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I'm doing a project for a class and was hoping you wonderful moms could give me a hand. Feel free to answer any questions you'd like.
Why did you choose to breastfeed?
How long did you breast feed before introducing other foods into your baby’s diet?
How long did you wait to stop breastfeeding?
Did you have any struggles breastfeeding? What would have made the experience easier?
Would you have changed anything about your breastfeeding experience looking back?
Why did you choose to breastfeed?
For me, the number one reason was that it is so beneficial for my little one to have breastmilk both for her health and for bonding! I also liked the possible side effect of losing my post partum weight faster!
How long did you breast feed before introducing other foods into your baby’s diet?
She was close to 6 months old.
How long did you wait to stop breastfeeding?
We're at 6 months and still going strong! Hoping to go for at least a year if not longer!
Did you have any struggles breastfeeding? What would have made the experience easier?
The first two days I had blisters on one nipple due to my little-one's latch. She was 5lbs5oz at birth so it was a little more challenging for her to get a good latch. Luckily I was surrounded by great nurses and a lactation consultant who helped me correct the problem before things got worse.
I also had issues a few weeks later with my baby because she was eating wayyyy too much which was causing her a great deal of discomfort as she was gaining a lot of weight too fast. Againg, easy access to a lactation consultant was the key for us to remedy the problem!
Would you have changed anything about your breastfeeding experience looking back
So far I wouldnt change a thing. I love breastfeeding and I am so happy I have stuck it out even when it was a little uncomfortable or challenging! Actually, i'm typing all of this with one hand as my DD nurses! lol
Why did you choose to breastfeed? i did not see any other good option for my child
How long did you breast feed before introducing other foods into your baby’s diet?
6 months
How long did you wait to stop breastfeeding?
we weaned at 34 months
Did you have any struggles breastfeeding? What would have made the experience easier?
not much, i had an infected blocked duct in my nipple at 3 weeks, but saw a breast surgeon and pumped on that side until it subsided. I pumped at work and that was hard, but more annoying than anything else. i pumped for 19 months.
Would you have changed anything about your breastfeeding experience looking back? not really. maybe night wean earlier (we did at 22 months.)
Why did you choose to breastfeed? I just knew I wanted to
How long did you breast feed before introducing other foods into your baby’s diet?4 months or so
How long did you wait to stop breastfeeding? 9 months for the first still nursing at 12 months
Did you have any struggles breastfeeding? What would have made the experience easier?No struggles, but the pain in the beginning was awful
Would you have changed anything about your breastfeeding experience looking back? I would have kept going with the first.
Why did you choose to breastfeed? health benefits, psychologically and physically i didn't see any other option.
How long did you breast feed before introducing other foods into your baby’s diet? tried to at 6 months, but my son wasn't interested so we didn't really start until 7.5 months.
How long did you wait to stop breastfeeding? just passed the 1 year mark and plan on continuing.
Did you have any struggles breastfeeding? i got severe nipple and ductal thrush after my son was on antibiotics at birth and no one warned me it could happen. it tooks me 2.5 months of treatment and pumping, nipple guards in my bra, etc. it was very painful.
What would have made the experience easier? despite going to a breastfeeding class before birth, i think knowing more that breastfeeding isn't as instinctual as people think would have made me feel less helpless at the beginning when my son had a poor latch on top of the bad thrush.
Would you have changed anything about your breastfeeding experience looking back? of course i wish i never would have experienced thrush, but the fact that i stuck through it and never once thought of NOT breastfeeding makes me very proud of myself.
__________________ thank you tasha_mae for my adorable siggy!
Why did you choose to breastfeed? I chose BFing because it's better for babies digestive tracts than formula. Both my husband and I have a lot of digestion issues, so I wanted to make sure my little one had a good start in life. It's also the way we're supposed to feed babies, so...
How long did you breast feed before introducing other foods into your baby’s diet? About 5 1/5 months.
How long did you wait to stop breastfeeding? Still breastfeeding here at 10 1/2 months!
Did you have any struggles breastfeeding? What would have made the experience easier? Gabe was a big cluster-feeder. He'd stay latched on for hours and hours and I didn't really have any family support. Everyone kept offering bottles and I wish someone would have said, hey, that's all normal baby behavior!
Would you have changed anything about your breastfeeding experience looking back? Only that I wouldn't have allowed visitors to stay at our house right after I delivered.
Why did you choose to breastfeed? Human milk for Human babies.
How long did you breast feed before introducing other foods into your baby’s diet? Won't introduce until 6 months and we will be doing BLW.
How long did you wait to stop breastfeeding? Won't stop until she wants to.
Did you have any struggles breastfeeding? What would have made the experience easier? No real struggles, just an occasional supply drop with AF.
Would you have changed anything about your breastfeeding experience looking back? I wish someone would have told me to pump after every feeding when my milk came in.
Why did you choose to breastfeed? I knew it was best for my baby. I was formula fed as a baby and I was always sick. I wanted to give my baby the best start possible.
