Keep Calm & Latch On

People often come up to me on the street asking "Natasha, you're still breastfeeding? How do you do it?" No they don't. I just get a kick out of opening like that.

But to answer the big question here, YES, I am still nursing my daughter that just turned one and YES, I wanted her to be completely weaned when she turned one. However, any of you who have BFed your child until they self-weaned understand that that is not something you can just stop completely. It's not a pacifier. You can't just take it away. There are BIG consequences for doing that with breastfeeding. It can cause depression and anxiety in both the child and yourself. The child's appetite will not be matured enough to be gaining the nutrients from table food that he/she needs on a daily basis.

Here is how I look at it: My daughter just turned 13 months and she is NOT putting me out any by still nursing when she wakes up in the morning and before naps and bedtime. I also nurse during the night if she wakes up and I can tell that's what she wants. THAT IS OKAY.

My daughter has been sick twice in the past 2 weeks. My husband had a horrible stomach bug for a few days and thank GOD she did not catch that. Then I started to get a cold but it went away quickly. Back to what I was saying, she has been sick. When babies are sick it is tough. However the increased clingyness and love can be very nice :) For my daughter she has many bouts of pure-out sweetness, snotty-nose kisses, hugs, and just wanting to chill and watch TV on mommy or daddy's lap. But then once drowsiness sets in she is not a happy camper. This week she had a sore throat and every time she would cough she'd cry afterwards. It broke my heart! She hardly ate anything but some applesauce and snacks here and there. I nurse her more when she is sick. Even now. Not hardly as much as when she was an infant, but I know when that is what she is wanting. Sometimes that is just all she wants.

Did you know that your breastmilk actually changes to meet the needs of your growing child? For example, since we are in the weaning process and are down to 2-3 nursings a day, levels in certain antibodies actually increases. One common misconception about nursing as your child gets older is that everything decreases and it's not true! It really is the perfect food! That is one of the major beauties of these wonderful things God created called BOOOOOBS! Go on and say it out loud. You know you want to.

I am a huge advocate for breastfeeding and I haven't always been. When I was 5 months pregnant, my aunt asked me if I planned on breastfeeding or formula-feeding and I told her I wasn't sure. Her response? "You breastfeed that baby." LOL!! Aunt Denise, I'm talking about YOU! I'm sure my mom or whoever would've said the same thing had it come up, but it just simply hadn't crossed my mind! I wasn't around many babies as a child... at all, actually. I was only 10 when my nephew was born. So it was something I hadn't really considered.

Then I downloaded the book "The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding" written by seven members of the La Leche League, I believe seven is correct. That book is wonderful and I highly recommend reading it if you're pregnant or even just have a newborn! It is a wonderful book and very informative because, to be honest, I was scared! I had no idea what to expect and I knew absolutely nothing about how my body would actually produce the stuff!

There is so much I didn't know. I think that if more women actually knew more facts about breastfeeding other than just "Won't my boobs be ruined?" WHO CARES!!! Time is gonna take care of that anyways, honey! 

Facts to ease your mind:
* Once you get the hang of it, breastfeeding is the easiest thing you can do.
* It is natural and why God created them, but it is NOT "JUST FOR HIPPIES". (This drives me NUTS!)
* It is the perfect food for your baby.
* It does not "tie you down" as I have been asked so. many. times. Don't allow yourself to be tied down by introducing a bottle early, but nursing from breast more so that there is no confusion. This allows daddy or whomever to feed the baby if you need to go somewhere. Keep plenty of milk on hand.
* Your boobs will not rot and fall off. They will be perfectly fine while you nurse and after you wean. Trust me, the man in your life won't turn you down for sex because you chose to nurse vs. bottle-feed your child. Once he learns enough about it, he'll be 100% for it (if that doesn't work, show him the formula aisle in the store and how much the stuff costs!)
* Want to lose the baby weight fast? Breastfeed.

You've heard breastfed babies have to eat more? They do. But not by much. This is because breastmilk is much more easily digested than formula. The average one-month old only nurses every 3 hours. You've heard formula-fed babies sleep all night? This is a myth and not a valid reason for choosing not to nurse. That's like saying "Let's just fill my belly full of whatever so I can get a full nights sleep." It's quality, not quantity. Your child will sleep all night when they are ready. There are methods you can try if you're adamant about them sleeping all night long at an early age, but babies don't always wake up out of hunger, just keep that in mind, too.

I do want to say that formula feeding your baby is fine. Your baby is getting food. Your baby will be happy and love you. I understand that many, many people choose formula due to either health reasons or because it's easier when you have to work. whatever the reason should be. But formula feeding is the norm in today's society. After I nursed my daughter for the first time after birth, I cracked and bled and wasn't able to nurse her again until I had let myself heal. The nurses were extremely rude to me in the hospital because they thought I just didn't want to.. My husband witnessed me actually crying because I felt like such a failure and that I wasn't going to be able to do it. Thank God for formula during that week and thank God for my mom who helped correct Hayden's latch. It was painful at first but we got it right and I had to grit my teeth and bear it for a while until my "girls" toughened up.

FACT: Only 60% of women breastfeed for the first 3 months, 20% breastfeed for 6 months, and only 15% after 6 months. It drops drastically past one year of age.

Now that I can tell my daughter has begun to wean herself, it saddens me a little. However, I know that once it's done I'll be glad. I decided against my original plan to try to wean her myself by one year, but after reading about it and realizing that she still needs it right now self-led weaning is the way to go. I would hate to force something on her that she isn't quite ready for yet. And like I said-- she is not putting me out any. I know that when we leave the house she will eat food-food and I don't have to worry about hiding out in the backseat of the car anymore to nurse her, but that when we get home if it is what she needs to settle down for bed than that's perfectly fine with me. Like everything it is very short-lived and I'll continue to enjoy the time of bonding while it lasts. :)

Keep calm & Latch on <3

xoxo,
Sleepless in Los Angeles


A couple great articles on breastfeeding:
The "Power Hour" -- About BFing within the first hour of baby's life. Good stuff right here!
Timeline of the Benefits of Breastfeeding