I wrote an article about how to wean your baby without employing the CIO method. It was a great article and I maintained my patience for the first few days, then weeks, but…

I am just going to say that I hope that it helped someone, but it was truly not long before my own words would not work for me. So, I am writing to share with you what really worked, and I feel confident that we will continue our streak of no longer nursing.

Weaning Your Baby Off Breast Milk in Less Than a Week

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I’ll put it out there. I was ready to accomplish 2 things with my baby. First, weaning her from breastfeeding. Second, transitioning her into her own bed. Because of breastfeeding, it was convenient for us to co-sleep. Honestly, since she had slept in our bed for so long, I don’t think she realized that it was not hers. I mean that’s all she knew. But that is a topic for another day.

If you are ready and I mean READY to wean your baby from breastfeeding, then keep reading and brace yourself because it won’t be easy. But I can guarantee that you can have a weaned baby in less than a week. And I forgot to mention…this is NOT a CIO method. It actually encourages a positive experience for both mom and the infant/toddler.

So here is my story and I’ll keep it short and sweet. Once upon a time, there was a girl (my daughter) who had a hard time accepting the fact that her breastfeeding journey would soon end. Some nights she would cry until her mother (me) gave in.

One night, she latched on in the middle of the night. She thought that this was the best time to give her mother’s (also me) nipple a bite. Within the next 48 hours, her mother changed her mindset and had a weaned baby in no time. The End.

Ok, that story kind of rhymed and I hope that you enjoyed it. But, that is what happened. My daughter bit me and it was not pleasant. I normally don’t get too upset when I am bit in that very sensitive place on my body because it happens. It has happened to me in the past and I have simply told my daughter no and redirected her to properly latch. But this time was different. She kept biting me and every time I told her no, she would laugh. So, after the 5^th or so bite in a row…I knew it was time.

So, what happened next? My daughter cried for the next 10 minutes because she knew that I was serious about not offering her my breasts anymore. I had a sippy cup nearby and she rejected a few times, but eventually gave in. She drank the contents in her sippy cup and fell asleep soon after.

My older cousin had shared with me that she used hot sauce to wean her baby. She placed it on her breasts and the baby disliked it consequently having no interest in it going forward. I thought about trying it with my daughter, but I remember my dad playing a prank on me when I was a little girl. He dared me to drink a bottle of hot sauce. I was like 6, but he let me do it. Now I hate hot sauce and will not use it for anything.

Understand me clearly, I was desperate, but I just did not want to wean her by offering a negative experience. I could have gone with the cry it out method if so. But, I did think about it multiple times.

So the next night came and I knew that I was screwed. And indeed I was screwed, but I was determined not to nurse that night. She pulled on my shirt and whined. I offered her a sippy cup and she declined it and immediately started tugging on my shirt again. Then I took that moment to redirect her to something that she might be interested in. I had a book or toy nearby. Heck, I don’t remember…I probably played her favorite YouTube shows.

Anyhow, she occupied her mind until she drifted off to sleep.

We did this for the next few days and every day we were successful. There were few tears and this mama got more much needed rest.

I breastfed my baby for 15 months. I am proud and appreciative of our journey, but I am honestly happy to say that it is over.

Weaning Your Baby Off Breast Milk With These 2 Steps

To recap, I truly only did 2 things and it was much easier than I thought. I changed my mindset which meant I also had to emotionally detach myself from the process. I was serious about weaning my daughter and did not allow her cute little sad face when I told her no change my decision. The second thing I did was make it an enjoyable process for her by offering her an alternative, whether it was her sippy cup or another activity.

Be gentle, be patience, but don’t give in. Small children are much smarter than you may think and you don’t have to watch them hurt to accomplish your mutual goals. Except for when they need stitches, which sucks really badly to watch. If you have a perfect kid, then you won’t have a clue about what I am talking about.

I really hope this works for you and if you have any questions for me, please let me know.

My Favorite Weaning Products: (I did not use many products, just a few items to redirect her…most of it is in our own discipline in sticking to our plan)