Thread: How long did you originally expect to nurse?

For some reason this has been on my mind recently. Before I had Louisa, and maybe still when she was littler, expected that I would probably nurse her for about 2 years. I guess I based this on how long my mom nursed my brother and me: 22 months for him and 26 for me. We both self-weaned. I also didn't expect to be tandem nursing. I wasn't really opposed to it, but I figured that since I expected to nurse for around 2 years and wanted my babies 3 years apart, there would be no overlap. So here I am expecting my second baby this month, and still nursing my 3 1/2 year-old, and it's got me wondering how other moms' nursing experiences compare with what they expected, especially moms who are nursing older toddlers/preschoolers.

I assumed one year.

DD weaned at 29 months, and ds is 21 months and still going strong.

I thought I would nurse for at least a year. DS was pretty easily weaned at 3 years, after I tandem nursed for 3 months and DD is still nursing at almost 3 and 1/2 years. She is mostly night weaned. I'm not sure if I will let her keep going or wean her at some point. Still thinking about that.

I expected, when Erik was born, to nurse him for 12 months, then maybe just at bedtime until he was done.

hahahahaha. He nursed until the day before he turned 4, and often. Anders, now 26 months, nurses 8-12 times in most 24 hour periods, with no indication of slowing down. And I wouldn't change it for a thing. I started getting worried that Anders would self-wean "too early", because he has never been as intense as Erik. Thankfully, it didn't happen.

i thought six months and then i learned that i had to give formula if i did not nurse for one year... at the time one of my friends i had made in childbirth class was formula feeding and i hated the smell! so i thought okay i will hang in there and do a year! ended up nursing julie til she was 23 months old and i was 4 months pregnant with john. nursed john til he was 3 years and a few months- and a year and a half with his sister jami who also weaned into her third year. i loved it!

I planned for a year. Now I plan for three.

I thought I would try to go for a year, anything else would be excessive. hahaha! DD is still nursing sporadically at 29 months.

I thought I would nurse until she was done. I figured 2-3 years. But I didn't expect nursing through pregnancy to be so difficult for me and I weaned her before baby #2 was born, so she was 20 months. The second child I planned for the best as well. . . and nursed her through my entire pregnancy but weaned her shortly after baby #3 was born, she was 25 months. This time I hope to stick it out.

My experience is pretty close to waterlily's. I expected to nurse until around 2, but Miriam was very attached and I was so scared that I would be in the hospital with PTL again and that she would be miserable without me. So we night weaned (she must have been ready, b/c it happened in 2 nights with no crying) and she basically just stopped asking. Let me tell you, it was sad to stop hearing "murse, mama?" I was 6 months pregnant and Miriam was about 17 months old. Noah is 14 months now and is still nursing often. I'm not tempted to wean him in the least. I *love* nursing him (although I have gone through phases of wanting to be done).

Jeni

I hoped to get to 15 months. the longest I have nursed before this was for 6 weeks....

Isabella will be 2 in 1 week.
still nursing!:cuc:

With my first it was almost 12 months, with my second it was 18 months, with my 3rd it was only 5 months . So when I had my last I was determined to make it to 2yrs. He is now 3yrs and 7 1/2 months and still going. However, he only nurses at naptime on the weekends and in the evening before bed. I definitely have very little milk these days. The right side has more than the left, but not much. He usually nurses both sides for about 5 minutes then has a sippy cup of water. Sometimes all he wants to do is hold them, :lol: He calls them "mountains". :hahaha:

With my first I didn't even try. I was "told" it would be too hard and I trusted the person that told me this and believed them. I regretted almost immediately, tried to nurse, then was told again by the same person that I didn't have enough milk for my big baby. I gave up.

With DS2, I wanted to do it for a year. He went on a nursing strike at 10 months which I assumed was self weaning and that was the end of that.

Now, with DS3, I would like to go to at least 18 months. He just turned one and is going strong. I can't imagine weaning him now.

For my first I thought 1 year. He is 3 now and still going. My younger son, now 18 months...well, I have no deadline in mind!

Well I wasn't going to nurse at all, but in my 8th month of pregnancy I had a heart to heart with a very good friend, and she convinced me to read about breastfeeding. So once I decided to nurse , I wasn't quitting & originally planned to do so for one year. I found out I was pregnant with Makenna when Bailee was 13 mos. and since she was still a baby I just couldn't quit nursing her. I ended up nursing her and Makenna for 13 mos. Bailee weaned at 3, and Makenna continued. I got pregnant and miscarried, then I got pregnant again, with Sully. I nursed Makenna & Sully together until March of this year and Makenna was 3.75 years old when she weaned. Sully , is still nursing and I am planning on nursing him until he is at least 3, but since he's my last I probably won't push weaning.

I expected a year, but DS is almost 18 months and still going.