Help! Boob addict

[Shri]

Oscar is now on three small meals a day. We started him on baby rice around four and a half months as he seemed ready and always hungry. However he seems determined to carry on nursing every 3-4 hours day and night and I can't seem to change this. He gets really grumpy and can't sleep without boob and won't accept water or a pacifyer. Just won't. And gets hysterical if I try to get him to sleep in the night wakings without boob.
He's definately getting enough milk as he weighs on the 95th percentile since a month old. He's chubby but not overly fat iykwim.

My dilemma is do I do the hippy thing and just continue to let him have booob pretty much on demand. Or should I try to cut down feeds and if so how? I even have a hard time with him if I try to shorten the feeds. He gets pretty fierce although sometimes he just snacks and it seems more of a comfort feed than a hungry or sleepy one.

I'm at the mercy of a boob addict!

Having said all this I'm STOKED that we are still bfing. It was quite hellish for the first three months and I nearly gave up loads of times but then one day he started to match better and we never looked back.

 

[mommyof3co]

Hayden was like that for a very long time, he didn't sleep through until 15mo, though I know he wasn't having enough. I would say if he's actually nursing, not just suck and fall right back asleep, he needs those feedings. I would keep going on demand.

 

[Samantha675]

I still nurse Brenn to sleep for his 2 naps and when he wakes at night, but he is now learned to fall asleep without boob at bedtime. It has been a natural progression that is of his own choosing. I still nurse him before bed, but he doesn't fall asleep anymore. I think it is totally up to you, I still feed on demand with Brenn, and he is nearly 13 months.

 

[Shri]

I still nurse Brenn to sleep for his 2 naps and when he wakes at night, but he is now learned to fall asleep without boob at bedtime. It has been a natural progression that is of his own choosing. I still nurse him before bed, but he doesn't fall asleep anymore. I think it is totally up to you, I still feed on demand with Brenn, and he is nearly 13 months.

Can I ask - did your LO naturally start to drop feeds or did you encourage it in any way (and if so how? ) ?

 

[Serene123]

Caitlyn still woke up 4 times a night untill 10 months and it was HARD going. If my next baby does that I'm not sure what I'll do. You have to do what's best for you, and if you can't cope with how things are then you need to make a change.

On demand is of course the best thing for them (IMO) but there are other ways of doing things too. This is the 21st century and there are millions of different mums and babies out there.

What do you want to do? I'm still Caitlyn pacifier, as it's my natural instinct to put her to my breast when she's upset x

 

[Shri]

Caitlyn still woke up 4 times a night untill 10 months and it was HARD going....

What do you want to do? I'm still Caitlyn pacifier, as it's my natural instinct to put her to my breast when she's upset x

I'm happy to keep feeding on demand if that is the right thing for HIM - as exhausting as it is, I find it very satisfying myself (that is when he isn't distracted or trying to use me as a teether!) - it took so much to get this far that I am happy to keep going. I suppose my concern is that he doesn't seem to want to drop any feeds and I wonder if that is healthy?
He is soooo big too - 20lbs now! massive. But like I said not overly chunky at all.

He seems to like his meals (purees and finger foods etc) well enough but often seems to be eating more for the experience than actual hunger because he fills up on milk and if he has had a particularly booby-snacky day he wont be interested in solids.

So to sum it up I want to do what is best for HIM and would rather ask experienced mothers than rely soley on the pediatrician who seems to think all children should comply by her text book.

 

[Sarahkka]

Breastmilk is still where he is getting the bulk of his protein and fluids and lets not forget all those very important immunities. As long as he is starting on solids by six months, then there's no issue. And that's according to the WHO!
And I know what you mean about the size of them - Simon is just under 19 lbs and 68 cm. And being a bad bad bitey boy right now. But breastfeeding hasn't been easy for us and I want it to keep going!

 

[Mervs Mum]

When I first started weaning Hebe to solids she didnt drop any feeds. I just went with it and then all of a sudden she started to. She now rarely BFs during the day - just a big one when she wakes and before bed

 

[Blob]

Tabitha just seemed to do it on her own, i never really forced the issue. I am her comforter she has milk when prob now twice a day when she naps and then before she goes to bed and sometimes if she wakes up in the night. A few weeks ago she needed fed EVERY time she woke up in the night but now she sometimes goes back to sleep with a cuddle I just feed on demand still occasionally she wants to feed more often in the day and i just go with the flow

 

[Shri]

So I'm thinking just go with the flow feed on demand and not worry about having a giant baby ; )

 

[Mervs Mum]

Yep! He can marry my giant BF baby!

 

[Blob]

I have a giant baby too

 

[Samantha675]

I still nurse Brenn to sleep for his 2 naps and when he wakes at night, but he is now learned to fall asleep without boob at bedtime. It has been a natural progression that is of his own choosing. I still nurse him before bed, but he doesn't fall asleep anymore. I think it is totally up to you, I still feed on demand with Brenn, and he is nearly 13 months.

Can I ask - did your LO naturally start to drop feeds or did you encourage it in any way (and if so how? ) ?

I have not pushed solids on Brenn at any time. I really only started him on them these past few weeks. I did try early on, but he wasn't interested, and I wasn't either. He sometimes nurses about 6 times a day and sometimes more. If he comes at me at a time other than his normal nursing times, I will put him off, but if he comes at me a 2nd time, I let him nurse. At 6 months, he nursed at least every 2 hours and was not on any solids.

 

[Shri]

i'm feeling like everything i'm experiencing is normal for demand bf babies