Extended BF check-in 2/5

[jfresh]

Sorry I am a day late ladies! I have been distracted this week. For the purposes of this check in we define extended breast feeding as beyond one year.

1. How many times a day do you nurse?

2. Are you still nursing at night? If not, how did you wean?

3. What is your least favorite thing/something you might dislike about extended breast feeding?

4. Any new issues or concerns?

Non-BF question of the week:

5. Read any good books lately?

[melisx33]

1. How many times a day do you nurse?-LO is 14 months, we nurse about 3x a day. 2x in AM, once in evening

2. Are you still nursing at night? If not, how did you wean? No, we nursed around midnight but I had to go cold turkey, it actually wasn't too bad.

3. What is your least favorite thing/something you might dislike about extended breast feeding? She's getting more aggressive so I'm having more nipple pain recently

4. Any new issues or concerns? LO possibly has a peanut allergy so I'm staying a way, which is hard...I LOVE peanut butter but obviously LO is way more important.

Non-BF question of the week:

5. Read any good books lately? I'm not really a book reader.

[spacedew]

1. How many times a day do you nurse? On Demand but 5-6 most of the time. Yesterday it was up to 10 due to separation anxiety I think.

2. Are you still nursing at night? If not, how did you wean? No thankfully. Just night weaned a few weeks ago. Now she doesn't nurse between 10:00pm and 5:00am. Still wakes up at 12, and 4 asking.

3. What is your least favorite thing/something you might dislike about extended breast feeding? How squirmy she is now. There is no such thing as just nursing anymore. She is either sticking her foot in my shirt or looking around (ouch!).

4. Any new issues or concerns?
She seems to take longer to nurse recently. It has made me a little nervous about my supply. She had always been a really fast nurser (10 min max); now we are at 15-20 minutes.

Non-BF question of the week:

5. Read any good books lately? Just starting a new book for a moms group I joined. It's called My Brilliant Friend.

[casey]

1. How many times a day do you nurse? 2 on weekdays. 4ish on weekends.

2. Are you still nursing at night? If not, how did you wean? She generally STTN 11-12 hours now. I nurse if she wakes up and needs attention (sick, teething). She mostly night weaned herself after we did some gentle sleep training at 13m. DH settled her a few times.

3. What is your least favorite thing/something you might dislike about extended breast feeding? I Miss some bedtimes and have to pump (I'm tempted to test it, but DH is feeling strongly all of the sudden). Only, I don't respond to the pumo hardly at all anymore.

4. Any new issues or concerns? Nope.

Non-BF question of the week:

5. Read any good books lately? Unfortunately, no. Just new reads for work.

[spacedew]

Feb 5, 2015 21:58:19 GMT -5 casey said:

3. What is your least favorite thing/something you might dislike about extended breast feeding? I Miss some bedtimes and have to pump (I'm tempted to test it, but DH is feeling strongly all of the sudden). Only, I don't respond to the pumo hardly at all anymore.

Is this common? I used to be able to pump 3-4 oz per session while working. Now if I pump a get 1-2 oz. Hardly seems worth the effort. 

[jennlin]

1. How many times a day do you nurse?
Several

2. Are you still nursing at night? If not, how did you wean?
Yep, all night, both kids...but we still bedshare to with both kids so it's not bad really. I prefer nursing at night as opposed to the evenings when I'm trying to get the house in order.

3. What is your least favorite thing/something you might dislike about extended breast feeding?
They scream much louder than smaller kids when wanting milk.

4. Any new issues or concerns?
My little one recently had decided that he must have both sides and also switch back and forth over and over..I know normally this is a sign of low supply, and I AM on my period.. But I still pump at work and I still very visibly have over supply.. I think he's just getting old enough to be greedy.. (15 months), and whenever guys sister is not latched on the other side he jumps at the opportunity for both.

Non-BF question of the week:

5. Read any good books lately?
I dont think I've read a full book since my daughter was born 3 years ago..

[noname]

1. How many times a day do you nurse? 2 during the week, 3 on weekends.

2. Are you still nursing at night? If not, how did you wean? DD has been a great sleeper from day one and by the time I went back to work at 3 months she was only nursing once around 4am. She gradually pushed that back and by 6 months was sleeping until after 6am. We got really lucky and didn't have to do any sleep training or night weaning.

3. What is your least favorite thing/something you might dislike about extended breast feeding? She's so squirmy now, and much more insistent when she wants to nurse. I try the whole "boobies are sleeping, boobies are busy" but she just yells louder.

