This article was originally posted in 2011 on www.askthelactationconsultant.com. I had just made it through a rough time with my second nursling and was asked to share our story. I'd like to share it again here, reverse cycling is rough, but if you're experiencing it, you're not alone!
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Coming home from the hospital last November with a newborn who slept 4, then 6 hours at night was a dream. I had a toddler, so the fact that Jaron seemed like such a good sleeper was great! Then at around 4 months, when some babies first begin 6 hour stretches, Jaron dropped down to 4 hour stretches. By 6 months, when some parents are blessed with an occasional 8 hour stretch, Jaron woke every 2. By 9 months old, he was waking every 45 minutes. 

What happened?!?!?

I was confused. It took nearly 7 months to regulate my severe oversupply and get my foremilk/hindmilk imbalance under control (but that's another story). If anything he should have been sleeping better, longer! Then he started to lose interest in nursing. 

I couldn't believe it. I'd worked so hard for so long and he was starting to (self-wean) at 7 months old. At least that's how it seemed. He?d nurse for maybe 5 minutes before he?d be wiggling to get down and play. He'd refuse to nurse down for a nap, he just wanted to keep going and going until he was overtired. He fought nursing because he didn't want to get sleepy. From an outside view he looked like he was just done with Mama's milk. Except at night; he'd wake up and nothing could calm him but nursing.

For awhile I resigned myself to early weaning, I still nursed Jaron as much as he would allow. I offered far more than he asked for milk. I tried to make up the calories with solids and offering breastmilk in cup, but he rarely slowed down for that either. Then he stopped eating solids completely and only took 5 minute here and there nursing sessions for a couple weeks. Then he began eating solids again, but he stopped nursing in public. Since he was still having enough wet diapers, I only gave him other liquids when he asked for what I was having - in hope that he'd want to nurse. 

It didn't work.

Around 9 months, not only did he start waking every 45 minutes all night long, I found out that his weight gain had dramatically slowed. Our pediatrician was fantastic and reminded me that Jaron got the most useful calories from breastmilk and to cut back on solids and try to nurse even more frequently. Exhausting, especially with all of the night waking. But I tried. 

I set my phone alarm for a feeding every 2 hours, so I wouldn't forget. I allowed my 2 year old unheard of amounts of Disney movies, just so he'd sit still and not be another distraction while I tried to get Jaron to focus on eating in the bedroom. I tried every nursing position I could think of, laying, sitting, standing. I even allowed nursing gymnastics, much to my pain. 

I tried to night wean. Under most circumstances I would have never considered it. But I was beyond tired and frustrated. I hoped that after a couple nights, he'd get the idea and start eating more during the day. All it did was wake everyone in the house and make the whole family miserable. 

Not worth it.

Then we went on a 14 hour road trip to visit my extended family. Jaron refused to nurse the entire 14 hours. Even sitting out in the car while his brother and my parents were in the restaurants, he found the armrest much more interesting than filling his tummy. I panicked. I thought he was done. I thought hat taking that trip had caused him to completely self wean.

I told my mom that maybe Jaron would make it up all night long, I felt like I was just trying to convince myself, but he did. He did nurse his normal short sessions while we were visiting for the 10 days and ate almost all night long every night. Then he refused to nurse the entire 14 hour car trip home.

When we got home, it clicked. Why did he have to eat during the daytime? Reverse cycling (fancy term for having nights & days mixed up feeding wise) had worked and our trip been so much more pleasant because I wasn't trying to force anything. It's what was natural for him. Why not just keep it up?

He wasn't self-weaning! He just didn't want to eat when there were other things to be done! He still needed and wanted his Mama's milk, he just didn't want it at what other people thought were "normal" times!

We had been occasional co-sleepers based on if I was too tired to put him back in his bed or not. But at 10 months old Jaron moved full time into the big bed. Now he nurses at night as many times as he needs to. Anything from 1-5 nursings throughout the night is normal. I'm getting a lot more rest, even if I am awake during a nursing and my husband is definitely not missing the middle of the night scream-fests.

I still offer to let Jaron nurse every 2 or 3 hours during the day and occasionally he'll actually ask to nurse. I am so thankful that I didn't just accept his self-weaning 4 months ago. Our nursing relationship is very different from what many would call normal, but nursing in reverse works for us. Two months ago I couldn't imagine how we'd ever make it to Jaron's 1st birthday, now I just hope he decides to wean sometime before he leaves for college! 

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As always, feel free to share your own experiences!