Introduce Yourself (please don't be afraid to join us) - Page 3

[loon13]

Originally Posted by mamapoppins

You all ROCK!!!

I had to travel out of state for that surgery. Dh,dd, my sis and Mom came to take shifts helping dh. I was in the hospital for 1 month. My surgeon brought on a LC to be part of his team. I made it so clear that I intended to nurse dd till she was at least in KInder. I went through 1 week of diagnostics still nursing, and BAM! I had to be given radioactive dye for gallbladder tests...so I pumped for the next 3 weeks post op. After that, the LC said I couldn't nurse as I was so severely underweight(92lbs). I had to gain to 100 lbs to get back on the plane.

Back home dd and I stayed with my sis. She lived in a huge house, and I felt so out of control trying to figure out what dd was doing all of the time. I missed nursing her, but was still so weak. I called my LC at home in tears, and she said to take her to bed with me and try to nurse her.

I did. She did. We resumed our nursing relationship till I was(!!!!!!!!) 12 weeks PG with ds. I was put on bedrest, and taking progesterone. It hurt to nurse. I weighed only 105 lbs. I just felt my body couldn't go on nursing.

I weaned her at 4.2 yo.

Mp, YOU ROCK, too! What a committed mama you are!

Loon

[guest^]

loon13-
In some areas of my mothering, I go all out......

I feel enormous guilt that I weaned dd!! She just stopped asking for it this last summer(?).

When I was going through her weaning, the case of the 5 yo being taken from his single Mom *greatly* influenced my decision to continue nursing. We were sooooooo poor at the time, as we put everything into sending me to a specialist. I was paranoid and I was suffering from POst Traumatic Stress Syndrome due to my surgery being 8 hrs long, and having lost so amny of my internal organs(foot of LI,gallbladder,appendix...extensive bladder and rectal surgery).......

I am praying that I have more confidence this time!!!!!

But thanks!!! You are so sweet!!!

[MelissaEvans]

Hi! There are so many amazing mommies here. =)

My name's Melissa, I have my DS who's now 26mo and happily nursing. I mentioned in the What does CLW Mean to You thread that I'm not a purist and I hope that doesn't upset anyone.

I remember an aquantaince telling me she only planned to nurse for 6mo and I realized I had never given myself a projected weaning date; the only thing I wanted was to nurse for at least one year. I took a human development class in college (I was a computer science major, this was an odd thing!) and extended bf'ing and CLW were mentioned along with many other AP concepts, so I was introduced to the idea in a very positive manner.

I think part of my insitance on extended nursing and mostly CLW is to prove that I can take care of my DS; his birth went far from planned and I needed the confidence to be a mom. Our first month was not fun for me at all, but I can be quite stubborn if I think something is right and so I didn't give up. I think it was partly to compensate for my inability to birth him. Besides, he's quite "spirited" and he's not willing to give up nursing. To try to force it would be mean and such a pain in my butt... so I guess it's just a bit of laziness on my side. But I'd rather call it being aware of his needs and meeting them rather than forcing him to change. =)

[loon13]

Originally Posted by MelissaEvans

Besides, he's quite "spirited" and he's not willing to give up nursing. To try to force it would be mean and such a pain in my butt... so I guess it's just a bit of laziness on my side. But I'd rather call it being aware of his needs and meeting them rather than forcing him to change. =)

yup, that's my dd, too. Quite the persistent child she is. A few times dh has mentioned weaning her and I'll say, "okay, i need you to help me" meaning he's going to have to get up at night, help distract her, etc. It takes DH all of 30 seconds to say "Never mind! Keep nursing."

Loon

[B52Bombshell]

Hi, I'm Becky, mama to a 28 month old, spirited, mama-milk monkey. Didn't think I'd be nursing him this long, as I had planned to BF for only 2 yrs. "Only". :LOL We only had a few problems in the 1st couple of days, but he was nursing like a pro within a week. Now he won't stop! I'm hoping he'll wean before 4, but...if he needs to "take a nap" with "nah nah & o'er side", then.

Anyway, we're very lucky in that DH & our families (well, maybe not my Dad's fam, but..) are supportive of our choices - or at least they don't say anything negative to us! My guy is spirited & VERY persistent & will NOT settle for any substitute or a distraction! And he's not a big solids eater - never has been. Since DS is very low on the weight charts the peds. use (he was 21lbs at 2), we've been encouraged to wean by the ped., the ped. gastro., & the ped. nutritionist. It was the WORST 3 hours of our lives. High metabolisms & banana bodies run in my fam, pickiness & petiteness run in DH's fam. Some "enlightening" comments from the dr's:

"He's two - don't you think he should learn how to soothe himself? I'm not judging you..." (the ped.) (as if I care what she thinks of me)
"He's filling up on BM - you should try to wean him & get him to eat more. It will be HELL in your house..." (ped. gastro. & the nutritionist OH - they have NO IDEA the hell!!!!)
"And can you tell me WHY you're still BF at this age? (2) What are your reasons? When do you plan to wean?" (nutritionist) (The WHO recommendations just don't fly with these people!)

