breastfeeding my 8 month old

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breastfeeding my 8 month old
« on: August 30, 2009, 12:01:29 PM » by trinalewis06

HI! i am having a hard time with breastfeeding my 8 month old daughter. She nurses well at her night time feedings but during the day is a differnt story. She will pull off and look around and play or just not nurse but if i give her a bottle (BM or formula) she will drink that. She ate at 630 this morning and slept through her next feeding...so i pumped...when i went to pump i could only get 3 ounces!!!!!!! talk about aggrivating! i am taking fenugreek and eating well and taking Supermom vitamins and drinking alot of water.... idk if my body is just done or if she is...
like i said the night time nursings go pretty well but she does not eat as after during the night hours....
she is the one who usually initiates nursing time...by pulling my shirt down and going for it lol or fussing bc she is hungry

should i go ahead and ween her???

help!!! idk what to do!

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Re: breastfeeding my 8 month old
« Reply #1 on: August 30, 2009, 12:34:27 PM » by ladyhen

At your dd's age there is a lot to be interested in. Wink

Mine were all very easily distracted from that age on and I had to change the way I was nursing in order to keep going.

Keep the environment that you are in while nursing quiet and darkened a bit. Maybe play some quiet music. Limit any distractions and pay attention to the baby.
Some of mine did much better if I took this time of nursing to sing to them. Some did better with me laying down in bed with them. All of mine were much better off when I used a sling carrier to hold/nurse in, but they were used to a sling from birth. The sling gave me the opportunity to limit their activity and gave a sense of familiarity no matter where we were or what was happening.

If you are able to pump 3 oz, that is pretty good, imo. But I would be careful about giving bottles if you want to continue to b-feed. Babies are likely to choose the easier option.

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Re: breastfeeding my 8 month old
« Reply #2 on: August 30, 2009, 01:35:43 PM » by sarajane

Mine all started to get distracted more as they got bigger. They did the same things. My 9 almost 10 month old is doing the same thing right now. If there is anything going on, especially with his big sister in the room, he gets up and down and up and down, turns his head a million times, switches sides. He is a tad more distracted than my girls were but it just comes with the territory.

Getting a small amount when you pump is normal, pumping isn't nearly as effective or efficient as a baby's suck. I have tons of milk, I can tell but when I pump I hardly get anything out. So, that isn't necessarily an indication of any supply problems.

If you really need your little one to pay attention and nurse then going to a quiet part of the house is best. Nursing in public is another challenge. I make sure to nurse right before leaving so that they won't get hungry when we are out seeing as it is harder for them to pay attention when we are out. But if they get hungry enough in public they will stay with it, just probably not as long as at home.

Despite the distractions it is possible to nurse for quite a bit longer. No reason to wean in my opinion especially seeing as she is still requesting nursing.

My distracted little nursers went to age 2, age 18 months, and now we are still going strong with the third at age 10 months (on the second anyway).

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Re: breastfeeding my 8 month old
« Reply #3 on: August 30, 2009, 05:44:49 PM » by floydian

They do usually do that around 8 mos. I wouldn't worry too much about how much you are pumping.

You can teach them to pay attention to nursing despite distractions. Also be aware that many times it just doesn't take long to empty a breast. When the little one is sucking three to four times between swallows, he may be done with that side and ready to move on to the next side. Many little ones can empty a side in less than 5 minutes.

I nursed 6 little ones that got distracted. Four of them nursed until they were two and exclusively for one year.

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Re: breastfeeding my 8 month old
« Reply #4 on: August 30, 2009, 09:24:23 PM » by hi_itsgwen

Mine also loved to multi-task and socialize while they nursed at that age and beyond. I would just put my hand on the back of her head and say 'nurse' when she's try to turn. It annoyed her, but I couldn't take the stretching...she wouldn't bother to unlatch when she turned. Cheesy

I also accidentally discovered that if I am wearing a necklace, that my baby enjoys fiddling with that and it helped her stay focused. My experience was similar to Floydian's in that my babies were fast nursers.

My sister's trick was to put on her nursing cover, and then tuck it snugly under baby's body, so there was nothing for baby to see.

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