anyone else experience the insistence to nurse after milk is gone?

[UmmZen]

I have no more milk.  I don't feel it, I don't feel letdowns, anymore.  My 2yo insists upon nursing, anyway.  

She tells me there is no more milk, but she won't stop nursing.  It doesn't hurt or anything, but I am kinda tired of nursing her.

Anyone else ever dealt with this? How did your child fully wean?

She only asks once or twice a day, but still...

[Racecarma]

Hmmm, I came to this forum with the same question in mind and I see so one replied to you yet.  Interesting, since I see many people who seem to nurse their kids 6+ years.  I wonder if no one who has ended nursing comes back to check this forum out.

I have a LO hat is turning 4 and although his older brother was satisfied to be done by age 3, my second one is not willing to give it up at bed time.  There is no milk in me.. Flat as a pancake, no fullness, nada.   I know that his need is solely based on nurture and bonding rather than nourishment at this point.  On the one hand I have been okay with this because he is my last child and I am going to miss the closeness and bonding.  Not getting support from my DH anymore though.  He is wanting this to be done ASAP. This is creating a bit of an issue.

Have you had any luck? 

[kblackstone444]

My almost two year old would nurse as much as a newborn if I let him.  He's showing no signs of getting bored with it, but it's so... constant... insistent... that I'm ready for him to be done.  I nurse him at bedtime, in the morning, and at nap time (unless I can get out of the naptime one).  He tells me he still gets milky (must be very little, 'cause I don't really notice) and he's been telling me on occation lately that, "this one empty".  But it doesn't seem to bother him that it is.

[crunchy_mommy]

When DS started weaning at age 3, my milk started drying up, but he kept asking to nurse for months afterward, even once the milk was completely gone. Eventually he mostly lost interest since he wasn't getting any milk. I wasn't comfortable nursing him anymore, it just didn't feel right to me (emotionally mostly, though also physically), but I let him continue trying on request, figuring I'd either get used to it or he'd lose interest completely. He asked once every couple of weeks, and never latched on for more than a couple seconds, so I just tolerated it. One time he asked after not trying to nurse for about a month. I let him try, he said there was no milk, NOT EVEN A DROP, and we decided together (OK, with a teeny push from me) that it was his last time nursing. We were both happy with that choice and now, months later, when he misses nursing he pretends to nurse, or has one of his toy animals pretend to nurse, and that seems to satisfy him. I'd say our process was about 98% child-led and I dried up as he was weaning... so I'm not sure what I'd do if I dried up way before he was ready to wean, I don't know how long I could dry-nurse on a daily basis...

[skycheattraffic]

If it still feels ok then you might have some supply left. I stopped feeling letdowns around 5 months and stopped feeling full around 7 or 8. DD is 21 months old and I'm 12 weeks pregnant but I still have some milk. I don't really see obvious swallowing but when she pulled off yesterday, there was milk in the corner of her mouth. At 2 years if she is nursing at least once a day, I would bet she's still getting some (though likely not a lot). It comes down to does the nursing bother you enough to actively wean her or can you stand it for a while longer? From what I've read of weaning, kids can go for months on just one session each day. She might not stop for a while if left to her own devices. Nursing to age two is a wonderful accomplishment and your little girl has benefited a lot. Nursing is a relationship and if you feel that you are done, there is nothing wrong with gently weaning. You can reduce the length of sessions gradually and if she really remains firmly attached to nursing, you could wait a while before trying again. Listen to your instincts and do what feels right for yourself and your family. Best wishes!

[rebecca_n]

my son was one and dry nursed through my whole pregnancy then we tandem nursed another two years. he went from nursing 10 plus times a day at 3 to gradually slowing down (for some reason I think my body stopped letting down for him since his sister was getting milk and he wasn't ?). around four he only asked to nurse about once every other day, then got longer in between. I would say he's weaned now even though he might try to nurse once in awhile (maybe once a month). sometimes I felt like going crazy but I think letting him choose was the best option and when he started slowing down it all happened pretty quickly. 

[Flopsy]

My son was 13 months when I got pregnant with #2 and now, about 3 months later, my supply is almost gone. Doesn't deter him, though. He would still nurse all day and all night if I let him. I keep waiting for him to lose interest or give up, but he's persistent. I'm planning to just let it play out even though, I'll admit, I'm getting a little tired of it, too. Not to mention, it can be painful! When he was first born, I had planned to do child-led weaning completely, but I have started putting some limits on when and how long he nurses. He's usually not too happy about it, but can also be distracted with a favorite activity, etc.

[drtaylor]

There was a reply to another post by a woman who nursed for 6.5 years. She said at one point she told her kid that it was okay to snuggle with the boob but not nurse. Nursing time went down dramatically.