I've been wanting to post about being a breastfeeding survivor for a while. And I will because my blog is private:).
First of all: anyone who breastfeeds her kids for longer than a year is my hero. Even if your kids don't bite you REALLY hard while nursing, and spit milk at you. Even if you don't get blocked milk ducts, and get completely engorged because your baby nurses just long enough for you to have let-down. . . and then starts smiling at you and refusing to eat. And if your body doesn't produce too much milk all the time because your baby can't wake up at a consistent time, making it really painful to work out in the morning. . . you are still my hero. But. If you have dealt with all of those unpleasant experiences, and have still elected to keep nursing your child past a year, you are a better woman than I. (You can still be a better woman that I without having breastfed a day in your life, by the way.) Brooklyn will be a year old on May 22nd, and I have cut down to nursing her three times a day. I look forward to her birthday with an eagerness linked to my anticipation of not having to think about my chest anymore. I have loved the closeness, and all the wonderful cuddling we've done. I have loved having a mutually beneficial physical relationship--I can't explain it, but it's sweet. I will miss nursing for those reasons, but I almost feel ready to move on. I find it fascinating that many people stop nursing at a year old in our culture, so we're conditioned to think we're "done" then. I feel that.
Brooklyn, my love, you were my hardest nurser. You did the best job at coming before your due date (10 blessed days early) and you have been my worst sleeper. You have made breastfeeding hard in ways I didn't even know existed. Thanks a ton:).
Oh, how I love that precious little girl. Picture her in those jammies that are two-piece and snap together--purple, with little yellow ducks. That's what she's sleeping in tonight. Thank heaven for my amazing little girl.
4 comments:
Seriously, congrats on a year. It is hard. And painful. Kings and I just finished nursing 2 days ago. This was our third boob free night.I'd planned on nursing him until he was 2 because of his cow milk sensitivity (he breaks out in hives). Being done alternately feels weird and amazing like on one hand I'm paranoid he isn't getting the vitamins he needs and on the other just beautiful boob freedom... and I have no miserable side effects of trying to stop when you are still producing milk like crazy around 6 months. Now that I have lived through a baby, I don't know how women can wean at 6 months without experiencing sheer misery (not mental, but physical misery).
I nursed a baby through marathon training, double bras everyday. It was rough. But it is totally possible. I used to pump right before a run, or I'd nurse him in the car at the trail just to make the run more bearable.
Congrats on a year!
Wow! Way to go! I am so impressed that you have survived. That's what I'm trying to do...and let me tell you, I am not a fan of nursing. Especially with a biter. But I'm pushing through for now, and look forward to the day that I will be done with it.
I think I'll be ready to be done next month as well. Simon is enjoying his bottles of formula, so we're down to 3x a day as well.
I have to admit, I really like nursing--even though I produce way too much milk and am prone to mastitis. I can't imagine Violet being done in a couple of months! I have no specific plan for weaning her; I'll go at least to 12 months and then see what both of us feel like doing. At any rate, way to go on reaching your goal with so many obstacles to mess things up! That's really awesome. And now you and Brooklyn can both move forward and feel good about it.
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