Mothers who have breastfed at low or high demand know that it is one of the closed chapters inside the best of motherhood. It is the best we can give our children and a stage is already closed, but what happens when your child want to breastfeed again?
Clearly it is a very exclusive phenomenon, but that many mothers are passing and sharing as an extraordinary case. It is not normal for a child to be 6 or 7 years old, for example, and have it done again the request to breastfeed again.
Why does my child want to breastfeed again?
It usually happens in children with a high attachment to the mother or a high regression for some circumstance that is pushing them. The arrival of a little brother Again, this type of behavior is generated and for other reasons it would be necessary to make a little thought of why something is being demanded that should no longer fit.
There are many mothers who make their own query in networks, your 5-year-old son asks for the breast again, as his 7-month-old brother does too. Or the case of another mother who weaned her 5-year-old daughter and when she turned 9 asked if she could breastfeed again. She combines all this with her other 8-year-old daughter, which becomes a totally normal case for girls. Children think that it is totally normal to ask for the breast and even when away from home, although at a certain age you have to be a bit discreet in such a situation.
Main causes that can lead to breastfeeding
The main reason that is usually associated is when there is the presence of a brother. The cause is jealousy, the loss of prominence that he had before and with it the intention of capturing the attention of the parents.
It usually occurs in 3-year-olds when they start their school stage. It is a time that coincides with a great change and where you can see that you grow older. The beginning of school is not a drastic change because children mainly learn through lots of games. But some children associate it with the unknown, a big change and that scares them.
There are children who in the 3-5 year stage also observe a great start of responsibilities. They feel little capable of assuming obligations like those of the school and they begin with a regression and the fear of growing up. Maybe i know they want to feel "babies" again And that's when they want to breastfeed again, want to drink milk from a bottle or go back to feeding a pacifier.
Another and much more tragic reason is when they can having felt the loss of a family member. If the child felt a great attachment and had a good relationship, you can feel confused and disoriented. Regressing to old habits is the way to recreate those moments that gave you so much protection.
If the parents have constant fights and there is not a good relationship, you may also find instability at home due to fights and that creates fear and insecurity. Children attract attention by wanting to be babies again, talk as if they were very young children, sleep poorly, take on the habits of a baby and even wet themselves
What can we parents do when there is a regression?
There are many ways to solve it and above all trying to be very patient. You have to try do not scold the child and avoid negative phrases. If they do not give in to their whims we must understand them and explain that there are things that no longer correspond to their age, and always with affection.
Surely the child is demanding much more attention and time with their parents and if it can be in your hand you have to do it. But do not emphasize the position that it is a baby or use words like "you are a baby", you have to be very patient, calm down. You have to feel affection and respect by what they feel and direct them with that authority that they have given us so that they can have a guide in their lives.