Moms: How long did you breastfeed? (breastfeeding, breast milk, babies, sucking)
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This is a topic that is frequently discussed at the clinic where I work. One of my coworkers is planning to nurse her one year old baby for a few more years. Several other moms are pumping several times a day for babies who are nearly a year old.
When we take health histories for mammograms we ask how many months total the patient breastfed her baby or babies. It seems that the trend is toward more months of nursing than in the past.
So I am curious, how many months did you nurse each baby?
Well, to be honest, I nursed for a really long time with my kids. I was still nursing my first when I got pregnant with my second at 2.5 years. He nursed throughout my pregnancy and I tandem nursed them both for another five months or so. At that point, just to be clear, he was nursing maybe once a day. I then continued to nurse my second until he was about 3.5 years as well.
Nursing is a very personal thing, you know? Once my kids hit about 18 months - 2 years, I would have followed their lead whenever they were ready to stop. By the time they each hit about 3.5 though, I was more than ready to move on and was able to encourage them to stop. Both times it was tearless and painless.
I do not judge moms who don't nurse at all. I do, however, think that any amount of breastfeeding is beneficial--even if the mom only tries for two days, those two days made a difference. However long the mom can nurse--if she wants to--is fantastic.
ETA: I didn't vote in your poll, because you didn't include an option for nursing past 36 months.
Last edited by Julie Ruin; 03-23-2013 at 07:48 PM..
My first three were bottle fed, the third I tried to breastfeed because I thought he was going to be my last child and I wanted to experience breastfeeding, it didn't work out.
My fourth was breastfed until 9 months, my fifth was breast/pump fed until two and my sixth and final was breastfed until 18 months.
My doctor told me that breastfeeding is a natural "cleanser" for your breasts and studies have shown woman who breastfed have a lower risk of breast cancer.
Last edited by asitshouldbe; 03-23-2013 at 07:57 PM..
My first, just for a month; I had a lot of problems and no support. He had issues with all of the formulas we tried, though, so I knew I didn't want to go that route again when I had my second. I had problems with her, too, in the beginning, but I also had a good lactation consultant and I ended up nursing her until she was 3 1/2 years old.
Officially for a year, but really after about 10 months or so my supply has pretty much dwindled down to nothing and at that point DS just nursed twice a day more out of habit/comfort than anything, he was getting almost no milk, so I weaned very painlessly and easily to just once a day and then completely, and I never even got engorged or felt anything after weaning. I never had a lot of supply in the first place, and for the first few months DS would hang on me constantly, which is how I managed to get enough to exclusively bf him for 6 months, once he was on solids it just became less and less and at that point wasn't worth the effort to keep up.
I know it's very personal, but honestly myself, I wouldn't have felt comfortable nursing past two - for some reason I feel that at the point when a child is walking and talking it becomes a bit weird...a friend of mine had trouble weaning past 3 - they had to convince their son that he's a big boy now and big boys drink milk from a cup, not mommy, lol.
I weaned her at 13 months. Wanted to breastfeed for longer but she had so many allergies so my diet was really restricted and I rather selfishly got fed up and weaned her but it was tear-free for her as she was going through a less interested phase at the time anyway.
I didn't breastfeed at all. My milk never came in, with either of my babies. With my first, she was in NICU and I was pumping all day and getting out maybe a teaspoon every hour, then I'd take all the bottles to the hospital, they'd combine them, mix them with formula, and that would be one of her twelve feedings for the day. With my second, she didn't have to go to NICU. We saw the lactation consultant in the hospital and she said we were doing fine...but I didn't make any milk. By the third day, my baby was crying nonstop and peeing orange crystals from not getting any fluids. They said we had to give her formula if we wanted to go home, so we did. I never did produce any milk.
My twins I nursed for 6 months, hard work but worth it (and significant savings on formula!).
My younger girl I nursed for almost 3 years, though from 2 years on it was really only comfort nursing (bed time, when she was upset or sick), we'd go days without at times, I didn't initiate would would nurse her when she wanted.
Our family doctor recommends nursing for at least a year.
I nursed for six months until my daughter grew a couple of teeth and couldn't get the hang of not biting me! Then she received pumped breast milk until my milk supply dwindled out at about 11 or 12 months. This was nearly 35 years ago when the recommendation was 12 months if you can, or at least 6 months.
Okay, I'm ready to be crucified - I didn't breastfeed my kids at all. Not that I couldn't - I just didn't want to. I, and a lot of my squeamish friends, found it "gross" and didn't like the idea of milk dribbling from our boobs. DH often got up during the night to feed the baby while I stayed in bed - he really enjoyed it. My kids are now in their early and late 20's and never had ear infections or allergies, and we're super close despite not having "bonded" via sucking on my breasts. I didn't take natural childbirth classes, either, I had an epidural during labor and ... shudder ... a couple of shots of Demerol. Would I do it that way again? Absolutely.
I'm all for being natural if that's what you want, and don't fault anyone going that route, as long as they don't lecture me. It's WAY too late for that. My oldest (who is pregnant), is doing a complete 180 = she's going to be an "earth" mother type - breastfeeding, natural childbirth (they are having a midwife), no playpen (she's going to carry the baby in a "sling"), letting it sleep in her room, etc.
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