How do I get my 14 month old to stop nursing, he never took the bottle and only takes the cup but not at nap/bedtime.
I enjoy nursing my boy and he does take baby/table food too. It would be nice for his dad or someone else to be able to care for him if I were called away for some reason. I don't want to leave the house and worry about him. Besides in this society breast feeding in public is not always easy.
You just have to stop nursing him if you're ready. Let your milk dry up and if there is nothing there then he'll have to take a bottle at nap time. He might fuss for a few days but he'll get over it soon.
You'll have to wean him off - start by decreasing the times you actually nurse him. When I was weaning my daughter -the morning one was the last one to go (same w/ my son). She never took a bottle either so I found a Nuk sippy cup that has a soft nipple on it and it makes it easy for them to drink. I found it at Target - I think Walmart sells them also. You might try that.
Hi Ester,
If you are ready to stop nursing - just stop. It may sound mean but if your son knows the cup is the only option he WILL take it!
Good luck,
N.
If you want to stop, just stop. You may not be able to convince him it's what HE wants right now, but you're the one in charge. Just stop. It's not always easy but he'll deal with it. He's not a baby anymore and you have a life to lead. Try different sippy cups and he'll find one he likes.
Does he just want to nurse for comfort? I know with my daughter it got to a point where we basically just nursed when we were getting ready for nap or bed and when she first got up in the morning (nursed until 18m). One idea that worked for us is that when she wanted to nurse (mostly out of comfort she could get from me), we gave her a special bear that I explained would help her during those times. It was her special bear and eventually she didn't need to nurse anymore. It really didn't take long once I made the decision to stop. I know how difficult it can be. Just try to find a sippy he likes, maybe one with a straw if he doesn't like the regular ones. Good luck and hang in there!
Just wondering, is there any particular reason why you want him/her to stop? I mean I've had friends that have breast fed through 3-4 years.
If you're set on this I would recommend just moving him directly to the sippie cup and beginning to introduce solid foods to him/her. Make it a big production like they are moving up to the table with the rest of the family.
Bottom line, you're probably going to have to ween him/her away. The reason why children keep this up at this point is because they like the closeness so you will need to replace it with something similiar (read time, snuggle time, etc.)