4. Any new issues or concerns? Nothing new. Trying to gradually cut back nursing sessions. I would like to wean in the next 2-3 months. I'm thinking cutting out the pre-nap session (that she only has on weekends) will be the easiest but I'm worried about it messing up her nap. She takes a bottle of milk pre-nap at daycare but refuses a bottle at home. We're going to try this weekend to put her down without nursing.

Non-BF question of the week:

5. Read any good books lately? I wish. I love to read but haven't read a grown-up book since DD was born.

[casey]

Feb 5, 2015 23:12:10 GMT -5 spacedew said:

Feb 5, 2015 21:58:19 GMT -5 casey said:

3. What is your least favorite thing/something you might dislike about extended breast feeding? I Miss some bedtimes and have to pump (I'm tempted to test it, but DH is feeling strongly all of the sudden). Only, I don't respond to the pumo hardly at all anymore.

Is this common? I used to be able to pump 3-4 oz per session while working. Now if I pump a get 1-2 oz. Hardly seems worth the effort. 

i think it is normal, spacedew. you can check membranes, but it doesn't make a difference for me.

[melody330]

1. How many times a day do you nurse?
He is all over the place with the amount of time he nurses. He just turned one on 1/20, and all of the sudden his eating habits changed. He was such a good solids eater - now he wants nothing to do with all his 'favorites', and asks to nurse instead.
So he nurses anywhere from 4-10 times a day.


2. Are you still nursing at night? If not, how did you wean?

Still nursing at night.  We got him down to once a night, around 4am.  I had DH go in anytime before midnight, then a few days later moved it 12:30, then 1:00, etc...it was okay.  Not looking to drop that last session unless he does on his own.  


3. What is your least favorite thing/something you might dislike about extended breast feeding?

Probably the wiggling.  He can sit up, stand up, look over my shoulder while he is latched on.  My poor boobs are never going to be the same lol.


4. Any new issues or concerns?
I'm trying to find a balance between getting more solids in him, and making sure he is drinking enough.  He suddenly is uninterested in solids and throws everything on the floor.  Then he signs for mommy's milk.  Not sure what I should do.  I'm kind of riding it out for now, and letting him nurse if he doesn't want to eat.


Non-BF question of the week:



5. Read any good books lately?  Not anything new.  I've been re-reading the same ones.  I think the next new one I will go for is Still Alice.

[vvvvvfee]

1. How many times a day do you nurse? 1-2

2. Are you still nursing at night? If not, how did you wean? No. DS gradually night-weaned on his own around 18 months. I encouraged him a little by telling him he had to wait until morning, or giving him to DH to be soothed in the MOTN.

3. What is your least favorite thing/something you might dislike about extended breast feeding? My general pet peeve about it has been bad nursing manners- twiddling, acrobatics, tantrums when a session ends too soon, etc.

4. Any new issues or concerns? My supply is down to almost nothing now (16 weeks pregnant)-- I don't think DS can be getting more than a couple of drops. He usually nurses for about 30 seconds or less per side now, and occasionally forgets to ask. I'm having more nipple pain and sensitivity. I have to admit I haven't enjoyed nursing while pregnant at all, but I don't want to rush DS to wean before he's ready- I want it to be his decision when he wants to stop.

Non-BF question of the week:

5. Read any good books lately? Honestly, no. The last 5 or so I've read have been duds.

[Deleted]

1. How many times a day do you nurse? Usually 2 but lately more since LO is sick

2. Are you still nursing at night? If not, how did you wean? No, we did CIO about 8 months ago. We were bed sharing which turned into being up every hour or more and I eventually couldn't function anymore so things had to change.

3. What is your least favorite thing/something you might dislike about extended breast feeding? I don't like the response I get from other people ("You are STILL nursing at almost 14 months?!"), LO twisting the opposite nipple he isn't nursing on, and throwing temper tantrums when he signs for milk and for some reason I'm not able to.

4. Any new issues or concerns? none

Non-BF question of the week:

5. Read any good books lately? I am not a reader

[mosy]

1. How many times a day do you nurse?
on demand, but typically a few times between breakfast and dinner, then more often after dinner when trying to get him down for the night


2. Are you still nursing at night? If not, how did you wean?
yes. we bedshare, so it's usually not too bad


3. What is your least favorite thing/something you might dislike about extended breastfeeding?
I'm just ready to have my body back to myself, in general.


