Breastfeeding? Yes, obviously, these days. It's pretty much the norm now, and it's nice to hear that there are actual laws allowing it to happen in public. Now, I'm not going to be flashing the whole world because I can, but that's also my personal preference. Back when we were babies, formula was actually advertised as better than breastmilk, so I was raised on formula. Whenever I see people preparing formula for their babies, I'm a little envious of how convenient it is. At the same time, I can appreciate how convenient it is to always have milk "on hand" with little to no prep involved. With Ethan in daycare, I am also well aware of how nice it is to not have to wash bottles since we do during the week.
I take breastfeeding pretty seriously because it will be my baby's main food source for at least the first year of his life. Because of this, breastfeeding is a huge commitment physically and time-wise. I avoid serious forms of caffeine (I permit myself chocolate now) and alcohol, and try to stick to a strict feeding/pumping schedule to maintain my supply. Oh how I miss my tea, chai, coffee desserts, and freedom from not having to either pump or feed every 3 hours for at least half an hour at a time. Just the timing issue alone can very quickly kill any sort of social life one could hope to maintain after baby. Pumping during the week has become a part time job commitment. But, I am thankful that I have an office with a door that closes and a refrigerator at work to permit me to continue providing for Ethan. I have to say that I am pretty lucky that my employer recognizes the importance of breastfeeding.
There were and will continue to be challenges in breastfeeding in the future I'm sure. In the beginning, we had issues with latching, so I had to pump and feed Ethan my colustrom with a syringe. I was even given a nipple shield to use, which helped a lot. But, after trying a lot together, which was every 3 hours in the beginning, we eventually got the hang of it. The football hold was preferable in infancy, but now I'm feeding him in the cradle position because he's getting so large. I always fear mastitis, which is an infection from milk blockage, because it's bad news for both mom and baby. Knock on wood, I haven't had to experience that yet, but I have had to deal with my fair share of milk blockage/engorgement.
Moving forward, I'm hoping to continue to breastfeed until Ethan is a year old. Beyond that, I'm not sure when I'll start weaning. I'm actually worried about when that time comes because I'm not sure how dependent he is on it. It will be shooting rainbows and prancing ponies when I can stop breastfeeding, a.k.a. own my entire body again, but I have to admit, I will probably miss that intimate time we had together. For a few minutes, he's just my little baby, snuggling with his mommy. After he's done drinking, he's my T-rex reacking havoc on everything in the vicinity with prehistoric sound effects to boot. So yea, breastfeeding is serious business, but would I do it again for a second child? Yes, in a heartbeat.
I take breastfeeding pretty seriously because it will be my baby's main food source for at least the first year of his life. Because of this, breastfeeding is a huge commitment physically and time-wise. I avoid serious forms of caffeine (I permit myself chocolate now) and alcohol, and try to stick to a strict feeding/pumping schedule to maintain my supply. Oh how I miss my tea, chai, coffee desserts, and freedom from not having to either pump or feed every 3 hours for at least half an hour at a time. Just the timing issue alone can very quickly kill any sort of social life one could hope to maintain after baby. Pumping during the week has become a part time job commitment. But, I am thankful that I have an office with a door that closes and a refrigerator at work to permit me to continue providing for Ethan. I have to say that I am pretty lucky that my employer recognizes the importance of breastfeeding.
There were and will continue to be challenges in breastfeeding in the future I'm sure. In the beginning, we had issues with latching, so I had to pump and feed Ethan my colustrom with a syringe. I was even given a nipple shield to use, which helped a lot. But, after trying a lot together, which was every 3 hours in the beginning, we eventually got the hang of it. The football hold was preferable in infancy, but now I'm feeding him in the cradle position because he's getting so large. I always fear mastitis, which is an infection from milk blockage, because it's bad news for both mom and baby. Knock on wood, I haven't had to experience that yet, but I have had to deal with my fair share of milk blockage/engorgement.
Moving forward, I'm hoping to continue to breastfeed until Ethan is a year old. Beyond that, I'm not sure when I'll start weaning. I'm actually worried about when that time comes because I'm not sure how dependent he is on it. It will be shooting rainbows and prancing ponies when I can stop breastfeeding, a.k.a. own my entire body again, but I have to admit, I will probably miss that intimate time we had together. For a few minutes, he's just my little baby, snuggling with his mommy. After he's done drinking, he's my T-rex reacking havoc on everything in the vicinity with prehistoric sound effects to boot. So yea, breastfeeding is serious business, but would I do it again for a second child? Yes, in a heartbeat.
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