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<div>Originally Posted by <strong>steph</strong></div>
<div style="font-style:italic;">While it can be hard to reconcile the sometimes difficult realities we have to face as parents versus our idealized desires, in the end we just have to accept what we've been given. As someone who wanted to physically experience pregnancy for 14 yrs. - studied midwifery, and was enthralled by the whole physical aspect of pregnancy and birth, not being able to maintain a pregnancy or give birth was a hard let-down to say the leaste. But, for me, being able to nurse was the one thing I held on to. I must admit I've done it as much for myself and my own needs as my daughters. It's something I've worked very hard at - despite how challenging it is. And it is challenging! I've always maintained that adoptive breastfeeding - or using a supplementer regardless of the cause, gives you all of the hardest parts of both bfeeding and bottle feeding, yet none of the conveniences that both of those have. Still, if I was ever to have another, I'd do it all over again. It can be so amazingly sweet.</div>
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<img alt="" class="inlineimg" src="http://www.mothering.com/discussions/images/smilies/wave.gif" style="border:0px solid;" title="wave"> Me too, me too! I was also training to be a midwife when we began to think we'd have a less simple route to parenting than giving birth. We are in the adoption process for dc number two and I will definitely be tandem nursing...woohoo! I am also doing the Newman-Goldfarb protocal for making more milk this time around, even though I don't ever do pharmaceuticals. If I can have fewer milk chores, it will be way worth it.<br><br>
I've been using the Lact-Aid for two and a half years...we switched from homemade goat's milk formula to plain milk (either raw goat milk or org. whole cows milk) at about 22 months, even though dd was eating well...of course our formula got simpler as she got older. I now only supplement at naptime, since I don't want dd to get much of my own milk as I start taking birth control pills (estrogen, yikes!) on the protocal. She doesn't nurse much these days, between being too busy and me keeping my shirt on since it's winter.<br><br>
On modesty, I nursed all the time for dd's first 6 months. She had some weight to gain and nursed all the time. I am also I social person, so we nursed at the library (baby storytime, all the babies were nursing), walking around the farm market in the sling, at music festivals, etc. I got pretty bold, with dd ready to nurse, I could usually tune out the folks around me...I've since heard so many encouraging remarks (I obviously live in a more BF friendly place) about how comfortable I made others feel about what I was up to...I had many conversations with little ones about my "contraption."<br><br>
Oh yeah...traveling. We used the cooler thing Lact-Aid has for a while, but it's too big for an afternoon outing and too uninsulated for big trips. For short trips we use a smaller evenflo cooler someone got free at the hospital with a frozen juice bottle (plastic odwalla type with water inside, don't fill all the way!) and we use our little igloo cooler for big trips...you never know how many bags you'll need on a flight, in traffic, etc. The cooler is also handy as they get older for snacks that benefit from cooling.<br><br>
Big hugs to ward off the clueless comments, and kudos to you for giving your child the many benefits of nursing.
