Breastfeeding.

hazel14rich · August 2015

Will you breastfeed?

klingonboxer · August 2015

I'm going to try to breastfeed for a year. I know it's a really difficult thing for a lot of folks, though, and if I can't then I can't.

imrachellea · August 2015

My goal will be to make it to a year breast feeding, but will be okay with it if I can't. I EBF my DD for 8 months, then started a new teaching job that I couldn't afford to take breaks for pumping. I encountered a lot of issues trying to BF get but we worked through them (lots of tears on my end) so I am hoping I can do the same for this LO. When I go back for the new school year when they are 4ish months it will be much easier to pump since it will be my third year at the school and I'll have a private classroom.

PeggyOlsonFTW · August 2015

I breastfed DS til he self weaned at 17 months. I plan to do the same with this one. My original goal was just to be able to breastfeed, then I wanted to make it to 3 months, then 6... Then I didn't want to stop! When they get crazy and rarely slow down for cuddles, the closeness of breastfeeding is awesome.

hazel14rich · August 2015

This will be my first child and I don't know much about breastfeeding, so thats why I'm trying to get some ideas from you all! Thanks so much for the replies

Brandi81012 · August 2015

Breast feeding did not work out with DD, but I plan to make a good effort again this time around.

MrsCayEye · August 2015

Yes. DS still nurses now at 21 mos but it was a rough start and I battled some supply issues when I went back to work and didn't get to pump like I needed to. Hopefully it's easier with this one, but I expect having a toddler too will bring its own set of challenges.

CCLow87 · August 2015

I BF DD until 20+ months, that's the plan this time!!

[Deleted User] · August 2015

Nope, didn't with first as I had a wedding just a few weeks after she was born and there's no way to take breaks to pump while shooting a wedding. Same this time, 4 weeks out after due date. Plus I'm just not comfortable with it.

emiliothetall · August 2015

So I exclusively pumped for my son until 4 months, the we started to do night time nursing and pumping the rest if the time. I pumped till 10 months and stopped when I knew I had enough frozen to last through till past a year.

Breast feeding just wasn't for me, but I still wanted him to have breast milk. I hope I am fortunate enough to have such a surplus of milk again!

mumidi · August 2015

I had a lot of trouble BFing DD and gave up after a few days. I will try again but if it doesn't work out I'll be ok with that too. Last time I got to a point where I was so exhausted and frustrated it was not healthly for either of us so I stopped.

GridIronGrrl34 · August 2015

I formula fed my son and will do the same with this one.

AliSummer · August 2015

I breastfed DS until he was 8 months, I'm planning on going longer with this one. We'll see how I feel about it once teeth start coming in.

kmrort · August 2015

I breastfed exclusively for the first 6 weeks of my son's life, then I used formula to supplement when I went back to work. Some weeks he had no formula and sometimes he had 2 bottles of formula a day.

It's a personal decision you need to make. I found breastfeeding easier at 4 months old, but much harder newborn to then. I hated pumping. I had to use a shield for the first four months so that's why it was harder.

lnbtaa15 · August 2015

I breastfed for about 7 months. I was not totally exclusive with it though and I was fine with that. Its a lot of work to breastfeed and to keep up with the pumping and eventually my supply kind of just dried itself up.

aturpin13 · August 2015

I'm hoping I can breastfeed for a year. I'll be coming back to work full time after my maternity leave so I know I will have challenges. I plan to do tons of research and will do my best to make it work

pinottoparenthood · August 2015

Yes!!! When I was pregnant with ny first, my goal was to make it 6 months. Didn't know how much I would end up loving it! We nursed until 18 months. It was tough when I went back to work full time (I am a teacher), but know that the majority of employers are legally required to give you pumping breaks. It was so worth it and I pray that I have another really positive experience. It's the best bonding I can imagine and itit'ss one of the best things you can do for your baby!

Katherine8908 · August 2015

Nope I really wanted to the first time because all the breast is best blah blah blah but I had no supply and couldn't ds had formula from day 2 and we've never looked back hes rarely sick and a happy and healthy 17 mo. With little #2 we will just start with formula In my opinion moms sanity is better than anything if you are so tired from nursing all night and can't function and aren't happy how are you going to be the best you can for baby

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Kimawesome · August 2015

I nursed all three of mine. The first two until they were 18 months or so and my son until he was almost 3. I will definitely be nursing this one. Lots of support is key and a breastfeeding class helped so much with my first one.

St0v3s · August 2015

My plan is to BF until a year. I plan to go to a breastfeeding class later in the pregnancy to help.

kvm2908 · August 2015

I breastfed my daughter for 20 months and am hoping to breastfeed this baby for at least a year.

