How to Stop Breastfeeding
Everyone tells you how you can start breastfeeding and the keep it going. However, it becomes hard for women when it comes to stopping the feeding process. If you are among those women who are planning to stop breastfeeding, then follow some simple guidelines to shed light on a pain-free way to ease you and your child into a new routine.
Instructions
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1
You can start by cutting one feeding per day. A less urgent one, like after the afternoon nap is the easiest. Before your child is terribly hungry, offer the bottle or cup in a position you do not nurse in.
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2
Expect an adjustment period, with the child getting accustomed to the idea that this is not a toy. Offering the alternative fifteen minutes or so before a regular mealtime will give some leeway.
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3
When you do feed, ritualise it. Exact time, exact spot, exact positions will cement the idea of ‘breast time’ for the baby. Try to deviate as little as possible. If you are at the mall during lunchtime, offer your breast to the baby at the exact time you would at home. If the baby sleeps late, go to the feeding spot as soon as child is awake. As the child gets used to this, up the ante to include lunch with the cup, then morning snack, until you get to the night-time breastfeed, which should be the last to go.
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4
Realise that after a certain age, breastfeeding is considered as comfort. Instead of the breast, offer a stuffed animal or blanket. These items should be very soft and smell like you.
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5
Make less milk by implementing milk reducing agents. You can use Sage, Spearmint, Parsley, Chickweed, Stinging Nettles, Herb Robert, Oregano, Sorrel, and Vitamin B6 to reduce your milk supply. If you are still getting engorged, express just enough to relieve yourself.
