WEANING (III): WHEN IT IS THE MOTHER WHO DECIDES

When a mother decides to wean her child we talk about weaning directed or induced. We call it that because one of the parties does want to do it (the mother) and the other probably does not (the son).

The process must be very sensitive and gradual so that children, whose understanding is limited, take it as well as possible.

The decision, once made, must be respected and never judged by the social or medical environment. However, there are times when definitive weaning may not be recommended for the emotional or physical health of babies (although if the mother is informed there is no reason to comment or judge, even if it is so fashionable to do so).

Let's see what moments are considered delicate to start the weaning process because, or they are not recommended or not necessary even though there is a medical indication:

Not recommended

When joining work: Many mothers decide to stop breastfeeding their babies at the time they start working and in Spain the (ridiculous) maternal leave is 16 weeks.

In terms of health, the ideal thing is for babies to be exclusively breastfed up to six months, so Mothers are encouraged to continue breastfeeding once they arrive home.

From an emotional point of view, the moment of joining work is a real “break” in the mother-child relationship. If we add weaning to this event, we are creating a second emotional break that can be very painful for the baby: “Before I was all day with you and you had my chest and my heat at your disposal when you wanted it. Now I disappear a few hours a day and when I'm home, besides, we don't have the same relationship as before. ”

At six months of age: At six months, when it is recommended to start complementary feeding and therefore the period of exclusive breastfeeding ends, many mothers take the opportunity to wean babies.

Gluten begins to be offered by 6-7 months and it has been shown that those babies who were still breastfeeding at the time they started taking gluten they are almost half as likely to develop celiac disease.

It is then recommended to wait at least one or two months from the moment the gluten is offered and advance that time to six months if we wish to wean at 7 or 8 months.

When a brother is born: The moment in which a brother is born is the worst time to initiate any change of behavior or behavior with a child since a great change such as losing part of the attention of the parents and especially the mother, would add the stop breastfeeding him, to give it to his unknown brother.

If the mother has mastitis: Mastitis is an inflammatory condition of the chest that may or may not be accompanied by infection. The cause is usually a poor extraction of milk by the baby and its solution is precisely due to often emptying the milk from the breasts. Weaning at this time for medical reasons is precisely the opposite treatment to the ideal before a mastitis.

When the child starts daycare or school: Like the mother's entry to work, the start of daycare involves a separation for the baby and an important change in the mother-child relationship. Ideally, once at home you find the same environment and the same customs you had so that the whole process is as traumatic as possible.

It is not necessary

For a medical treatment: Unfortunately, many doctors and pediatricians are completely unaware of the compatibility or incompatibility of medications or diagnostic tests with breastfeeding. This causes many women to stop breastfeeding (despite themselves, normally) unnecessarily.

When the teeth appear: There is a false belief that says a child should stop drinking milk at the time the first tooth comes out. Children do not breastfeed by biting with the gums, but by moving the tongue at the base of the chest. When they have teeth they do it the same way.

When the mother becomes pregnant: Many children are weaned voluntarily at the time the mother becomes pregnant. The taste of milk changes and by the third month milk production drops considerably.

Some children, despite everything, continue to breastfeed so it is possible for mothers to receive the medical indication of weaning immediately.
This is wrong because breastfeeding does not cause abortions. Breast suction produces oxytocin and oxytocin is the hormone that causes uterine contractions. But nevertheless Oxytocin receptors in the uterus are not sensitive to it until the end of pregnancy.

Sexual activity also produces an increase in oxytocin and is not prohibited during pregnancy (much less).

In a few days we will end this series of dedicated weaning tickets with recommendations when it comes to stop breastfeeding our children.

Photos | Flickr (Ernst Vikne), Flickr (Now I'm Always Smiling)
In Babies and more | Weaning (I): clarifying the concept, Weaning (II): when it is the child who decides, How to wean