We have made it nursing for a year! We are still going with no end in sight.
I can't say how amazing it is to be able to nourish my baby/toddler on my own. We only made it a little over for months with Owen. I feared that the same would be true with Charlotte. It is amazing how different these two are.
Through out the past year I have had mastitis four times. The first time was the worst. Each time after that I knew what was going on and how to ease it. Which made it a little better.
When Charlotte got her first tooth she got into the habit of biting. Which we had to put an end to real quick. Before we could she managed to break the skin. OUCH that hurt! Not to mention it took about two weeks to heal. Nursing continued to break open the wound making it take longer to heal. Right after it happened my husband asked if I was ready to quit. Not this Momma. I had a baby who wanted the best milk possible, and I had a body that was producing that yummy goodness.
This past week Charlotte had hand, foot, and mouth disease. For those that do not know, it is a viral infection that causes blisters and sores on the hands, feet, and mouth. Charlotte had many sores in her mouth. This caused it to hurt when she nursed. She went almost 29 hours without nursing. I pumped when I felt like I was getting full. I managed to pump over 100 ounces in that time period. When she finally latched on it was just for a let down. I got the milk flowing before trying to get her to latch. This way she didn't need to do anything but swallow. After the let down was over she let go. It wasn't until bed time until she was able to nurse without screaming in pain. Last night she slept very well and we are nursing regularly now.
Charlotte nurses first thing in the morning right after waking. Then she nurses again with lunch, before nap time, after dinner, and before bed. She also nurses two to three times at night. Which neither of us really wake up for.
I am really happy we made it this far and look forward to the time we have remaining.
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| The only picture I have of Owen nursing. A week old |
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| Charlotte at a week old. |
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| Charlotte three months old. |
Good job!!!
ReplyDeleteI nursed my boy until 15 months. Then I gave birth 3 1/2 months early and started pumping exclusively. I made A LOT of milk after 2 months of pumping. My 2 year old loved his special milk and still drinks it!
I've been pumping exclusively for 6+ months and hopefully I can continue until my baby boy is 2 years old...that's my biggest goal.. I want to give him a lot of protection while his immune system is down.
Congratulations on making it to 15 months. Nursing has its obstacles and it truly is a gift.
DeleteThe biting does not sound fun at all!!! I hope to breastfeed my son. I too plan to do it for at least a year, if all goes well!
ReplyDeleteTake it one day at a time. It is easier that way. Before you know it the year will be over and you may wonder if baby will ever wean.
DeleteI am pregnant with my first child! I look forward to breastfeeding!
ReplyDeleteCongrats on 1 year of nursing! What an accomplishment! Keep doin' what you do, mama!
ReplyDeleteSo far I've been breast feeding for 2 years with my now 2 year old. And I have a little one due in late January. It is possible to get through all the difficulties of breast feeding, ie. biting, swollen breasts, clogged ducts, sore nipples from pregnancy. I will continue to breast feed my little guy and see if tandem nursing will work for us.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations! You should be proud of yourself for sticking with it through all of that! I bet that was tough. I feel fortunate that I have had minimal issues with nursing, my daughter is still nursing at 28 months...in the process of weaning (very, very, slowly, lol).
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