I want to begin by saying that I fully believe that “Fed is Best.” I have nothing against formula, and in fact I was actually formula fed myself. But since it is National Breastfeeding Awareness week, and I just weaned him this weekend, I thought I’d share our journey in case anyone beginning their own journey needed some encouragement.
(We might be done with our breastfeeding journey, but this boy still loves cuddling with his mama.)
Before having a baby I always said I’d never breastfeed. It just wasn’t something I was interested in, and I heard it was very painful. When I became pregnant, I decided I would give it a shot and just see how it goes. But I never took any breastfeeding classes, and I didn’t really think about it much until the moment he was born. At that moment I wished I had taken classes. My nurses were amazing though and helped teach me what to do. I was very lucky that he had a great latch, but it was extremely painful. The first few days I wanted to give up. My milk came in pretty quickly, but since I began pumping right away (so that others could feed him while I slept) this caused me to get an oversupply and I got engorged all the time. Him latching on was painful, engorgment was painful, and he was nursing around the clock which meant I got no sleep. I originally was aiming to make it to 6 months, but after 2 weeks I thought I was done. I spoke with one of my best friends about it who breastfed her daughter for a year and she gave me some encouragement to make it through that rough patch.
(This is how we spent most of our early days together. Me in a nursing top, and him sleeping on top of me. I miss those days now.)
After about a month or 2 I thought I had it down. It was still exhausting, but it wasn’t painful. Then at 3 months he decided to change things up for me and started refusing bottles. This made it hard for me again because I was the only one who could feed him. I know it would have been different if I had to go back to work, but because I was home with him all day, he knew he could hold out to just breastfeed. So from 3 months to 11 months old, I exclusively breastfed.
(At 15 months old, this guy is beginning to get more independent.)
At 10 months old I tried to supplement with formula to try to get some more hours of sleep at night, but he hated formula and wouldn’t take it. At 11 months I began to introduce “cow’s milk.” I knew he had a sensitivity to lactose, so I started him on H-E-B 2% Mootopia Milk since it was lactose free. He never liked bottles so I put it in a sippy cup. He actually would drink a few sips and seemed to like it. I wanted to be done breastfeeding at 12 months but that didn’t happen. By 13 months he was drinking his sippy cup of milk all day, but still nursing for comfort. I slowly started to wean and would only nurse 2-3 times a day for comfort from 13-15 months. At 15 months I felt that he didn’t need to breastfeed for nutrition anymore, and I was ready to have my body back to myself so on July 30th I decided I was done. He was a little upset for the first 2 days but luckily he adjusted pretty easily.
(Our first day of no breastfeeding was rough, but we made it through.)
I found out I was pregnant on August 25, 2015. From that moment until July 30, 2017 my body was not my own. I spent 9 months growing a baby, and then 15 months feeding a baby. It sounds selfish, and I realize I’m extremely lucky to have been able to do it, but at the same time it really is a sacrifice. You have to not only watch what you eat and drink, but also what you put ON your body. Because of this, being done now isn’t sad for me. It’s more of a relief and I have this sense of freedom. I’m proud of my body for what it was able to do, but I am very happy to have it to myself for awhile. Until I have to do it all again…
Fun Facts:
- Breastfeeding helped me lose the first 30 pounds. (I had gained about 45 pounds.)
- Because I was breastfeeding though…I was not able to lose the last 5-10 pounds until I was about finished. My body held onto that fat to help produce the milk.
- The only time I breastfed in public was when we took our flight to Tennessee. I only did it out of necessity and used a cover. Feeding in public just wasn’t comfortable for me. But this also meant we were always on a pretty strict schedule to be home before he got hungry.
- I tried using 8 different types and brands of bottles in an effort to get him to take a bottle so I could get a break. None of them worked.
- I got my breast pump for free from my insurance.
- There were less food restrictions for breastfeeding then pregnancy (unless your child has a food allergy), but there were more medicine restrictions. (Mostly because certain medicines can dry up your milk supply.)
- I was much hungrier when breastfeeding then when I was pregnant.
- Braxton never got sick when he was exclusively breastfed. Even if I was sick, my milk would create the correct antibodies to protect him from getting sick.
- Breastmilk changes as a baby grows to match their needs.
Some of my favorite products:
(Cake Maternity Nursing Bra: I lived in these for over a year. Love how comfortable they were and how easy it was to nurse with them.)
(Lansinoh Nursing Pads: If I didn’t wear these, I would have soaked through every shirt.)
(Medela Pump in Style: I got the pump for free through my insurance, but I did order the cooler set for when I pump on the go. I also ordered a battery operated charger for pumping on the go.)