Quitting?

[abbalish]

So P will be 6 months old on the 27th and I'm seriously considering stopping EPing at that time. I feel a little bad about it since I've had a pretty easy time overall, haven't had supply issues, only pump 4x a day, and I probably *could* go longer without torturing myself too badly....but I just kinda want to be done. Plus we are going away over Thanksgiving and I don't want to lug all my pumping crap with me. Although I may change my mind again

BTDT moms, how do you recommend going about stopping? I've read a little about spacing out pumps, dropping pumps, and then cutting time off, but I feel like it may be hard since I only do 4 or sometimes 3 ppd to start with.

How long should I expect the whole process to take?

And, I have about 250oz frozen. Should I give it all to her once I wean, it would it be better to give her 1-2 bottles of breastmilk each day so she can have *some* breastmilk for a longer period of time and maybe get some benefits from it?

[ruemorgan]

Im not a BTDT mom, still pumping, but i think the process can take as short or as long as you want. I know some women just stop and deal with the engorgment for 2ish days or by dropping a pump session every few days. Im guessing dropping sessions is better to avoid mastitis. And i would spread the milk out so LO can have a bottle 2 every day.

[abbalish]

So......I've changed my mind again and am probably sticking it out a bit longer. I felt too guilty quitting when I've really had a pretty easy go of it. However, I am planning on dropping from 4 to 3 ppd at the end of this month. Maybe once I pass the 6 month mark I'll allow myself to stop when I really, really feel like it.

Bubbs, since I'll probably be stopping sometime during cold/flu season, I think I will give my frozen stash to her spread out over 1-2 bottles a day. I feel like she can get some benefit from it longer that way, as opposed to giving her all frozen for an additional 2-3 weeks. No idea if there is any science behind this but it makes sense to me!

[wineandwalter]

@bubbs119 we are at the 4 month mark and I'm so over EPing. My supply is barely keeping up and it's a constant struggle for me. I know it's great for her to be getting breastmilk but it's a lot of work and it makes me super anxious. I'm going to talk to her pedi this week and try to get some suggestions.

[packerup]

I don't know where I read it, but I'm pretty sure I read that it's better to do even a little bit of breastmilk a day bc of the immunity support. I started off nursing, then switched to EPing at about 9.5 months bc he would only bite, and I've been weaning now for about a month (his 1 yr bday is 2.5 weeks away). It's taken me longer than I expected/hoped, but when I dropped from 3 to 2 ppd (gradually by reducing the time each day), I got a super-painful clogged duct. My goal is to be done by his bday, and I'm pretty excited to pack it away! I totally understand both wanting to stop and the feeling guilty about stopping, but you do what works for you.

[rachydc]

abbalish, have you weaned off EP yet? Im almost at the 6 month mark, which was always my goal to make it to but am still curious about exactly how to go about quitting.

[abbalish]

I have. It was actually much easier than I thought it would be. At just past 6 months I went to 3ppd, and then about a week after that I went to 2ppd (6a and 6p). Then I started shortening the evening session by a minute or two each time. After maybe 10 days I went to 1ppd, in the morning. At first I was getting 12-13oz but after maybe 10 days I started seeing a big drop off - 10oz, 7oz, 5oz. After just getting 5oz I skipped the next day and felt OK but the next morning I felt like I needed to pump and I did and got 5oz. That was the last time! All in all the process took about a month. I wanted to be done earlier since we were traveling for thanksgiving but I'm glad I didn't rush - I didn't have any major problems with engorgement, no clogged ducts, etc. My boobs feel pretty much back to normal and I'm so happy to be done! Good luck - feel free to PM me if you have questions or need advice.