Coping with burn out

[MaddieMay]

DS is 8 months old and is a great nurser for the most part. He nurses a minimum of 8 times a day, usually once or twice at night. He's eating solids like a champ in addition to all the nursing. But I am feeling burned out with breastfeeding. DH is supportive, but I don't live in a very BF friendly community (although it's better than some). I really want to nurse until DS is ready to wean but now it seems like I'm just counting the days until he can drink cow's milk. I feel terrible about thinking that way. In the past when I've felt burned out, all it usually takes is a day or so before I'm gung-ho about breastfeeding again. But now I'm just feeling drained about it.

How do you cope with burn out and how do you get yourself back on track again?

[Asparagus78]

Perhaps stating the obvious here, but there will come a time when he weans and you'll miss it, perhaps not the BF part, but the closeness and bonding. I have been there too, fed up and ready to wean, and when DS1 finally did wean by himself at almost 3, I cried for weeks . How about introducing a sippy so he can play with it and perhaps have that replace a nursing session? He probably wouldn't "drink" tons from it at that age, but it could be a good distractiom, especially if your LO is nursing out of boredom, and not because he needs to be comforted or is hungry. Or if you pump and he readily accepts a substitute for you (your DH or a caregiver), take a few hours away from him - maybe that'll be enough to make you look forward to the next nursing.

I also remember DS1 nursing very frequently at that age, and when he began to actively discover his world (he started crawling at 7 months, but really "got it" at 9 months) he became less interested in BFing.

Hugs!

[OTMomma]

I have found for me, that getting that feeling has often meant I wasn't taking care of myself- that I needed to eat better and/or take supplements and do a little bit of stuff for myself. I have found taking an Omega 3 supplement and a complex Aminoacid have helped me at those times. Make sure you are eating and drinking enough yourself to feel good- and make time for you- baby should be big enough to go an hour or 2 without nursing, you can let dh or grandma or someone watch him for a little bit so you can do something on your own- that helps me recharge too.

Hang in there- remember that breastfeeding is giving your little one amazing benefits, both nutritionally and emotionally.

[MaddieMay]

Thanks for the responses. I never even thought about him nursing out of boredom. I'll have to keep an eye on that. I will also look into the supplements.

We don't have family nearby, but we do have a nanny that comes once or twice a month for a few hours during the day which helps. He does accept a bottle, but my freezer stash is down to about 25 oz. so I'd like to save it.

He is really active-crawling and standing (assisted), so I thought he might slow down. He's doing more and more solids so I think in time as his grasp and chewing get more effective he will probably gradually decrease his sessions.

I think sleep deprivation is having something to do with it too, none of us seem to be sleeping well at night. I am hoping this is just a phase.

[calebsmommy25]

I find that I seem to feel really drained and worn out when I don't get some 'me' time, don't get enough sleep and/or don't have the proper nutrition. You said sleep has been a problem lately. I see that you co-sleep. Is there any way your dh can hang with ds for a while at night so you can go to bed early, alone? Sometimes this helps me tremendously. Dp and ds will chill in the living room, read books, watch a show, play, etc. and I'll go to bed early to get some sleep by myself. Could you increase the days that your nanny comes, if your dh can't give you some time to just go take a couple of hours to read, take a bath, go for a coffee, whatever you like to do?

For me, around 8 or 9 months was particularly hard because ds was getting restless and distracted very easily. This increased burn out exponentially. I found a nursing necklace really helped for some time to keep his attention.

Hang in there Mama.