Sudden self-weaning

[April_baby]

My daughter is 12 1/2 months old now and has always been breastfed, then this last week she started cutting down. She went from about 4 feeds a day to 1, then none, all in the space of a few days.
It's weird because she always loved to feed, and now if I offer it she turns away quickly, kind of cries sometimes?!?! Has no interest whatsoever!
My question is, has anyone else's bubs done this?
She refuses to take cows milk so is just having water (which is apparently ok if she's having plenty of dairy food).

[GummyBear]

My 11 month old son did this last month. Unfortunately he is now completely weaned.

He cut back to one feed a day and then suddenly refused altogether. I persisted in offering several times a day for another week, but he only got upset when I tried.

He does drink cows milk, but not very much. He's slowly getting more fluid intake, but I'm still watching for signs of dehydration.

Keep offering if you think it might just be a nursing strike due to teething or a cold, she might come around.

Good luck!

[Craftymum]

My DD started doing it at about 9mths.... each week she dropped a feed until 10 months when she wasnt interested at all.

Take it as your bub is self weaning. It is a good thing as then you dont have to try and wean them, just try and get some milk/water into them to keep the hydration up.

[Penthesilea]

All three of my kids self weaned at about 10 mths - I was ovulating.

Could that be the reason?

[JATS]

Tom did this around 10 months, just suddenly didn't want it anymore. Would turn away, cry if I didn't take it away etc. I continued expressing 4 times a day to keep my supply going just in case and continued offering the breast (asking him if he wanted it without a actually getting it out :laughing:) a couple of times a day.

After a month all of a sudden he started accepting it again, even demanding it and continued to breastfeed up to 6 times a day until 18 months old, self weaned between 18 and 22 months.

I have heard of many many bubs who go through this stage, but get over it and go on to extended breastfeed.

[MilkOnTap]

It could very well just be a nursing-strike. My son hasnt done this (yet) and its very common around the 10-15 month age mark. It's not that they're weaning - they're just having a bitty break :)

I dont know much about it (hopefully someone will pop in soon who does) but from what I can gather you just need to keep on offering the breast. She will more than likely still keep the one feed per day and then when she is ready she will build it back up to 2, 3 and possibly 4 feeds a day again.


All three of my kids self weaned at about 10 mths - I was ovulating.

Could that be the reason?

Mmm - not likely. Plenty of women are pregnant and breastfeed simultaneously, so ovulation isn't likely to encourage a baby to wean.


Take it as your bub is self weaning. It is a good thing as then you dont have to try and wean them

Sorry - but as an avid breastfeeding fanatic, reading that a baby self-weaning at 9 or 10 months is apparantly 'a good thing' really upsets me and only encourages women to believe that 9 or 10 months is 'enough'...

WHO recommends that babies feed til at least two years of age.

[April_baby]

Thanks for all the replies girls! Really don't want to start any debates. Just want to know what has happened to other people.
Do whatever works best for you and your child.
I have come to realise that she has simply weaned herself. She's ready to, so that's fine.

[Tam-I-Am]

I personally would by trying to keep up a milk supply, and keep offering - if you want to keep going. 12 months is a fantastic achievement! Having said that - most bubs, if left to their own devices, won't actually self wean until a fair bit down the track. If you want to wean now its obviously up to you - but if you'd like to keep going its entirely possible that your bub will want to come back to the breast after a short break.

Its also worth getting your bub checked out by your GP - nursing strikes can happen because of some pain or trauma to the baby's mouth (ie could she be teething/getting a cold with a sore throat/have thrush etc)

Also - this (http://www.llli.org/FAQ/strike.html) article on nursing strikes might help :) Its from La Leche League International :)




Mmm - not likely. Plenty of women are pregnant and breastfeed simultaneously, so ovulation isn't likely to encourage a baby to wean.

All babies are different though. Some don't react at all to their mother's hormonal changes, some do go on nursing strikes around the time that their mum's getting her period, or ovulating. Just because some babies don't react at all to a pregnancy doesn't mean all won't react - there are many women who have experienced the trauma of having their babies self-wean because of their next pregnancy.

[Penthesilea]

I'm also an big advocate for breastfeeding. My babies weaned before I was ready - I was hope to feed for at least two years - and I was consulting ABA (been a member for many years) and everyone else to find out what was going on, and I did continue to offer the breast, but no, my babies were done. It was very upsetting.

And yeah, I am sure it was due to hormonal changes. In fact, when I got a Mirena and my periods stopped, my youngest, who had been weaned for over a year, suddenly wanted to start breastfeeding again, so yes, it can happen.

Just FYI. There are lots of things that can happen that aren't generally known. I fractured my coccyx in childbirth. I had a psychotic reaction to a shot of procaine penicillin when I saw a Dr for mastitis. I'd never heard of these possibilities, but they happened.