What to Avoid When You are To Wean from Breastfeeding
We hear a lot of thoughts and advice on breastfeeding and weaning – mostly it comes from well-meaning people like family, relatives and friends. Sometimes, it comes from books, from the TV, from the papers and from the internet.
Take for example, twins. Even they have different personalities, likes and dislikes. No matter how similar their facial features are, I have yet to find a pair of twins who both like and dislike the same things. Usually you see twins who are so opposite in traits and personalities – one may be an introvert, the other an extrovert. If twins are like that, what more single babies? Every baby is unique.
With that in mind, it's no wonder that weaning for each baby will be different as well. Babies don't come with a manual and so we have to go by trial-and-error when it comes to raising them. But there are certain weaning practices that while acceptable in other parts of the world, have been exposed by some studies as being detrimental to a child’s psychological growth.
Here are some of those practices that we do not recommend.
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Taking Drying-up medication. This is medicine that will make your milk ducts “dry up”. I am not sure how it works but no matter how safe the manufacturers say it is, bear in mind that it is extremely dangerous for you to take medication that would alter the natural course your body should take. It may even lead to mastitis (inflammation of the breast where the milk ducts get clogged by dried up milk).
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Mommy needs a vacation. The plan: the mother would take a couple of days off from her child – actually, a week. When the mother returns, the baby will no longer want to be nursed. Why we don't recomend it is because it could leave baby feeling abandoned by his mother. Also, it sometimes doesn’t work as upon the mother’s return, the baby will still demand to be breastfed and may even become more clingy thinking that his mother would leave him again. You cannot explain to a baby why you have left him, even for just a week. Weaning by separation will damage your baby’s psychological needs, specifically of security and trust.
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“Sabotage” breast milk. The idea is to put some chili or garlic oil or something bitter on your nipple so that your baby will naturally turn away from it. Why we don't recommend it is for one, it may be painful for both mother and child, most especially for the child, who may contract some tummy aches due to the substance he ingested from his mother’s nipple. This also harms him not only physically, but again; we have psychological issues to consider. Breastfeeding is a way for the mother to give comfort and security to a baby, where the latter learns all about trust and faith in another human being. It may be distressing for your baby to find that his source of comfort and nourishment has turned foul.
The relationship between a mother and a baby is sacred. The bond, the trust that are the hallmarks of this relationship should be protected at all times. That's why we recommend gentle weaning - to let you and your baby transition from breastfeeding to bottle feeding or solid feeding at a pace that is comfortable for both of you.
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