When Elinore was 14 months of age, I stopped breastfeeding.
My supply was really starting to dwindle. I may have been in denial for a bit that she was still hungry after a feeding too.
My let down was taking longer and longer to occur, and she was becoming less and less patient. This made for a lot of self-exposure I wasn't comfortable with, and a lot of wrestling with a wiggling growing baby/toddler!
Feeds left me feeling frustrated things weren't going nearly as smoothly anymore, and once I quit denying it, concerned she wasn't getting enough.
For about a month, we struggled through before I admitted defeat. Except that it didn't really feel like defeat at all. I thought I'd be sad when I stopped nursing, and don't get me wrong, I miss snuggling and nourishing my baby, but I knew it was time to stop. Neither one of us were having a great experience with the nursing anymore, my supply was halting quickly, and I no longer looked forward to our nursing sessions, but dreaded the fight that would ensue. It was her way of telling me she was ready too.
She's just over 15 months old now and just recently finished her the freezer supply I built up while I was pumping.
If we are blessed with another child, I'll be nursing again, God willing!
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