Weaning

{This is a post I wrote a week or so ago that never got posted... and I added to it at the bottom...}

You knew it wouldn't be long before a breastfeeding related post came up.

As I have gotten more involved with the breastfeeding community, I've found that a lot of "lactavists" are very extreme in their beliefs. It is their way and their way only. I LOVE breastfeeding. I think it is a beautiful thing when women choose and/or are able to breastfeed their babies. It is absolutely the BEST thing for your baby. There is no debating that. It is worth the fight, BUT I went through that battle. Not to toot my own horn, but most women would have given up. So I can understand why a woman might give up. And I have no judgement against women who do not breastfeed. As a breastfeeding counselor... I see myself as simply a support person for women who do want to breastfeed their baby. I like to encourage women to at least try, and educate them on why its such an amazing thing.

That being said, I have also found that women who did not successfully breastfeed are also extreme in their feelings against breastfeeding. Maybe its jealousy. Maybe its insecurity. I don't know. And they want to discourage breastfeeding. I recently had this happen to me.

I have a new friend who did not successfully breastfeed her baby. Through some of the conversations I had with her, I mentioned weaning, Milo nursing to sleep, etc. Basically, she asked if I had weaned, I said, "No I lost my motivation for weaning." {Will explain in a minute} And she said well you can still wean without a reason... implying I should stop. She was encouraging me to wean. Why do I have a problem with this? 1. She is discouraging me from doing something that is GOOD. No. GREAT for my son.

The AAP recommends nursing to at least a year. The WHO suggests to the age of two. And the natural age of weaning for a human, based on the natural age of weaning for mammals in nature, is between 4-5 years old. Now I don't plan on nursing Milo that long... but nursing a toddler still has a LOT of benefits.

1. That wonderful bond. 2. Still wonderfully nutritious. 3. Helps baby fight infections, keeping them healthy and helps build a strong immune system. 4. Comfort, pain management.

Milo has been cutting four molars at once... two are in, two are very close. During this time, he has done a lot of nursing because it is comforting, easing the discomfort of teething. On these oh so hot days... I don't worry about Milo becoming dehydrated or not having enough water... breastmilk does the trick! And as Milo becomes more and more independent and busy... I cherish those moments of skin to skin, nursing and snuggling.

My friend is simply wrong.

To explain losing my motivation... We were seriously considering baby number two. With IVF that would require full weaning. We started some gently weaning and Milo actually did very well... he was down to only nursing once or twice in a 24 hours period. But, I had a sleepless night where I think God was just saying... Not yet. And I was so relieved when we decided to wait a while longer. With that decision... I said, "Well I'm going to keep nursing Milo then." I struggled with weaning earlier than planned or try for another baby. And I think for now, we made the right decision.

OK... Time for some hubby time. {To the person who left the last comment. Thank you.}

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So a while back my IVF doctor told me I shouldn't nurse past a year because it was unnecessary and "a lot of milk." That really bothered me initially. But I sucked it up and got over it. Then today, because we are doing six month follow up stuff on my lung nodules, the pulmonary and cardiac specialist told me we would need to do another CT scan with contrast. I said that I was still breastfeeding and confirmed that I will need to pump and dump. His response was not, yes... you need to pump and dump. His response was, "Well home much longer are you planning to breastfeed?" I don't know. Does it matter? It just made me feel like I shouldn't be breastfeeding. It just shocked me that our nation's specialists, our highly educated medical professionals... are questioning breastfeeding beyond a year. Again. The WHO recommends breastfeeding to two! So there.