Breastfeeding Older Children (teenager, teaching, boys, daughter)

[2girlsand2boys]

Originally Posted by mainerwoman

Encourage and force are completely different. At seven years old that child does not require breastfeeding for anything. Comfort can be given in so many different ways that does not require a child to be kept at an infant emotional level. Any mother who is continueing to breastfeed a 7 year old is doing it for her own emotional needs.

In your opinion...

[mainerwoman]

Right, it is my opinion. Your thoughts on the subject are opinions as well. You can post guldelines from WHO all you want; however those guidelines are meant more for thirdworld countries where a adquate food source for children isn't always available. And by the way, a short video on youtube doesn't give you great insight on the individualism of a child.

[dmmjsm]

Seems icky to me to breastfeed that long. I think once you get past 2-3, you are doing it more for yourself, to keep that connection with the child, rather than the child seriously needing the milk. If it was really that, you could still express and give it to them in a cup.

[kinkytoes]

Bitty anyone? I actually remember when my mom stopped breastfeeding me. I think I was 2 or 3.

[Sundance]

And how do you "keep" an 8 year old breastfeeding? It is not like the mother is forcing her to continue nursing to achieve her own agenda.

Really? Because that's my impression...an 8-year-old certainly has no physical or emotional need to BF. In point of fact, that is done for the mother, to foster a continuing and very unhealthy dependency....there are lots of mothers who CANNOT differentiate from their children. It is sick.

[2girlsand2boys]

Originally Posted by Sundance

Really? Because that's my impression...an 8-year-old certainly has no physical or emotional need to BF. In point of fact, that is done for the mother, to foster a continuing and very unhealthy dependency....there are lots of mothers who CANNOT differentiate from their children. It is sick.

If an 8 year old has NO physical or emotional need to breastfeed, then why is she still doing it? The mother is not forcing her to continue, she does it because it IS an emotional need in her life.

The only reason we are having this discussion is because Americans see breasts for strictly a sexual purpose. If it were icky or disgusting to nurse your child for as long as you both desire, you would cease making milk at 2 years old!

I find a lot of these opinions to be "sicker" than nursing an 8 year old.

[sbd78]

IMO, this nearly 8-year-old child is still breastfeeding because the mother has not guided her towards independance. It's up to us to guide our children and teach them to be more independant as they grow. If I let my 2.5 year old make his own feeding decisions, he would choose to eat his Halloween candy for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Doesn't mean its the best thing for him, something he needs, or that I am going to allow him to.

[sbd78]

Originally Posted by 2girlsand2boys

The only reason we are having this discussion is because Americans see breasts for strictly a sexual purpose. If it were icky or disgusting to nurse your child for as long as you both desire, you would cease making milk at 2 years old!

I don't think anyone in this thread has brought up anything sexual as a reason why an 8-year-old is too old to nurse, and pretty much everyone is for nursing babies/toddlers. I think the reason Americans see a problem with this is we don't live in a third world country. We live in a developed and educated nation with an ample food supply. By 7-8 years old, a child in our society is normally in school full time, learning to read and write. The life of an 8-year-old in America is a whole lot different than the life of an 8-year-old in a remote, third world part of the world where the goal is simply to survive.

[yodi]

Originally Posted by sbd78

It's up to us to guide our children and teach them to be more independant as they grow.

I do not believe that independence is something that needs to be taught. I believe that it will come when the child's dependency needs have been met. I believe that independence is a part of a child's natural development and will come in it's own time. Two notable stages where children naturally assert their independence are the "terrible two's" and the teenage years. Just sharing another view on independence.

[Sundance]

If an 8 year old has NO physical or emotional need to breastfeed, then why is she still doing it? The mother is not forcing her to continue, she does it because it IS an emotional need in her life.

The only reason we are having this discussion is because Americans see breasts for strictly a sexual purpose. If it were icky or disgusting to nurse your child for as long as you both desire, you would cease making milk at 2 years old!

I find a lot of these opinions to be "sicker" than nursing an 8 year old.

Right, an emotional need fostered by a clinging mother who will not allow her child to be a separate person. There are a lot of adults walking around now with these issues....a clinging mother who will not allow their children to be separate from her. The goal of parenting should be to raise a competent, independent person. This isn't an activity that will make that possible. It amazes me that anyone would defend something so patently dysfunctional.