4. Any new issues or concerns?
no


Non-BF question of the week:



5. Read any good books lately? I bought 4 new books on my Nook recently, but haven't started any of them, and I can't remember the last book I've read.

[lingeringwithcoffee]

My last time posting here, at least until I have another LO.

1. How many times a day do you nurse?
LO is 20 months. She was nursing 2-5 times a day, and suddenly lost interest. Did not nurse for a couple of days, then would ask just once a day. I decided to nurse her for the last time on her 20 month birthday.

2. Are you still nursing at night? If not, how did you wean?
Not anymore.

3. What is your least favorite thing/something you might dislike about extended breast feeding?
Still not having my body back to myself.

4. Any new issues or concerns?

Non-BF question of the week:

5. Read any good books lately?
I recently read The Fault in Our Stars and Unbroken. Both were really good. Now, I'm reading the Divergent series (just started book 2)

[blueflower]

Hi! I'm new to this board!

1. How many times a day do you nurse? 4 or 5 (occasionally 6+) with a cluster feed or two in there.

2. Are you still nursing at night? If not, how did you wean? Yes I am.

3. What is your least favorite thing/something you might dislike about extended breast feeding? She's wanting to bounce back and forth between breaststroke every time. This makes it really difficult when trying to nip! And occasionally she decides that the world needs to see my breast and she completely exposes me during a feeding in public!

4. Any new issues or concerns? My left nipple is constantly sore for a few months now. It's super painful for the initial latch,and the pain lessens as the feeding goes on. It's worse when she decides to grab my boob and push it away from her while simultaneously pulling her head back! I can't see anything wrong with the nipple so I don't know how to fix the pain. But I'm working on decreasing the tug of war sessions.

Non-BF question of the week:

5. Read any good books lately?
I read the entire Call the Midwife memoirs. I loved them!

[Sparkly]

I keep forgetting to check in on this board because I've been so busy lately, but here I am, even though we're almost to the next week. My DD is 13 1/2 months.


1. How many times a day do you nurse? it varies, approximately 6-8 when at home/nursing only, 3-5 with 1 or 2 pump sessions when I'm working.

2. Are you still nursing at night? oh yes

3. What is your least favorite thing/something you might dislike about extended breast feeding? Still pumping. I don't know how else to maintain/continue the relationship and supply (and be comfortable). I wish I could just quit it at this point though.

4. Any new issues or concerns? Last week I was away overnight for only the second time. I traveled for work Tuesday-Saturday. The other time was only 2 nights when DD was 5 months. I was really concerned about my supply and limited time/ability to pump on this trip. I did fine on the supply, and managed to work out a decent pump schedule, but did choose sleep over an extra pump one night and found myself with my very first plugged duct in over a year of BF/pumping! I was (thankfully) able to massage, warm compress, and pump the sh*t out of it, and got the clog out within 24 hours. It was still very sore/tender to touch for a couple days, and I could.not.wait to get home and get DD on the boob. It was like a craving... an itch I couldn't scratch. I hate only being able to pump. I give EPers SO much credit.

5. Read any good books lately? I'm reading Wild for the GKU book club and I really like it!

[Deleted]

Feb 6, 2015 9:54:45 GMT -5 casey said:

Feb 5, 2015 23:12:10 GMT -5 spacedew said:

Is this common? I used to be able to pump 3-4 oz per session while working. Now if I pump a get 1-2 oz. Hardly seems worth the effort. 

i think it is normal, spacedew. you can check membranes, but it doesn't make a difference for me.

I missed exactly how old every baby is.
But what happens as we go toward weaning over a year our milk sort of returns to like colostrum.  It becomes more calorie dense, more compacted nutrition in a much smaller amount of oz.  the fat and proteins change to complement what babies are most likely to be eating, and the milk becomes like a super concentrated multi vitamin suplement energy drink.  It doesn't return down to like the 5ml level until you  really are weaning strongly, but it gets to be naturally less and less oz and harder to pump. 

[sctiger]

1. How many times a day do you nurse? one a day, before bedtime

2. Are you still nursing at night? If not, how did you wean? No, she stopped when she started STTN

3. What is your least favorite thing/something you might dislike about extended breast feeding? Needing to wean to start treatments for #2, but not being ready yet.

4. Any new issues or concerns? Just knowing that we need to wean but having a hard time with it.

Non-BF question of the week:

5. Read any good books lately? I'm reading Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty. I love her books.

[spacedew]

Feb 9, 2015 15:33:39 GMT -5 @amyg said:

Feb 6, 2015 9:54:45 GMT -5 casey said:

i think it is normal, spacedew. you can check membranes, but it doesn't make a difference for me.

