Anxious about pump weaning (xp from 12 months)

[@llli*babyben2011]

Please share your story if you pump weaned and continued nursing at night and on weekends. I nurse my (a few days from) one year old full time Friday-Sunday, pump 3x a day and nurse in the morning and at bedtime Monday-Thursday. Would like to pump wean if possible, but am concerned that I'll lose my milk to feed him Friday-Sunday all day. I read everywhere that people pump wean and still nurse for months or years but I wanted some real life reassurance from people who have been there.

[@llli*jenna562]

HI mama, I feel your pain! On one hand you want to burn the pump and dance around in glee but on the other you have spent the past year guarding your supply like a rabid watch dog and even the thought of losing it makes you freak out!

I have pumped weaned with 2 kids (at 14 mos and 13 mos respectively). My first son nursed throughout my pg and tandem nursed with his brother until he weaned with my nudging at 4 years and my DS2 is still nursing when we are together and he is 16 months.

You will be fine!

[@llli*still.here]

I also pump weaned right about 13 mos and continued to nurse my daughter until she was 2. Your milk supply is well-established by now. it will be there when you needed it. Even on weekends.

[@llli*babyben2011]

Thanks guys. This helps.

[@llli*littleturtlelove]

I pump weaned when my son was 11 months. I gave him coconut milk in a sippy cup the 3 days I was gone. When he was with me we breastfed. Your body will adjust to the demand. Advice I would give tho... please pump wean slowly. Shorten the time you pump until you're down to just one pumping/day. Then weed down that time until you're done with the pump. In all, it took me one month to wean from the pump. I had Oversupply tho and it took a while for my body to adjust. It might not take that long for others. Then again I did only work 3 days a week. Hang in there.. you will be done with the pump!

[@llli*babyben2011]

Thanks so much littleturtlelove. I'm planning on weaning slowly - going down to 15 minutes instead of 20, dropping one session at a time. I'm nervous but excited to have some more freedom!

[@llli*sassypants]

If cutting down on time is not working well I did well with the "postponement" method (I dunno what it is called, I just made that up ). I pumped twice a day and started pushing my pumping session 30 minutes later for a few days until my body was used to it, then I pushed them back another 30 minutes until my afternoon session was gone. Eventually I was going almost all day without pumping and I was ready to drop the last session. He was around 13mo when I packed up the pump.

[@llli*mommy2lilah]

My daughter is 18 months old and I haven't pumped since she was 11.5 months old. We are together and nurse frequently Friday through Sunday and all night long every night. She eats more solid foods at the babysitter's than she does at home - I still have plenty of milk for her! It was the same way with my older daughter too. I worried about pump weaning - both times - but it worked out fine and the freedom from not having to pump out-weighed the anxiety of not sending my milk with her every day.

[@llli*Hellchick]

I'm about to go through this same thing and wanted to look through this thread for support. I've always had supply issues -- I've been pumping 7 times a day, including a 7-day-a-week 3am session, just to be sure DS has enough milk for the week. So I'm a little worried that ANY drop in my supply will tank me.

But I've also noticed that DS is nursing less frequently these days, and although my milk output is a little lower, it's not that much lower, and DS seems satisfied when he nurses. So I'm hopeful.

[@llli*joe.s.mom]

I think it's normal to feel a bit anxious about pump weaning, for all of the reasons described here - after a year of worrying about supply, it's hard to stop worrying! But it works, it really does. I pump weaned Joe at about 11.5 months, and continued to nurse him until he was 2 and a half - the main reason he weaned was that I got pregnant again.