Post by winemaker06 on Feb 3, 2015 17:00:59 GMT -5
I'm open to breastfeeding until at least age 2, as that's the AAP recommendation. I can't really imagine it past that point, but a year ago I couldn't imagine having a 1-year-old, so who knows!
Post by teatimefor2 on Feb 3, 2015 17:03:39 GMT -5
I weaned DS1 at 18.5 months when I was pregnant with DS2. DS2 is three months now. Mid like to nurse him 18 months and go from there. Right now, I've been pregnant or nursing continuously since December 2011; my goal with DS2 put me at April 2016. I might be ready to just be responsible for my body.
In my head I think "1 year sounds good, maybe 18 months". But when the reality sets in I just am not a huge fan of breastfeeding.
I never had any big "issues" with either kid and had a great supply, responded well to the pump, etc. but mentally it just gets to be too much for me.
I'm a total introvert and get touched out super easily. My boobs are massive (I wear a 30FF when NOT pregnant or nursing), so when I'm nursing I literally cannot find a bra that fits and have to wear super expensive nursing tanks ($55/each) 24/7. It's just mentally draining for me in a way I can't really explain past 3 or 4 months.
I love the ease and convenience of nursing the first few months, but I just get burnt out I guess. Selfish mom, I guess.
I nursed DS1 until he was 6 months old and when I was pregnant with DS2 I was like "I shouldn't have given up so easily, I really didn't have a good "reason", I'll stick it out until 1 for DS2." And then I was totally.over.it by 4 months and weaned then. So we'll see how it goes with #3. I'm not having any expectations or goals other than to take it a day at a time.
I also realize I'm really lucky that my kids never seemed to show a preference for bottle or boob or BM or formula.
I don't plan to nurse much past 1. I am already plotting/hoping for dropping down to one pump at work around 9-10 months and relying on my freezer stash/formula/solids. I'm looking forward to the freedom of not nursing, even though the cuddles are nice and I know it's good for him.
I said a year, which ds turned on sat. We are down to two times a day. I may continue til the end of February/ March to get the cold season down but I am ready to have my body back. I can't acheiev th e level of fitness I like while nursing and I want a few months before tttc number 2
I made 25 months with my first. 13 months and counting with number 2. Open until 2.5 ish? I was done with my first but I know my second is my last so I hink weaning will be tougher.
I do not plan to pump after 12 months but will continue to nurse as much as she wants/as I am able after that. I'd like to say two is my limit of comfort but I could see us continuing for longer than that.
Around 3 I suppose. J self weaned at 15mos because I was pregnant again. This time I expect the girls to nurse longer. I want them to self wean but like @kirkette mentioned I do like having my body to myself and I am not able to work out or eat the way I wish when I am nursing so we shall see.
Also, I should probably know this by now, but what do folks generally mean by "get your body back"? Is that figurative like the time it takes to nurse? Or more literal re: the hormones and adverse effect on your body? Little of both?
I guess what I'm really asking is, if I wean, will my pooch go away?
For me it's about diet and exercise. When I am nursing I can't cut my calories or exercise rigorously without it dropping my supply a lot. So I'm sort of stuck in this limbo phase where my body isn't how I would like it to be. I have been pregnant and/or nursing since September 2011. At some point, I'd like to just be me again lol.
Also, I should probably know this by now, but what do folks generally mean by "get your body back"? Is that figurative like the time it takes to nurse? Or more literal re: the hormones and adverse effect on your body? Little of both?
I guess what I'm really asking is, if I wean, will my pooch go away?
For me, it's having my body back to taking care of just itself.
AND I am excited to think about wearing a few cute dresses I have in my closet that I can't wear to work because they zip up the back so not easy in/out for pumping or nursing if I am with the baby.
Oh yes, this too. I have to wear a tank top under EVERYTHING so that I can easily nurse. I'd like to just wear a shirt for once!
DD is 20 months and is very into nursing. I thought around 15 months that she might wean, but no. I've said two is the point where I really want to be done, but as we get closer, it just feels arbitrary. I know I really need some time away from her, more than just a few hours, and I'm not really sure how that works at this point.