I will say, if it's something you want to do, you need support. It's not instinctive, that's why they have the phrase "it takes a village." I had some issues the first 8 weeks and without the support of a breastfeeding group and counsellor it would have been so much harder. Not everyone has issues but everyone I know who breastfeed for a longer time (3+ months) has a group of women they rely on for support. So important!

pinottoparenthood · August 2015

kvm2908 said:
I breastfed my daughter for 20 months and am hoping to breastfeed this baby for at least a year.

I will say, if it's something you want to do, you need support. It's not instinctive, that's why they have the phrase "it takes a village." I had some issues the first 8 weeks and without the support of a breastfeeding group and counsellor it would have been so much harder. Not everyone has issues but everyone I know who breastfeed for a longer time (3+ months) has a group of women they rely on for support. So important!

True! And a supportive husband is so so invaluable if you have a day where you just want to give up... I had this when I went back to work and got a clogged duct, supply issues, pumping constantly in a tiny dirty closet, etc. It's worth it though, I promise!

Also, you NEED lactation cookies ;-) :-p

brie_and_almonds · August 2015

I will definitely breastfeed this baby. I am still nursing my DD who is 2.5, and she's showing no signs of self-weaning soon. I'm trying to decide if I'm going to encourage her to wean or just let her do her thing. We're playing it by ear right now. Last night we told her about the new baby on the way, and when she was nursing she said she would nurse on one side and the new baby would nurse on the other (not sure that's going to happen...)

I will say that we went through breastfeeding HELL for the first 4-5 months, and then slowly it got a little better and a little better. I am glad that I didn't quit, but it took a lot not to. I was pumping after every feeding, supplementing with pumped milk, using a nipple shield and SNS; DD had a lip and tongue tie that we travelled to another state to have "zapped" (with a laser) when she was four months old (still not sure that was the right decision). I saw three different lactation consultants, met with two Le Leche League groups, had a tremendously supportive husband, and pro-breastfeeding parents, sister, and mother-in-law. It was hard, sometimes agonizingly painful, and many tears were shed by DD and me. With all we went through to get a functional, normal breastfeeding process going, there was no way I was weaning at a year.

DougalMcG · August 2015

My goal is to breastfeed for a year, but I will just go with the flow. Last time I had to supplement and pump very early on for reasons that were completely out of my control (DD1 was born 4 weeks early and here glucose levels were dangerously low), but we were able to switch to all BM by two months. We lasted to 7 months. I am dreading it though. Last time I had an overactive letdown it basically choked her every time. I'm terrified that's going to happen again.

morganmanages · August 2015

My son is 14 months and we're still breastfeeding. To be honest, I didn't read anything and just kind of went of it when he was born and thankfully he latched on right away. (like, 30 seconds out and he was looking for it. Should have known then.) I plan (somehow! Any one who had any tips, PLEASE send them my way. My son still nurses to sleep for both naps and bedtime, though at bed time is one nurse and then a song 15 minutes later if he's crying.) to wean him relatively soon to give my poor boobies a break before this one is born. I loved nursing and I personally think that not overthinking it and letting nature take its course is the key for a happy momma and baby.

mrstrax · August 2015

Despite flat nipples and needing a shield, DD made it almost 5 months breastfeeding with a few weeks of formula transition. Then my SIL got married 12 hours away and kids weren't invited (still a little grumpy about that) so I had pumped for months trying to stock up to be away 4 days and HATED my life. I resented DD for wanting to eat (ridiculous) but felt like a failure for giving formula. My husband, bless his heart, finally convinced me that not breastfeeding didn't mean I had failed and we switched to formula. As her ped said - And she survived!! (He's pretty great).

This time around I'll try again, but I know now that BFing isn't worth resenting my baby.

akb1125 · August 2015

I was able to breastfeed my son for a year. It was very hard in the beginning. Very time consuming, painful, etc. I definitely went into it knowing it would be hard but I still think I underestimated how hard.

With this baby, I'll probably set a goal of a month, then move to three months, etc.. Ideally I'd like to nurse again for a year but I'm open to using formula or a mix of both.

Celebritymom · August 2015

Will definitely breastfeed. I BF'd my DS for 9mo & my DD for 16 mo. I plan to BF for at least a year, but wouldn't mind going longer. DD self weaned at 16 months, and I admit that I was a little sad.

