and so it became the gold class standard that in order to be a mom that provides the best for your kids, you had to exclusively breastfeed for that first six months of your little joyful bundle's life...
sounds like no problem at all you think...at this point i would request persons with overactive visual sensors or friends with no kids and don't know what the hell i am talking about to just shut the screen and tune back in for the next post. sometimes ignorance can really be bliss....
so as i was saying...breastfeeding contrary to secular belief does not come naturally to all moms. There is nothing natural about fully grown women trying to figure out how to bring a biting and furious or sleepy and disinterested baby to the breast, a squirmy subject whom incidentally happens to be only a few hours old and figuring out how it works for the first time too.
Oh man, with Aly, i had to battle with milk not coming in, pressure from the confinement auntie, bloodied nipples from all that tugging and biting. All of that emotional trauma i never experienced and the sunken feeling that i possibly may not succeed at being a good mom. It literally and figuratively sucked. Thank god for lactation consultants and nipple cream! We eventually managed to overcome the initial road blocks and i managed to breastfeed Aly for close to a year (though supplementing with fm from month 5 onwards)
With asher, all the nightmares of breastfeeding which i managed to forget came back all over again. Although this time i managed to avoid seeing blood but the issue of undersupply as usual crept in around the same time as asher was about 4-5 months.
The law of basic economics is a wonderful thing but somehow in the world of breastfeeding, mommies just can't find that equilibrium which is supposed to oh come so naturally. Oversupply leads to pumping and bags and bags of frozen milk that gets eventually thrown away when they expire not to mention a higher risk of engorgement and mastitis for the mom and baby throwing up from the overfeeding. Not fun. Underdemand? A very skinny baby where parents worry and wonder if the baby is having enough nutrients.
Undersupply and overdemand. I think the most traumatic of the lot, emotionally wearing down the mummy who feels inadequate and lousy for not being able to provide and poor baby of course, always fussy and hungry for more.
Overall, i salute all breastfeeding moms, no matter how long they manage to keep it going. It is not funny having a few kilograms of weights strapped to your chest every 2-4 hours to suckle. Waking up at all inhumane times of the night to latch little bub back to sleep is the hardest especially when mommy has to be fully functional during the day too. Furthermore, working and studying moms have to lug pumps, bottles, ice packs, cooler bags and detergent to work / school everyday and suitable facilities for nursing are not always readily available for all.
I was going to post this much earlier on but i accidentally deleted the post. Now Asher is already six months+ and thank god we have made it together this far and i am still breastfeeding even though i have to supplement with a bottle of formula for the last feed at night.
I am going to try to make it till a year i hope but who knows. Despite all the difficulties, the bond you feel with your child when breastfeeding is irreplacable. When you hold your baby and watch him snugly fall asleep with a satisfied "milk face", the tiredness washes away. I came across the article below on breastfeeding as well which is absolutely funny. So hoping this would spur other mommies to continue their efforts too. Kanbate!
http://ouradoptionfaithwalk.blogspot.com.au/2013/08/world-breastfeeding-week-salute.html?m=1
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