There are a lot of mothers out there that would love to breastfeed their child. Breastfeeding is really a roller coaster ride. No one prepares you for it and shows you how to stop doing it. I am going to be sharing a little about my breastfeeding journey and how I eventually stopped breastfeeding.

GOT MILK?

When I gave birth to my daughter in 2017, no one prepared me for the journey that I would endure. My milk ducts were totally dried up and the nurses were telling me that I MUST breastfeed my daughter. However, after showing them all of my attempts to extract milk, they finally gave in and offered to give her some formula. I thought they would make her starve to death due to their strict breast feeding policy.

I was finally able to breastfeed after 5 days. My flow of milk was also very slow and I had no choice but to supplement breastfeeding with formula. She was constantly crying after she was breastfed and I knew she was still hungry. When I left the hospital, the nurses had advised me to use the‘ Infamil’ brand. I tried drinking a lot of water and drinking cornmeal porridge [ A Jamaican remedy for producing more breast milk].  I was also not prepared to breastfeed at every hour on the hour during the night. I was literally bleaching for the entire night.  You got it right, I was sleep deprived for the first six months.

6 MONTHS TO GO

When my daughter was six months old, I was happy that I could finally stop this breastfeeding roller coaster. However, I didn’t know how to stop. I started to give her solids from the family pot,  fruits, giving her formula throughout the day, different types of porridge but my daughter still loved her breast milk and wanted it as a means of comfort during the night. This was mainly due to the fact that we co-slept at night and she often slept on the breast. I was told to put ‘ Aloe Vera’ juice on my breast to change  its taste. However, after continuous attempts, this method did not work. She eventually got accustomed to the Aloe Vera taste.

WHEN WILL SHE STOP?

When she was 11 months, I made up my mind that she would not be a 1 year old and I would still be breastfeeding. However, one year past and then she was 16 months old. I wanted my body back. I kept praying and I asked God to assist me to find a way to stop. I rummaged through a lot of videos on YouTube, hoping to find a solution. I found a video of a mother whose daughter was two years old and she was also still accustomed to the breast. She recommended a ‘ Black facial cleansing mask’ to cover the nipple as a means to scare her off. I bought the mask but she was not scared at all. She was puzzled at first when she saw the colour but she still insisted that she was a lover of her breast.

GOD IS MERCIFUL

However, one day, God finally answered my prayers. I was searching on YouTube once more and I came across different mothers talking about “Dr. Jay Gordon’s night weaning method”.  I did some more research to find out exactly what it entailed. In a nutshell it says that, “At any time before 11 p.m. (including 10:58) nurse to sleep, cuddle and nurse when he wakes up and nurse him back to sleep, but stop offering nursing to sleep as the solution to waking after 11 p.m.. Instead…..When your baby awakens at midnight or any other time after 11 p.m., hug him, nurse him for a short time but make sure he does not fall asleep on the breast and put him down awake. Rub and pat and cuddle a little until he falls asleep but don’t put him back on the breast (or give him a bottle if that’s what you’ve been doing). He must fall asleep with your comfort beside him, but not having to nurse to feel comforted enough to drift off. ”  see link http://drjaygordon.com/attachment/sleeppattern.html

NIGHT WEANING METHOD

I tried this method consecutively for one week and this was not easy. She screamed and roared and woke up the entire house. I would put her to bed by 8:30 pm or 9 pm and she would be awake by 1 am. As the method stated, one should not breastfeed after midnight, I made her a bottle of formula and I gave it her. She would often cry and throw a tantrum but she realized that it was her only option and she got accustomed to drinking the bottle at night. I also gave her favourite teddy bear to sleep with as a means of comfort to show her that she has a friend to sleep with at night.

My daughter was completely weaned at 17 months old. It was the second greatest feeling of my life; besides when I gave birth to her. 🙂 No one could really understand what I was going through or failed to understand that separation from the breast is not an easy one. This was my roller coaster ride but it was worth it. My daughter and I have developed a strong bond and she is really smart for her age.

References http://drjaygordon.com/attachment/sleeppattern.html

If you have questions or comments, please feel free to share.