How long did you breast feed before introducing other foods into your baby’s diet? About 5 months
How long did you wait to stop breastfeeding? Nicholas is 9 1/2 months, we are still breastfeeding. I plan to stop at 18-24months.
Did you have any struggles breastfeeding? What would have made the experience easier? Yes, Nicholas had problems at birth and we didnt meet until he was 6hours old. He fed once and had nothing but troubles latching after that. The hospital also gave him formula without asking. He had latch problems for about 1.5 to 2 months until he finally stopped needing the nipple shield.
Of course it couldnt be helped that he had problems in the beginning, but it would have been easier if they didnt give him formula. They were also stressing me out big time about hurrying up to get him to latch and feed because he was jaundice.
Would you have changed anything about your breastfeeding experience looking back? I'd have been much more stern about no formula with the nurses. I'd also not have pumped so much.
Why did you choose to breastfeed?
Best thing for baby! How long did you breast feed before introducing other foods into your baby’s diet?
Will probably start around 4 months. Started around that time with first DD How long did you wait to stop breastfeeding?
My first goal is to make it 6 months. We'll see how it goes after that! With first DD, I lasted 6 weeks pumping. I couldnt get the first one to latch for anything! Did you have any struggles breastfeeding? What would have made the experience easier?
My first DD did not latch well. I was also a nervous wreck about not knowing how much she was getting at any one feeding. I did not have any support with her, except for my mom.
With my second, she was a great nurser from the start! Even despite getting fed formula before they let me see her (her blood sugar was low) and having to supplement in the first few weeks of her life due to jaundice. This time, I had the support of my husband (I divorced the first one and remarried) and my sister, who had been nursing for about 6 months when my DD was born. Would you have changed anything about your breastfeeding experience looking back?
I would have tried harder with the first, looked for some outside help and assistance. This message board has also been a lifesaver!
Why did you choose to breastfeed?
Bonding. Health. Financial. Ease.
How long did you breast feed before introducing other foods into your baby’s diet? I plan to wait at least 6 months.
How long did you wait to stop breastfeeding? Plan to bf until 12 months at least
Did you have any struggles breastfeeding?
Every struggle there is! Bad latch, tongue tie, not enough milk, then too much milk, stripped nipples...
What would have made the experience easier?
Maybe the dr or LC noticing the tongue tie issue earlier on? I think that had a domino effect on bad breastfeeding problems.
Would you have changed anything about your breastfeeding experience looking back? Probably would have been more insistent on getting help with bf'ing probs and made the dr looks closer. It took 9 weeks to get her to nurse. The rest of the time I was pumping 8 to 10 times a day to feed her. Overwhelming!
__________________
Jade Ja Kang
1-18-12
10:52 a.m.
18.5 inches
6lb 10 oz
Why did you choose to breastfeed? Because I was breastfed as a baby I wanted to do that for my kids!
How long did you breast feed before introducing other foods into your baby’s diet? 6 months
How long did you wait to stop breastfeeding? We went for 22 months and would have went longer but I got pregnant with my son.
Did you have any struggles breastfeeding? What would have made the experience easier? In the beginning my daughter loved to suck. I was her pacifier and no one told me it wasn't normal for a baby to nurse for 90 minutes every couple of hours until I was so sore I didn't want to feed her for a while. After we healed my nipples, I had gallbladder issues and was hospitalized for 5 days.
Would you have changed anything about your breastfeeding experience looking back? Nope! I loved breastfeeding and can't wait to start over with my son in a couple of weeks!
Why did you choose to breastfeed? Because it is simply the perfect food for my baby. Plus I am cheap and don't want to buy formula. Plus I am stubborn and want to prove that I can do it. Plus my body is completely unable to *get* pregnant, so I want to prove to myself that my body is capable of doing something right!!
How long did you breast feed before introducing other foods into your baby’s diet? I EBF for almost 7 months before starting BLW.
How long did you wait to stop breastfeeding? Still going at 8 months. Want to make it to a year if he will let us. Then I will see where we are. I actually can't see me choosing to stop BFing him.
Did you have any struggles breastfeeding? What would have made the experience easier? So much pain at the beginning. I really wish my pediatrician had an LC on staff and there at all times to stop in at every baby visit to check on the BFing mom.
I also wish that the docs would not stress so much about how quickly a baby gains his birth weight back. DS was born via planned c/s and was SOOOOO bloated. He lost a ton of weight that first 24 hours. It took almost 4 weeks to get back to his starting weight. The pedi was pressuring me to supplement. I started to supplement with pumped BM, but noticed a marked change in his latch and willingness to BF. So I stopped supplementing. I truly believe that if I had continued to supplement, our BFing relationship would have been doomed.
Would you have changed anything about your breastfeeding experience looking back? The only regret I have is that I stopped giving bottles at about 4 months. Now he refuses to take one. I wish I had kept that up so that it would be easier for me to be away from him for an evening!
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~Anne
Lew, 1, DSD Lauren, 18, and Chuck, 4