The one ped. gastro. diagnosed him as FTT at 20 months (this is a kid who's developmentally *above & beyond* where he should be) & we had a biopsy done to make sure he didn't have anything wrong internally. Just beautiful, normal, healthy pink innards. She recommended forced tube feedings (at night) to try to jump start his system so he'd eat more solid food ("Mother is reluctant to discontinue breastfeeding..."). (Maybe 'cos mommy thinks that the whole experience would be more traumatic than helpful?) Mommy instincts (and DH, friends, family, LLL group, relative strangers) told me he was fine, just small, but OH! how the dr's make you doubt yourself! We got the battery of tests done to make sure that he has no known diseases or things - just to cover all the bases. Got a 2nd opinion, and their lab lost the bloodwork (which had already been screened by 1st dr anyway) & mama said "Forget it". So unless he has a super-duper rare "made for TV docudrama" thing wrong with him... I'm following my mama instincts.

But oy vey! I'm one of those semi-paranoid people who think that someone's gonna call DCS on me 'cos DS isn't 30lbs & he's still nursing & he's over 2. Thank goodness I have a friend who's a former child social worker & who's AP & nursing a 2 1/2 yr old. Thank you to the midwife who told me that the only times she's been wrong as a mama (and as a midwife) has been when she didn't listen to her instincts. And thank goodness for MDC & to all the mamas sharing your stories! (And for listening to mine!)

My sunshine's up now...

[l_olive]

I'm brand new to MDC, but I'd like to introduce myself to this group of amazing mommas. I've enjoyed reading your intros and I'm learning a lot by browsing through the other threads in this forum.

I'm the proud momma of my darling 24 month old ds who's as committed to nursing now as he when he was a month old. Like many, we had a rocky start to nursing. His birth was not an easy one (a whole other story), and I didn't even see my son for almost eight hours after his delivery. He did latch easily the next morning, but my body never got around to producing any colostrum -- at least none that I could ever discern and we couldn't hear any swallowing. I almost gave up several times during those first five days until my milk came in -- and then it came with a vengeance!

I was not a breastfed baby. My mom had her first child in 1952 and at that time, moms were not even asked if they wanted to nurse -- at least not in the hospital in which my brother was born. A laboring mom was knocked unconscious, "delivered" of her baby, and then given a shot of a drug so that she would never produce milk. Both my mom and my sister think that nursing is pretty disgusting and have attempted several times to convince me to stop.

I'm lucky enough to live in a town in which our local hospital has a nursing support group that meets once a week. It was there that I first discovered that there were moms out there who nursed for "extended" periods of time. I owe a lot to those women who came before me and showed me the light. I make it a point to visit the support group now every few weeks so that my ds and I may open some others' eyes to the possibilities of not weaning at 6 months or a year or some other arbitrary age that is "right".

I tear up at the thought of the eventual end of this time of our relationship. Ds will be my only child, and it seems so sad that this part of child-rearing can be so short. I can't even imagine what it will be like to NOT nurse, but I hope that our bond will be such that we find other ways to continue the closeness of nursing far past the last time he's actually at my breast.

I look forward to meeting and learning from each of you.

--Olive
ds 02/11/03

[mother_sunshine]

Olive

[Mom4tot]

Hi Olive Welcome to MDC. Who kows, your nursing relationship may not be that short

I identify with how you are feeling, though and just wanted to say what a great job you are doing with so little nursing support.

[loon13]

Originally Posted by B52Bombshell

My guy is spirited & VERY persistent & will NOT settle for any substitute or a distraction! And he's not a big solids eater - never has been. Since DS is very low on the weight charts the peds. use (he was 21lbs at 2), we've been encouraged to wean by the ped., the ped. gastro., & the ped. nutritionist. It was the WORST 3 hours of our lives. High metabolisms & banana bodies run in my fam, pickiness & petiteness run in DH's fam. .

Becky, I'm so sorry you had to go through all that. But it was helpful for me to hear your story because my dd is also low on the weight charts. At 2yr, 7 mo she is only 23 pounds. It is hard not to worry, but my mama instincts tell me she is fine also. She is happy and healthy. High metabolism from DH's side, petite on my side, pickiness on BOTH sides. :LOL However, her being a picky eater has helped DH support me in CLW; he feels she gets her nutrition boost from mama.

Welcome Olive!!! Glad to have you here.

Forgive me all if you think I too much, but I identify with so many of you!
Man, I love this thread!!

Loon

[mother_sunshine]

Aren't those charts outdated, lacking in ethnic diversity, and centered around formula-fed babies anyway? Plus they imply the false assumption that all babies should grow the same and fit a certain mold.

Those charts used to cost me so much unnecessary anguish.


BTW Loon, I don't think you too much at all. I think it's great!

[mommy love]

im here

i have a 5 year old doughter who i dident breastfeed and i know have a 3 month old son who i desided to breastfeed to save money honestly and i discoverd the bond betwen us two and would never think to bottle feed again i just seem to have a hard time with inlaws who are not on my side for un good reasons im saporting myself and am planing on breastfeeding my future children

[QDB]

Hi - I'm joining in to say that I have a 21 mo ds who is still nursing strong. I cannot imagine him weaning anytime soon. I mostly enjoy our relationship and love the close down time nursing gives us.

