago, but still frequently.

My DD (currently 8 yrs old) was also an avid nurser at age 5, when she was 6 I got pregnant with DS2 and over the course of that pregnancy and DS2's newborn months she nursed less and less. When DS2 was born if she did nurse it was only for a short time and then she would say "the rest is for the baby."  She weaned quite slowly over the course of the year between when she was 6 and 7, and even nursed a small handful of times after turning 7. I don't know that her weaning was entirely child led... there were definitely times during my pregnancy when I did not feel up to nursing two children at once, especially at night, and I would ask her to wait until her brother was done, by that point she was often asleep or had moved on to a new activity and was no longer interested. I do know that she was both happy to be able to nurse and happy to give most of the milk to the baby once DS2 was born and I tried to be sure she never felt pressure to wean. Even if it wasn't totally child-led, it did happen mostly on her time-line.

[CheriK]

My twins nursed until 5 1/2  (DD) and 6+ (DS).  At 4, they were also night weaned but still nursed a lot during the day.   We also found it wasn't really a gradual decline; they'd suddenly drop multiple nursing sessions at once for various reasons (giving up naps, Mom getting up earlier in the morning, Dad taking over bedtime routine, etc.).  By the time they weaned, they only nursed in bed at night before falling asleep.  DD weaned very abruptly, DS more gradually by sometimes skipping nursing at night and gradually shortening the length of his nighttime nursing.  By the time he stopped, he was nursing for maybe 30 seconds and I wasn't producing more than drops of milk.