Weaning Update
Weaning Ila is going both good and bad. I haven’t nursed her since Monday morning, but about 12 hours into weening her she started to develop cold symptoms. I almost gave up then and nursed her and part of me is not sure if I made the right choice, but I held strong.
Monday night I started developing cold symptoms as well. On Tuesday I felt miserable. All I wanted to do was go to bed and sleep the cold away. I was felt tired and weak and it was really hard to keep going. Ila cried much of the day, I think mostly because she wanted to nurse. She ate oatmeal and crackers and other such things. She continued to refuse milk (both cows milk and my milk), but drank water and Gatorade. I would feel a lot less guilty if she’d drink some milk. I don’t think my other kids tasted anything but milk till they were about 2.
Today I felt a little better–at least I had a little more energy, but still had a headache most of the day and cold symptoms. Ila was miserable. She had red cheeks and a red nose and was sleepy and clingy most of the day. She wanted to be held every minute that she was awake. She didn’t eat much today. I wish I knew if it was just her cold or if some of it was a result of cutting her off. I offered her every food I could think of and she finally ate chocolate goldfish crackers. Although I was relieved to see her eat something, I felt incredibly guilty to see my little baby eat nothing but chocolate goldfish crackers and water.
So here I am, several days into weening Ila and not sure that I made the right choice. I am afraid that if I gave up and nursed her (which would be the easy thing to do right now), that it would be so much harder to wean her later. I also feel like this is a step that has to happen. My doctor has told me that babies don’t need mother’s milk past one. Ila has become dependent on nursing to such an extent that she doesn’t seem to want to bother with eating sometimes. She has tried to regress to primarily nursing and she needs more than what I can offer her nutritionally (although it’s hard to make that case right now when she’s eating chocolate crackers and water).
I’m starting to fret that this little experiment will end in me taking her to the hospital to have a feeding tube inserted so she doesn’t become malnourished. I hope I’m just being over dramatic; I have a strong sense of mommy guilt right now.
Mommy guilt overcame me and I nursed her this morning. She was crying miserably and took a few sips of water before rejecting everything and clawing at my shirt. I started to think that perhaps her little tummy ached with emptiness and I decided that I can try just nursing her less times during the day instead of going “cold turkey” (which is, by the way, what Ila’s doctor recommended before we left Tennessee). She seems much happier and is back to enjoying solid foods that aren’t chocolate flavored.
Ugh, there’s nothing worse than a sick mommy and baby!! i hope you both feel better soon!! alex never would drink milk (he still won’t at age 9) but he would eat cheese, cottage cheese, and yogurt so the doctor said that was fine as long as he was getting enough daily.
good luck with weaning!!
sams still nursing but we’ve dropped it to twice a day. he’s pretty desperate for it by the time it comes b/c he’s quit drinking during the day. this morning his poop was similar to a baby before solids. he’s also not eating much & hash cold symptoms. they started like 3 days after i cut his nursing from 4 to 2. even as i read your story i didn’t see all the similarities until i started telling you mine.
Hey–I wouldn’t push the weaning issue. I don’t know what that doctor was thinking to tell you to go cold turkey with nursing! I love nursing my babies–and we go as long as we both love it. With Lincoln (almost 14 months) we’re down to nursing twice a day, once in the morning, and once another time.
If she needs it, and you don’t mind it, go for it! There is no reason to stop–and she will stop on her own, eventually. Mason nursed the shortest at 15 months (and he would have gone longer, but I was 3 months pregnant with Sammy), and Sammy nursed the longest, at just over 2 years.
Towards the end, I just don’t offer it, and the nursings start spreading further and further apart. You’ll do the right thing–don’t let someone else tell you what to do! :o)