I had major struggles breastfeeding my first and almost gave up multiple times. I agree with the other moms who said that you need a support system. It really didn't come easily for me & the first 8 weeks were hell. I had a lot of friends that helped me, and I went to some LLL meetings. I also met with an LC. The more support the better! Good luck!

olivemomma · August 2015

Definitely! I bf my first for 15 months. It was super hard at the beginning but once we hit our groove it was just amazing. There are so many benefits for both of you but most of all the bonding makes it really worthwhile

medforthesoul · August 2015

Yes! I BF DS for a year and had to stop because I was already 3 months pregnant with DD and my supply slowly dwindled. This time, DD is almost 1 and we are going strong. The health benefits for baby short and long term are SO SO worth it to me. However, it is a very personal decision and both mom and baby have to be happy. I was an exclusive FF baby and I turned out okay

Either way, do what makes you happy and try to rally all of the support you can. You'll need it!

saraeric · August 2015

I'm planning on it. DS was EBF till about 7 months and then my supply tanked and I was soooo tired of pumping at work. I had a really rough start...for me, breastfeeding was more painful than labor. DS was early so he didn't have a great sucking reflex yet and had a bad latch so yeah...not fun. I used to joke that he had razor gums and a sand paper tongue. Thankfully, my mom is an LC so she was a lot of help. Not looking forward to that initial engorgement and sore nipples again!

saraeric · August 2015

mkgrunder said:

Despite flat nipples and needing a shield, DD made it almost 5 months breastfeeding with a few weeks of formula transition. Then my SIL got married 12 hours away and kids weren't invited (still a little grumpy about that) so I had pumped for months trying to stock up to be away 4 days and HATED my life. I resented DD for wanting to eat (ridiculous) but felt like a failure for giving formula. My husband, bless his heart, finally convinced me that not breastfeeding didn't mean I had failed and we switched to formula. As her ped said - And she survived!! (He's pretty great). This time around I'll try again, but I know now that BFing isn't worth resenting my baby.

It was such a HUGE relief for me when we finally switched to formula, I didn't realize how much I resented pumping and all the dish washing that went with it

HappyToBe2012 · August 2015

Most likely not. I BF my DD for the first two weeks, then EPed for another month. In the end, it wasn't worth it to me to continue. FF was a better choice for our family. As someone else posted, happy mom makes for a happier baby. I was not happy BF and EPing and it was effecting my interactions with DH and DD.

cmar1006 · August 2015

MrsCayEye said:
Yes. DS still nurses now at 21 mos but it was a rough start and I battled some supply issues when I went back to work and didn't get to pump like I needed to. Hopefully it's easier with this one, but I expect having a toddler too will bring its own set of challenges.

I also am still nursing my DD at 21 months. She's not showing signs of wanting to stop. I will go as long as she wants and hopefully I won't have any issues nursing the new LO.

Phoopy · August 2015

This was my same experience with DS. I was hoping just to get it to work, then set mini goals - 3, 6 months, 1 year... He was BF before bed only from 15 months and self weaned fully at 21 months. I loved every moment and *hope* to be able to do it again.

orangegoggles · August 2015

Absolutely! I'm hoping this next baby is a natural like DS was but I know that is not realistic. Ask for help in the hospital from as many different people as possible. I find that I had better success with some of the advice than others. The LC wasn't as helpful as the nurse for example!

I'm shooting for a year this time as with DS I only EBF for 8 months with my son. Once I switched to formula and ran out of my freezer stash we had so many problems. Gas, bloating, crankiness! Looking back I wish I went longer but I wasn't sure how to handle that and going back to work.

Aside from the awesome health benefits, it also helped this lazy mom out...roll over, pick up baby, nurse, roll back and put baby down lol. But I also realize I was lucky to have a fast eater. Less than 10 minutes most times.

worldsokayestmom · August 2015

Yes. It was easy with DD, so I'm hoping it will be just as easy with this second one. I made it to 7 months with DD, and had to stop b/c I was traveling a ton for work. Pumping during layovers in airport bathrooms is the pits. I have a new position now with no travel, so I'm hoping to make it a little longer the second time around.

yodiggity · August 2015

I really want to BF but I know not everyone gets to. I would be pretty crushed if I can't. I have my own office/private bathroom at work so pumping there wont be a big deal. I hope to do it as long as possible.

Plus, IT'S FREE! lol

geminioftwo · August 2015

I am planning on BF'ing again. My DS is 16 months and is still BFing, although I wouldn't mind if he decided to stop on his own. It was definitely hard in the beginning. I had very sore nipples, bleeding and he bit me with his gums! You'd think something so natural would come natural, but sure enough, it doesn't. After the first 3-4 weeks, it got better and I am glad I stuck it out.

I think the hardest part was when people would say "oh your supply will dry out", umm so not true! If you actually feed on demand and not try to put your child on a schedule right away e.g., make them sleep through the night, you will definitely have the supply. I had to stop talking about it with people because when I'd hear that, I swear my milk supply slowed down. For me it was a mental thing.

alexvause · August 2015

I had issues with my dd due to an undiagnosed tongue tie and she never latched. I EP'd for 6 months and hated every minute of it. I plan to try to BF this time but won't drive myself crazy over it. My sanity it more important than breast milk.

MommyMoe326 · August 2015

I BF DD for 13 months and only stopped because my wedding was a month a way. Gonna go as long as I can with this little one

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