dear alison,
that makes me so sad that you had such a tough time breastfeeding. i admire your dedication a lot. no wonder you were tired and stressed! just having a tiny baby, come so unexpectedly is stress enough, let alone doing something brand new, that can be really hard, and having not a ton of support. those 7 weeks of milk that you gave your child mean a lot, just in terms of immunities and health benefits, and also all of the love you gave too. i truly hope your next experience is much calmer (a full term baby!!!) and an easy time with nursing. you really deserve that.
i was very lucky with breastfeeding. even though my mom, mom-in-law, and sisters-in-law didn't breastfeed, i had some great support. i had my birth doula, my husband was very supportive, i had taken a Bradley Method class which gave good information about breastfeeding and i started going to La Leche League (a non-profit, private breastfeeding support group) when i was still pregnant. my baby was early too, about 5 weeks, but she was very healthy, 6 1/2 lbs. and took to nursing with a perfect latch soon after her birth. i am very small and worried a little that i might not make enough milk, but i always had plenty. i loved nursing. i feel so blessed to have that experience. i feel like it was one of the great joys of my life and i miss it now.
when i got pregnant with my second daughter (first was 14 months old) i kept nursing. i was very tired and a bit underweight, but even so i made plenty of milk and my midwife felt like it was fine. i was so happy to not have to wean so early. my daughter truly loved nursies. at 8 months pregnant i had some pre-term labor and made the really hard decision to wean (nipple stimulation can bring on contractions) and i was also on medication to stop the labor which i didn't want to go through to my milk. that was really tough. but she took it well and we just cuddled a ton instead. by this time my belly was a bit in the way.
i was lucky with nursing my second baby too. she loved it and was a great nurser. i made a ton of milk because she spit up a lot. i think i fed twice what she actually kept! i had hoped to tandem nurse (nurse both children) but my older had forgotten how! she would ask and i'd let her try, but she'd just start laughing.
my younger daughter nursed until 3 1/2 when she completely lost interest and my milk dried up. it was a wonderful experience and i highly recommend nursing your toddler. it helped so much with those tantrums! and the nutrition doesn't stop at a year. we know there are so many benefits for mom and baby, and they just continue as long as you nurse.
i know it's a bit unusual to nurse a 3 yr old in our culture, but i never felt weird. i nursed in public, usually with a big smile on my face. no one ever said boo or gave a look. it kept us so connected. i wouldn't trade it for anything.
check out la leche league if you are pregnant and interested in breastfeeding. they'll give you lots of loving support and answers to all kinds of questions. they'll tell you a mountain of benefits you'll experience too, and if you have problems, they can be a huge help.
Comment Reply
dear alison,
that makes me so sad that you had such a tough time breastfeeding. i admire your dedication a lot. no wonder you were tired and stressed! just having a tiny baby, come so unexpectedly is stress enough, let alone doing something brand new, that can be really hard, and having not a ton of support. those 7 weeks of milk that you gave your child mean a lot, just in terms of immunities and health benefits, and also all of the love you gave too. i truly hope your next experience is much calmer (a full term baby!!!) and an easy time with nursing. you really deserve that.
i was very lucky with breastfeeding. even though my mom, mom-in-law, and sisters-in-law didn't breastfeed, i had some great support. i had my birth doula, my husband was very supportive, i had taken a Bradley Method class which gave good information about breastfeeding and i started going to La Leche League (a non-profit, private breastfeeding support group) when i was still pregnant. my baby was early too, about 5 weeks, but she was very healthy, 6 1/2 lbs. and took to nursing with a perfect latch soon after her birth. i am very small and worried a little that i might not make enough milk, but i always had plenty. i loved nursing. i feel so blessed to have that experience. i feel like it was one of the great joys of my life and i miss it now.
when i got pregnant with my second daughter (first was 14 months old) i kept nursing. i was very tired and a bit underweight, but even so i made plenty of milk and my midwife felt like it was fine. i was so happy to not have to wean so early. my daughter truly loved nursies. at 8 months pregnant i had some pre-term labor and made the really hard decision to wean (nipple stimulation can bring on contractions) and i was also on medication to stop the labor which i didn't want to go through to my milk. that was really tough. but she took it well and we just cuddled a ton instead. by this time my belly was a bit in the way.
i was lucky with nursing my second baby too. she loved it and was a great nurser. i made a ton of milk because she spit up a lot. i think i fed twice what she actually kept! i had hoped to tandem nurse (nurse both children) but my older had forgotten how! she would ask and i'd let her try, but she'd just start laughing.
my younger daughter nursed until 3 1/2 when she completely lost interest and my milk dried up. it was a wonderful experience and i highly recommend nursing your toddler. it helped so much with those tantrums! and the nutrition doesn't stop at a year. we know there are so many benefits for mom and baby, and they just continue as long as you nurse.
i know it's a bit unusual to nurse a 3 yr old in our culture, but i never felt weird. i nursed in public, usually with a big smile on my face. no one ever said boo or gave a look. it kept us so connected. i wouldn't trade it for anything.
check out la leche league if you are pregnant and interested in breastfeeding. they'll give you lots of loving support and answers to all kinds of questions. they'll tell you a mountain of benefits you'll experience too, and if you have problems, they can be a huge help.
July 18, 2008 - 7:19amThis Comment
Reply