Post by cricketwife on Feb 3, 2015 19:56:34 GMT -5
We weren't able to nurse that long. I struggled and struggled and struggled and finally quit at 3 months (we had been supplementing from 1 month) so it's hard for me to answer this. It's hard to imagine nursing a 1 yr old, which was my original goal because nursing seems so distant and he has only just turned one. It's also hard to imagine the ability to make the choice of when to quit rather than it basically being made for me by the circumstances of our nursing relationship. That said, I can't personally imagine nursing beyond 18 mo.
Caramini bit me badly enough to need stitches to attach my areola at 8 months, so I was pretty much EPing after that due to being gun shy. I weaned/stopped pumping at 13 months, but had an oversupply so she was able to get frozen BM until 16 months. I went back to work at 9 weeks, so I wa very pleased to be able to do that much.
It was great to (mostly) get my body back and to be done pumping. However, my boobs are still lopsided (slightly). I made my H look at them the other day and I could actually *see* him thinking "Boobies!". I need a professional opinion.
I did not want to tandem nurse and pregnancy made it painful so I weaned at 2.5 years. I otherwise might have been willing to nurse up to or slightly beyond 3.
I don't know. DS turns 2 next month and is still BFing 1-2 times per day. He was down to 0-2 times per day and even skipped a couple of days but started BFing more often after a stomach bug. I'm half ready to wean and half fine with continuing a bit longer.
Nursing makes me cling to weight. I am very active exercise wise, but weight doesn't move much when I BF. Last time, the month I weaned, I dropped about 15 without changing my routine. Less weight also results in faster racing times . So, I feel like normal athletic me vs. a rounder version of myself.
I wore my Body Media Fit for a few days when DS was about 10 weeks old. So I was getting ready for the Boston Marathon, BF'ing exclusively, plus doing all the standard childcare/ housework while I was on maternity leave. It said I was burning something crazy like 3200-3500 calories a day in activity. That WASN'T even including BF'ing calories, which meant I needed something closer to 4k calories on busy days. No wonder I wanted to eat everything that wasn't nailed down.
I don't know how you manage to workout and BF for so long. I'd need to wear a a feed bag or something. The hunger!
DS is 31 months and still nursing. My original goal was to make it to one year. Once we got close, I knew he was nowhere near ready to be done, and once I quit pumping, I was much happier, so for now, it's still working for both of us. At this point, I don't have an end date in mind - I'd like to let him decide when he's done, but if at some point it's not working for me, then we'll work on weaning.
I got to 6.5 months EPing with DD. Once I stopped I was like OMG SO MUCH BONUS TIME.
When there is another, I won't go longer and if anything I will go less. Maybe if that one is a magic baby that latches instantly I will try, maybe I will EP for 3 months.
Honestly the only reason I even entertained the thought of BFing is because I wanted to see if I'd lose all the weight. Nope. I gained weight and had to eat like crazy to barely make what she'd drink for the day. I have no desire to go through that kind of diet mindfuck again. I was ready to start working out and lose the pregnancy weight from like 6 weeks yet all the pumping and eating and fear of not making enough was too much for me.
With my oldest, I weaned at 18 months to try to get my period back since we wanted to ttc again. I stuck to the same timeframe with my second and figured I'd do the same with my third, except I don't think either of us will be ready to wean in just three weeks. So maybe I'll shoot for 2 this time, or maybe by spring I'll realize I need to get serious about getting in a bathing suit again. lol.
Nursing makes me cling to weight. I am very active exercise wise, but weight doesn't move much when I BF. Last time, the month I weaned, I dropped about 15 without changing my routine. Less weight also results in faster racing times . So, I feel like normal athletic me vs. a rounder version of myself.
I wore my Body Media Fit for a few days when DS was about 10 weeks old. So I was getting ready for the Boston Marathon, BF'ing exclusively, plus doing all the standard childcare/ housework while I was on maternity leave. It said I was burning something crazy like 3200-3500 calories a day in activity. That WASN'T even including BF'ing calories, which meant I needed something closer to 4k calories on busy days. No wonder I wanted to eat everything that wasn't nailed down.
I don't know how you manage to workout and BF for so long. I'd need to wear a a feed bag or something. The hunger!
In order for me to keep my supply and still run (and I only run halves and am not anywhere near as fast as you), I ate SO much. Like, 900-1000 calories for breakfast, whole avocados and full cups of almonds for snacks, etc. It was ridiculous. I was dairy/soy-free while bf'ing, and the combination of that diet plus the bf'ing calorie burn did make me drop weight like crazy, but OMG, I ate constantly and was still hungry all the time.