Weaning My Almost Two Year Old

I have heard it said that nursing is a partnership between the mother and her child, and if either of them wants to quit nursing, it's time for it to be over. So good for you, and good for you for going above and beyond what most women are comfortable doing (including myself--I only nursed for 13 months). That being said, I weaned my son by cutting one nursing session at a time, starting with the one he was least interested in, which happened to be at dinner. Then, 2 weeks later, I stopped the lunch session. Then 2 weeks later, the bed-time session; and 2 weeks after that the breakfast session. It was a very gradual weaning, and it worked really well for us. Now it sounds like your daughter just really loves to nurse, which will definitely make it harder for you. (My son could really care less if he nursed or got a bottle.) But I would definitely pick one session to drop, and then 3 days later (or longer)drop another until you end up with either the bed-time or breakfast session as your last one. It will be hardest to break the bed-time habit, so you might want to save that for last. She's old enough to understand when you say "no", and it's important to be strong and stay consistent when she "demands" to be nursed. Eventually she will forget about the nursing. We waited to wean our son from the pacifier until right before his 2nd birthday, and it was a struggle to say the least! 3 weeks of crying and whining and asking for it, but then one day he just stopped. That was about 6 weeks ago, and now it is like the pacifier never existed. It's going to be hard, but you can do it! I hope this helped and good luck!

At this age a change of routine, coupled with a little incentive, can work. So if there are specific times that she nurses (like before bed), try moving it up in the day. Maybe to before her bath instead. Give her some sort of incentive like an extra book if she skips it. When you're out and about and she wants to nurse you can tell her that you'll do it when you get home. She may or may not remember it by then. Honestly, we used chocolate milk (I mean *barely* any choc at all) as a treat/substitute for our son if he wanted to nurse and I didnt. Aslo limiting the amt of time you nurse for will help her cut back. Really the routine changes are key tho.

I weaned my daughter at 18 months. I decided the best thing to do was go cold turkey. The day before I stopped, I told her over and over that mom's milk will be gone tomorrow. The next day was bad, but not as bad I imagined. It was a tough three or four days then she just seemed to forget about it. Just keep telling her that M. is out of milk and then do something else. I know it sounds mean, but it really only took 3 or 4 bad days. I also wanted to wean by two, but she just became so obsessed with nursing that I could not handle it anymore! Good luck!

I just weaned my two year old son. He mega nursed--I thought it would be a horrible experience. He would nurse throughout the day whenever he got bored and in the morning to go back to sleep. Refusing and distracting him did not work--he would cry and get really distressed. So I did what my mom did to wean me at 2 1/2. I bought nail biting stuff at Walgreens called "Thum". It has cayenne pepper oil in it and other yucky tasting stuff in it. I put it on my nipple and he put his lips on it once and said "Hot" and has never wanted to try it again. Now if he gets the urge to nurse he'll say "nurse hot" and shack his head no. There were a few more tantrums than before because nursing would always calm him, without the nursing he sometimes gets overly stressed, but it is much better now and I give him a bottle in the morning for sucking.

I didn't think this would work but it actually helped. I would tell her she could nurse until I counted to 10, and she actually accepted it. She was a little over 2 and she was only nursing at night. This was a very gradual process, and I didn't always only make her stop after 10 seconds.

First, I'd ask yourself if you really want to be done nursing, or if you think you should be done because she is 2. I ask this because I know it never occurred to me that I would be nursing a 2 year old until it happened. My first two children were easy to wean sometime between 1-2, but my youngest nursed until age 2 1/2 because the weaning process took longer. I think I might have had mixed feelings about weaning my "baby", and he sure loved to nurse.

I think your plan of offering alternatives and cutting back will ultimately be successful. Make sure that you include yourself along with the sippy cup or pacifier, lots of cuddles and kisses. When you are really ready to be done, just be firm, "you can't nurse, but you can have a cup and cuddle," and comfort her, without nursing, if she is sad.

I just weaned my 16 month old. My husband and I went away on a long weekend. She was fine with just milk while we were gone. She was down to just 2-3 feedings per day when we left. When I came back she asked for it but I told her it was all gone. I would give her a cup of milk or a pacifier. That worked. It's been just over a week now and she's fine. Still occasionally "asks" for it but I tell her it's all gone and she moves on. Good Luck!