- my iParenting
- quick clicks
- babies today articles
- babies today q&a
- toddlers today articles
- toddlers today q&a
- breastfeed.com articles
- breastfeed.com q&a
- community & groups
- research baby names
- prepare a birth plan
- content channels
- ip channel rss feeds
- read birth stories
- read parenting stories
- recommended books
- e-newsletters
- safety recalls
- ip diaries
- ip store
- mom of the month
- dad of the month
- editor's letter
- letters to the editor
From Our Sponsors
- e-newsletters
- Sign up to receive our free weekly e-newsletters
- award-winning products
The iParenting Media Awards program helps parents find the best products for their families.
Expert Q&A
 |  |  |
| By Ann Calandro BSN, RNC, IBCLC Lactation Consultant | ||
 |
I am still nursing my 38-month-old daughter and I want to go on until she weans herself. As I do not know any mothers breastfeeding toddlers at this age, I would like to ask you if you know what I am supposed to expect. Do children usually wean themselves at age 5 or 6? I have friends and family who think nursing up to 24 months is normal, but above that age not, so my situation seems to get more and more difficult. It seems that weaning my daugher now is almost impossible!"
Katherine A. Dettwyler, an anthropologist who has studied the age of weaning, says in her book Breastfeeding Biocultural Perspectives, ""The predictions for a natural age of weaning in modern human populations, based on the nonhuman primate patterns, range between 2.5 and 7.0 years of age.""
Reading this information may be reassuring to you, as you consider yourself and your child in the large picture of humanity. Weaning is a very personal experience. Sometimes children decide to wean themselves, and sometimes mothers decide it is a good time. Sometimes it is a mutually agreed upon decision. As children grow and mature, they seem to outgrow the need of closeness that breastfeeding provides. Many mothers wean by using the ""don't offer but don't refuse"" type of philosophy. You may find the support you need at your local La Leche League group, where nursing older children is frequently the norm. You may want to read a book published by La Leche League, How Weaning Happens, by Diane Bengson. This book has many helpful hints and suggestions.
Most mothers' goal is a peaceful, gradual end to this special relationship, with other types of closeness beginning to replace the breastfeeding more and more until one day you realize that your child is weaned."
Related Expert Q&A
- Should I wean my baby?
- Does milk leakage after weaning mean anything?
- My wife needs to wean our 5-month-old as soon as possible. Do you have any tips?
- My 19-month-old daughter's pediatrician advised that I stay with a friend during the weaning period. This is my second day away from my family, and my breasts hurt incredibly -- very engorged and painful. Any help for me?
- My daughter just turned a year old. I need to go back to work but I can't get her to stop nursing. She refuses to take a bottle. She has started baby food but she still wants to nurse afterwards. I have tried everything I can think of -- please help.
More Answers by this Expert
- My breasts are so large now, I am worried I will smother my baby if I try to breastfeed. Also, will my breasts return to their former size?
- Is it necessary to give multi-vitamin supplements to a breastfed baby? Doesn't Mother's milk provide all the nutrients a baby needs?
- Are there any laws in effect that hinder women from breastfeeding in public?
- What are an employer's legal responsibilities and duties for breastfeeding and/or pumping at work?
- I am pregnant, and my nipples are like a faucet, particularly when I'm sleeping. Is this normal?