Parenting Tips: It is advisable to give only breast milk to children for at least 6 months immediately after birth. Actually, mother's milk contains all the nutrients that babies need, which helps them to stay healthy and develop their body better. That's why mothers breastfeed their children not only for 6 months but for a long time. But there are many children who prefer to drink mother's milk till the age of 2 or 3 years or more. In such a situation, it is a bit difficult to wean children from mother's milk. Certified Baby Sleep Consultant Sahiba Madan shared a post on Instagram and shared some tips and tricks for weaning children.
How to stop breastfeeding a baby?
Sticking to your decision not to breastfeed
Once you have decided that you want to stop breastfeeding your baby, you have to stick to your decision. Babies may throw tantrums to get their way, crying, screaming, and refusing to take anything other than breast milk may force you to switch them back to breastfeeding, so try to stick to your decision.
Plan to wean your baby off breastfeeding
Try to make a proper plan before deciding to wean your baby. Weaning your baby off breastfeeding can be difficult if you don't plan in advance. You cannot stop breastfeeding your baby suddenly, as this can affect their health, so you should gradually reduce breastfeeding and then stop completely.
Try giving your child another option
Every baby has different habits, so they may react differently when you try to stop or reduce breastfeeding. So, to reduce the baby's crying while reducing breast milk, you can give him an alternative to breast milk, such as a sippy cup, a special stuffed animal, a favorite toy, singing songs, giving snacks, etc.
Be prepared for side effects
Reducing or stopping breastfeeding not only makes the baby irritable, but it can also affect your health. When you stop breastfeeding, your breasts may produce more milk than usual. To avoid this problem, you can apply hot compress, cold compress or take pain medication as per the doctor's advice.