Stopping breastfeeding can be a very difficult time for both mother and baby. To have the best results, new mothers should start by making sure that the decision to stop breastfeeding is their own. Women who are interested in stopping breastfeeding should also determine the methods they will use during weaning. Finding healthy, nutritional breast milk replacements and using a breast pump may also be important steps for women who are interested in stopping breastfeeding. Those who experience breast pain during the cessation of breast feeding can achieve relief through the application of cabbage leaves or cool compresses.
Women who are interested in stopping breastfeeding should start by making sure that the decision to do so is their own. Often, women are encouraged to stop breastfeeding before they feel comfortable doing so, to the detriment of both mother and baby. Mothers understand the needs of their babies, and these needs should be considered carefully before making a decision as to the appropriateness of stopping breastfeeding.
Once a mother has decided that it is, indeed, appropriate for her to stop breastfeeding, she will need to determine how she will wean the baby. While there are a number of techniques for this process, most professionals agree that the best results occur when a baby is weaned gradually from breastfeeding. Women should start by reducing the number of feedings by one feeding per day every other day, using instead a bottle or other form of nourishment. Once the child become familiar with this process, more and more non-breastfed meals can be added, until weaning has been completed.
The mother of the infant should make sure that the replacement meals are nutritionally sound when stopping breastfeeding. Often, new mothers will use their own milk to bottle feed the baby. This is a good choice, as the baby will receive a familiar product. Other mothers use weaning as an opportunity to add solid foods to their infants' diets. Examples of solid foods include soft fruits and vegetables, cereal, and finely chopped meat.
While breastfeeding can be emotionally difficult, it can also be physically painful for the mother. This pain is caused by a buildup of breast milk, which makes the breasts feel heavy and sore. Women who experience this condition are often encouraged to use a breast pump to remove the milk. Even if it is not fed to the baby, removing it from the breasts will still decrease pain. Other methods of decreasing breast pain including wrapping the breast with damp cabbage leaves, and applying a cool compress.