We have just moved to a state where nursing is less common and that is making me less eager to NIP. Mostly ds does not ask but....it is a challenge for me lately.

I am a SAHM and am currently trying to work more art into our days and I am looking forward to Spring!

Thanks for the thread

[UrbanPlanter]

It's so nice to see so many new "faces" on this thread (and the familiar ones, too, of course!)

[loon13]

Originally Posted by my2girlsmama

Loon

You said:

I think you need to be respectful of your child/nursling as opposed to worrying about what others may or may not think of you nursing a toddler in public. You'd be surprised that you may illicit no reaction, as has been the case for me. Though I am a staunch BF advocate with no qualms about offending anyone in MY choice as a nursing mama, I did wonder what some would think upon seeing me do it.

That said, you can choose where you NIP. At malls, nursing stations, quiet corners, etc........it doesn't have to be a breast hanging out and a child gulping away LOL! I say do what your heart says and try not to worry about the shyness factor or offensive factor. I mean, breasts are made for nursing NOT sexuality.

April,

Somehow I missed your response before. Thanks for putting it in perspective. I have found that I really don't get comments from strangers. I'm just afraid I will. The (negative) comments have mostly been from the family. I think they have made me paranoid. :

It's funny b/c on some things I don't give a flying fig what people say. But on this it's taken me a little bit. I wish my real world were more like my MDC world!

[B52Bombshell]

Originally Posted by mother_sunshine

Aren't those charts outdated, lacking in ethnic diversity, and centered around formula-fed babies anyway? Plus they imply the false assumption that all babies should grow the same and fit a certain mold.

Those charts used to cost me so much unnecessary anguish.

Yes, I believe that they are!! And on formula-fed babies from the midwest, too, I believe. However, the dr's were all quick to point out that although he will be smaller since he IS BF, they were looking at the weight-for-height charts (on the back side of the growth charts). He's in the 50-75th percentile for height, but at the 5th (or lower) for weight (on the h-for-w chart). According to one, he started to go "under the curve" (very slightly) at 2 or 3 months old & they asked if I had started solids then! Whatever.

Loon, if our story is helpful to you (and others), I'm so very glad! I think it's more acceptable to have a petite girl than a petite boy, so you may not get as much crap as I have. Or you may have a better ped. than ours!

[Lucky]

Even though I knew that the growth charts are based on an average, and not for every baby, I worried about ds1's weight all the time.

He was at or below the 5th percentile for weight, but around the 50th for height, until he was nearly 3. He breastfed until he was 4 yo.

so...I wanted to chime in to all of the mamas with lean, bfing babies and toddlers.

Now, ds1 is 6 yo. He's a strong, limber,& healthy boy. He has such a healthy diet, and appetite, it's hard to believe I ever worried he wasn't gaining enough. For him, he was getting exactly the right amount.

[l_olive]

Thanks for your welcomes and kind words.

And I'm another one of those with a little guy under the 5th percentile on those horrible charts. Really freaked me out when he was younger. Now I ignore it completely. But heck, now that he's two, they weigh 'em with their clothes and shoes on! That extra pound meant that the doc wasn't on my case about it for the first time in his life.

Thought about sewing weights into the seams, but that would be wrong... lol

--Olive

[EviesMom]

Just wanted to say hi...

I lurk here occassionally, since my dd is only 10 months old, but I'm leaning toward CLW. She eats so little solids (though she has a lot of fun with them before the tiny bit that goes in her mouth) that I know we'll be nursing for a long long time!

I actually don't have a "low on the charts baby". She was only 6 lbs. 6 oz. when she was born, but she shot up on the charts and was nearly 20 lbs. at her 9 mo. visit. She's a little pudge girl: but she's starting to lean out now that she's starting to walk and nurse like this... : except I have to sit on my knees, but man, she loves the "toddle-by-nursing"

[B52Bombshell]

Originally Posted by l_olive

...
Thought about sewing weights into the seams, but that would be wrong... lol
--Olive

Hee hee! I'd thought about doing that, too! Or putting weights in his diaper. I'd even asked him to wait to poop until we got home from the dr's office... he never complied, though.

BTW - he "fell off" the charts & the ped. got really concerned when he was about 15mos old...I guess it didn't help that he was a big baby when he was born - 8lbs 14oz.

OK, I'm done hi-jacking this thread! Thanks y'all, for letting us know we're not the only ones. I'm sure this weight thing is bound to be an issue in the future since more & more lil' ones aren't being forced to wean at an early age.

[oldcrunchymom]

I mostly lurk in this forum since my kids are older and weaned. My son and daughter nursed until ages 4 and 5, respectively. They tandem nursed for almost 2 years (7.5 years straight of breastfeeding for me). And to think I only planned to nurse for 6 months and then wean. HA. :LOL They were actually tandem nursing within 10 minutes of my daughter's homebirth.

Since my son is highly gifted, he was reading and writing long before he was weaned. My favorite fun fact to tell people who use the "When kids can ask for it they're too old" line.