6 Month Old Self Weaning?

You might try pumping/hand expressing before feedings just until the milk lets down so he doesn't have to work so hard and wait so long to get things going. You might also try feeding him before he shows hunger cues. So if he usually eats every 4 on the dot, feed him at 3 1/2. If he's going through a growth spurt, more frequent feedings will also help your supply come up. I would also stay away from the bottles if you really don't want to stop nursing. The more you give him the "easy" way the more he'll want and expect it, just be persistent. If he doesn't want to nurse. Put him down for a few minutes and try again. Eventually he'll get hungry enough to where he'll nurse. Good luck!

i went through the SAME thing. Every baby is different. My daughter wsa 15 months before she weaned from nursing, so when my son was 6 months i CRIED. I keep pumping and that's what he gets. i tried for DAYS to nurse him, and i could tell he was hungry. He didn't get a bottle and after about 4 days of him crying and this going on, I did give in, and now he gets a bottle. he is MUCH more satsified. I do keep pumping, and he gets the bottles.

First of all, he is NOT weaning! This is just a bump in the road, with his growth spurt & teething being a big part of it. Your giving a bottle is probably muddying the waters and giving him an easy out when nursing is what he really needs. You can try nursing when he's sleepy or in a different position like lying down with him. You can get a lot of info, incl where the La Leche League Group nearest you meets, if you go on www.llli.org. You may never totally figure out what he's doing but keep offering the breast, trying new things like singing, swaying, dancing around with him, lying down in a darkened room if he's sleepy etc. He will come back to nursing full-time but it might be a week or so. Just hang in there. My daughter refused to nurse for a whole week at 9 mos then nursed till close to age 3 at which point I had to wean her since I was returning to work full-time. Don't give up! He doesn't know what's wrong but something's bothering him and it's just temporary. I wouldn't give the bottle. You could give breastmilk in a cup or on a spoor or with a dropper if it's a matter of him starving.

It's harder to nurse, so they have to suck harder, so when they're teething, it hurts more.

Try giving motrin instead of tylenol - it works much better. I would also suggest to keep offering breast first for a couple of minutes, but not if he gets hysterical - stress doesn't help anyone.

The other trick that you can try is to get him going on a bottle and then quickly switch to breast mid-feed. Sometimes if they realize it doesn't hurt anymore, they're willing to keep going. You have to be a pretty good nurser to do this; I was always too unweildy.

Good luck.

Simple answer.. You gave in too easily to the bottle and now he only wants the bottle because he receives instant gratification..

Teething, nipple confusion/preference, nursing strike.... sounds like you are dealing with all three.

Stop bottles, make him nurse if you want to continue. He won't starve. Offer some Motrin for the teething and nurse him whenever he's hungry. If you keep offering bottles the nipple preference will continue. He has to work to nurse, with a bottle it just runs in his mouth and he has to swallow. Babies can get lazy too. :)

Stop bottles, stop formula, help with the teething with Motrin if necessary, and nurse nurse nurse. If he fusses, just let him be. He won't starve. And only nurse him on one breast per feeding so he gets the hindmilk and is satisfied.

Sounds like he's impatient at those times. Any way to feed him a little early during those fussy feedings? Before he's STARVING? :) Maybe every 3 hours during that part of the day. The fact that he's feeding normally during the night and first thing in the morning I wonder if the teething is really bothering him that much - maybe it hurts more at certain times of the day... You certainly pump more then I ever could, 4 oz. was my max. Hang in there, he's a strong willed little guy, and how you respond during these times will build up his expectation in other areas where he tests you. If you want to pump and bottle feed during the day, then go for it, otherwise I'd suggest trying to find ways to make breastfeeding happen when he's not so stressed out and impatient.

My daughter did this, but it was at 8 weeks old, two weeks after a weight loss crisis where she ended up 10 oz below her birth weight. We were put in a position of having to supplement and using the bottle made her reject the breast completely. Even though by 8 weeks she'd gained enough to be back on track, the trauma of the crisis kept me from being patient about continuing to breastfeed. She won and never breastfed again. I was devastated. If that ever happened again, I'd get help from a lactation consultant and keep that bottle far far away. However where I lived we didn't have anyone to help us and my husband was very worried and unsupported so I gave in. Now with my daughter she refused to breastfeed at ANY time of day, so its certainly different then what your son is doing. However the impatient aspect is definitely the same. She wanted it now and didn't want to deal with the hard work of breastfeeding. At that point I could only pump 3 oz first thing in the morning, the rest of the day I'd get 1-1.5 oz. so formula was the only option I had. It was a mess for me emotionally. So really I'm telling you all this because if breastfeeding is as important to you as it was to me, I'd suggest getting a lactation specialist to help you through this. If not, you can pump and bottle feed as long as that works for both of you.

Best wishes!