Kathleen Huggins, in her book The Nursing Mother's Companion, calls the time from a baby's second to sixth month as 'The Reward Period.' She describes it as being "exciting and rewarding," when "most mothers feel relaxed and confident."
Still, although breastfeeding is often going well when your baby is three months old, you may still run into some problems, such as:
- making too much breastmilk - this is often a surprise to breastfeeding mothers who were initially concerned that they weren't making enough milk. Now, especially if their baby is sleeping all night, they may find that they have an overabundant supply of breastmilk and feel engorged while waiting for their baby to feed again in the morning. In this situation, it may help to breastfeed from just one breast at each feeding, alternating each time your nurse your baby. And then, if you feel full or engorged, manually express or pump some breastmilk from the other breast in between feedings.
- nursing strikes - which is a baby who suddenly doesn't want to breastfeed anymore. This is much different from a baby who is ready to wean, which generally happens much more gradually.
- poor weight gain - a three-month-old baby should be gaining at least half an ounce a day. If a breastfeeding baby is losing weight or is not gaining weight well, it may be because he is not nursing often enough or because his mother's breastmilk supply has decreased. Either way, his pediatrician and/or a lactation consultant can help get the baby to feed better or boost the mother's breastmilk supply.
- going back to work - which can cause milk supply issues, especially if a nursing mother doesn't pump while she is at work.
- nursing in public - as breastfeeding mothers begin taking their babies out in public as they get older, breastfeeding in public is something that can make these outings more convenient.
