Not Now!

Delaying Your Breastfeeding Toddler

By Teri Brown

Toddlers are some of the most delightful young people on the face of the earth. They are energetic, inquisitive and insistent, but their impatient nature demands immediate satisfaction. Toddlers have an incredibly hard time understanding the words, "just a minute," "hold on a second" or "not right now." While that's hard on the mom whose imperious 2-year-old is demanding to nurse right in the middle of a grocery store checkout, the good news is that it's possible to put the child off until nursing is more appropriate.

Toddlers have many reasons for asking to nurse: Hunger, thirst, uncertainty, boredom, fear, exhaustion and pain are just a few of the possibilities. If a mother chooses to decline her toddler's request to nurse in certain circumstances, it is helpful to understand the reasons why the toddler is asking to nurse so an appropriate alternative can be offered.

La Leche League Leader Sherri Streicher says many mothers find that healthy snacks and drinks are accepted by their toddlers when hunger or thirst is the cause, and if offered before the need to nurse becomes too extreme.

Kathleen Bruce, a registered nurse and international board certified lactation consultant (IBCLC), says that women need to get very creative when putting off a toddler, but in reality it isn't that difficult. The trick is in having some food or a drink nearby that can substitute until you can move to a quieter place where everyone can relax.

"Little Thermos' in lunchboxes can be a fun thing for a toddler to drink from and carry," Bruce says. "Often, one can explain that in a few minutes, Mom and Child can find a place that is quiet in the car, in the park, etc. where both can be comfortable."

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