On day two of nursing my newborn son, I was sore, tired, and pretty
much done. I cried to my husband, "I can't do this anymore." He said,
"Yes, you can," and that was pretty much all I needed to continue. It hasn't always been the beautiful, soft-focus moment of Angelina on the cover of W magazine (although it is a beautiful photo), but it is something I have stuck with for several reasons.
It Hasn't Always Been Easy!
A few days into nursing, I developed a high fever in the middle of the night. My breast was hot, red and sore. Mastitis! On advice from a friend, I took some Advil and got in the shower to run some hot water on the breast, massaging it toward the nipple to try to get the affected duct cleared out. By the next day all was well.
A couple of weeks later, it recurred and didn't go away. I went to a breast specialist and she did surgery right there and then to drain the abscess I apparently had in my breast for some time. I have the scar to prove it!
As a result of the abscess, I had to take antibiotics, which led to thrush in my son and transferred to me. This is kind of like athlete's foot on your nipples, but with the added constant sucking of a newborn. More fun!
I tried gentian violet, some antifungal stuff and whatever other remedies I could find, but what finally worked was my son's immune system kicking in, combined with the antifungal cream prescribed by my doctor.
Over subsequent months, we have also gone through a few biting phases and one nursing strike.
So Why the Hell Are You Still Nursing, Crazy Woman!?
Honestly, sometimes I don't know! It hasn't always been easy. In fact, I don't know any women for whom it is easy from day one, and I wanted to slap the lactation instructor who said, "If it hurts, you're doing it wrong." Well, I don't know, maybe it's the little human sucking on my nipple for 12 hours a day that's making it hurt? Who is used to that?
So with all this adversity, why have I continued to breastfeed when I could easily have given up, with good reason? Here's why I've stuck with it: but remember, none of these reasons are meant to upset, infuriate, blast, judge or offend anyone who has chosen to bottle-feed instead! This is a personal decision for every woman, and only you can decide what's best for you and your child.
From the beginning, I felt that breastfeeding was the healthiest optionfor my son. There are things in breast milk that scientists don't yet fully understand. Although formula has come a LONG way since its inception, it still isn't as complete as breast milk.
I don't have to worry as much about him getting enough protein and vitamins. He will also probably have fewer allergies and get sick less often (see sources on kellymom ).
Guilt. I have sometimes felt like if I don't nurse, then I will screw my kid up psychologically. Also, it's one thing I know I'm doing well for my son, even if I suck as a mother in other ways some days.
Neither one of us is ready to stop. When he’s ready to stop, he will. I know this sounds simplistic, but there have been studies that show that human children will tend to wean themselves naturally at a later age than what our society deems the correct time (see The Natural Age of Weaning). Since I lean toward the natural side of mothering (we had a drug-free homebirth, we cosleep, we don't vaccinate), this makes sense to me.
I’m stubborn. And I’ve been lucky to have a very supportive husband, family and network of friends who believe in me.
... and some additional fringe benefits of breastfeeding
It helps with weight loss. I am 15 pounds lighter than when I got pregnant with my son. Although exercise is partly responsible, there's no doubt my son has helped by sucking calories out of me. (I doubt that breastfeeding will ever rival Atkins or South Beach as a dieting fad, though.)
It reduces my risk of some diseases. Women who breastfeed seem to have a reduced risk of several types of cancer, as well as osteoporosis and rheumatoid arthritis (see Extended Breastfeeding Fact Sheet below).
It's cheaper than formula. By my estimate, we saved at least $1,000 in my son's first year alone by breastfeeding.
Breastfeeding photo, copyright Carin Araujo, on stock.xchng.
Photo of boy on bike, copyright Betsy LaCroix, on breastfeeding.com.
Greta is a slacker mom masquerading as a type-A mom. She is the owner
of Wooster Square Publishing Services in New Haven, Connecticut, where
she lives with the coolest little boy and the most patient husband in
the world.
Great article! After I had my son, who is my first child, I read something about how much time women spend preparing for childbirth (a lot!) compared to how much time they spend preparing for breast feeding (not much) and was so mad that nobody had mentioned it before. We nursed for 23 months, and it was a wonderful time for us, but it was not an easy or "natural" thing for me. We had to learn how to do it.
My milk didn't come in for 6 days, and despite my understanding of biology and nature, I was sure that I was starving my son because I wasn't giving him milk. It didn't help that the male nurse came in the third day after my c-section and said, "You know, we really need you to feed your baby." Needless to say, I came unglued.
It was all worth it though, every chapped nipple, every lost hour of sleep, every tear because I couldn't get my boy to latch on right. I wouldn't trade it for the world!
We extended breastfeed too, my almost 22 month old and now my almost 1 month old. Tandem - YIKES! That wasn't something I was prepared for, but as you said, when she's ready to let go, I'll let go. And right now, she's not ready.
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