January 3, 2008

It's Coming to an End

I know it's a weird topic for a blog, but where else am I going to write this stuff down! I think I'm almost done breastfeeding. I don't want to be, but there is just hardly any milk left for my little Monkey and he woke up screaming and starving 4 nights last week. I've started supplementing with formula. I know people say it's not good for them, yada yada yada, but, there are plenty of babies raised on it that are just fine and I'm pretty convinced my Monkey will be just fine, too. After all, he is 10 1/2 months old and in 6 weeks can start drinking regular milk any ways. I was hoping to breastfeed him until he was 18 months old, but I think my body decided that it wanted to keep all the calories for itself and not share them any more. I really don't want my body to be selfish, but what can you do? I can't tell it where to send the calories!

I received a lot of positive comments from my last post in December about it and I've tried everything (except the beer thing, that was just too weird) and they helped....for awhile. I've been religiously taking my prenatals and drinking tons of milk, and I upped my calories, and I'm taking fish oil and calcium and now my milk is almost gone. I'm going to keep nursing Monkey as long as he will, just to get what little I DO have and supplement with formula until his first birthday and then switch him over to whole cow's milk. It's not what I want to do, but I don't want him starving. I'm sure we'll all be fine.

I've been feeling really inadequate about it, but I'm sure everything will be fine.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

A few things you can try to up your milk supply are Mother's Milk Tea and Fenugeek (an herb). Check out your local health food store.

Don't feel inadequate about this, it may just be that this is the natural termination point for your nursing too.

Give it to God and He will guide you.

Thanks for your kind comment on my blog. I fear I may get addicted to bloggin as I have met so many wonderful people!

I can imagine it must be tough to be a Pastor's wife! I am not sure I would have what it takes to fill that role, but I am sure you will do wonderfully.

I'm looking forward to reading your blog regularly!

Anonymous said...

hey emily, i know a few friends whose milk just slowed down towards that stage. he will definitely be fine for a month and a half on formula.... it is hard though having to cut them off when we know how good it is for them. mine is dropping too, but that is actually working out better for us. especially since we are moving, there just wont be a lot of time for sitting around and pumping. oh ya by the way we gave our notice, and will be out in february! yikes!
oh and rainbow swore by mothers milk tea but i tried it and it didnt do a thing, i drank several cups a day for a while and it didnt help at all, but it worked for her. i guess everyones body is different so ya never know, it could help. have you heard of le leche league? they are all about breastfeeding info.... i think the site is www.llli.org
gwen

Unsinkable Kristen said...

The library will have a copy of "The Womanly Art Of Breastfeeding" which has awesome suggestions and troubleshooting, and also if you can find a copy "Mothering Your Nursing Toddler", also by La Leche League - that would probably be the best one.

Christa said...

I was able to nurse both of my babies until they were 12 months, but I'll admit that I wished I could have given them formula at least some of the time. Maybe this is your chance to get a little bit of your life back ... if you feel anything like I felt breastfeeding.

Don't get me wrong - I loved it and wanted to do it for the good of my babies. But there are times when it's much more convenient to have a bottle (like church, for example, when you're supposed to teach Sunday school and play the piano and ...).

Anyway, don't beat yourself up about it. It has nothing at all to do with your worth as a mother. And really, it's nobody else's business anyway. ;)