I missed exactly how old every baby is.
But what happens as we go toward weaning over a year our milk sort of returns to like colostrum.  It becomes more calorie dense, more compacted nutrition in a much smaller amount of oz.  the fat and proteins change to complement what babies are most likely to be eating, and the milk becomes like a super concentrated multi vitamin suplement energy drink.  It doesn't return down to like the 5ml level until you  really are weaning strongly, but it gets to be naturally less and less oz and harder to pump. 

My LO is 18 months. This is really good to know. I thought that the volume would stay the same and only the content of fat/protein/vitamin/antibodies would change. I have a hospital grade Ameda pump and tried changing parts when it happened but it didn't make a difference. 

[Deleted]

Feb 10, 2015 0:03:54 GMT -5 spacedew said:

Feb 9, 2015 15:33:39 GMT -5 @amyg said:

I missed exactly how old every baby is.
But what happens as we go toward weaning over a year our milk sort of returns to like colostrum.  It becomes more calorie dense, more compacted nutrition in a much smaller amount of oz.  the fat and proteins change to complement what babies are most likely to be eating, and the milk becomes like a super concentrated multi vitamin suplement energy drink.  It doesn't return down to like the 5ml level until you  really are weaning strongly, but it gets to be naturally less and less oz and harder to pump. 

My LO is 18 months. This is really good to know. I thought that the volume would stay the same and only the content of fat/protein/vitamin/antibodies would change. I have a hospital grade Ameda pump and tried changing parts when it happened but it didn't make a difference. 

The volume stays the same up thru 6 mos, averaging 25 oz a day.  As solids become more evident, the volume slowly very slowly begins to lower as they get closer to a year. it may drop only an oz or two a day as you get past 8-9 mos, but then begin to lower more significantly to like 15-18 oz a day as you come up on a year and then drop even further as you go along.  There aren't a lot of studies of this but there is at least one or two linked on kellymom under extended nursing. There is some info also on nutritional component of the milk, it becomes more dense, less foremilk, and more salt maybe to encourge baby to drink more water to make up for the less volume.  It's all very interesting stuff and I wish there was more research done.      

[noname]

vvvvvfee, this is probably a silly question, but how do you know your supply has dropped? I'm 13 weeks pregnant and I honestly have no clue if it has affected my supply. DD does switch sides frequently and nurses for much longer than previously, but I don't know if this is from a supply dip or if it just comes with nursing an older baby. I know she's getting something because I've seen milk around her mouth, just not sure how much.

She's also started refusing WCM so I'm a little worried about making sure she's getting enough calcium. I had been banking on 2 good nursing sessions/day as 2 servings of "dairy" but now I'm wondering if I need to start giving her yogurt regularly or other calcium-rich snacks.

[vvvvvfee]

Feb 10, 2015 11:52:44 GMT -5 noname said:

noname, a combination of DS's increasing lack of interest in nursing, lack of change in fullness/breast size after DS nurses, and how much i can manually express. once i knew i was pregnant, i got into the habit of expressing a little bit of milk each day. it has gradually decreased to the point  where now all i can express is a tiny droplet. that said, DS was over 2 when i got pregnant, so my supply was probably less than what yours was/is, since your LO is younger. if you're concerned about your LO's calcium intake, i'd offer yogurt or cheese like you suggested. or try a non-dairy milk. (kellymom also has some helpful info here: kellymom.com/tandem-faq/16milkchanges/)

[blush]

Feb 5, 2015 19:58:35 GMT -5 jfresh said:

1. How many times a day do you nurse? A is 20 months old. A nurses several times a day. We had dropped down a bunch but she decided it wasn't enough. She nurses as she wakes up, before naps, when she feels lonely or upset, to go to sleep and overnight. We just moved. She used to see cousins and her grandparents every day so I think she is just adjusting. (also she is teething a bunch-late to get eeth and now I think she is going to catch up)
 
2. Are you still nursing at night? If not, how did you wean? She nurses at night quite a bit.

3. What is your least favorite thing/something you might dislike about extended breast feeding? Least favourite is lack of freedom. I love the closeness but a bit more freedom would be great.

4. Any new issues or concerns? I was concerned because she increased her nursing so much but I think between teething and moving she just needs a bit extra comfort lately.

Non-BF question of the week:

5. Read any good books lately? No, none. I wish I had some to read.