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| Ready to eat, Mom! |
What I'm talking about is why breastfeeding works for me.
- It helped shed the baby weight - I gained 25 pounds with this pregnancy and I lost 20 of that in the hospital. But the rest of it just fell right off. I was back in my pre-pregnancy jeans just 5 days after giving birth.
- Convenience - In the middle of the night I just unclip my nursing tank and feed Lyric before she can fully wake herself up. If I had to prepare a bottle? She would be hysterical by the time I had it ready for her. In public it's just so easy to throw on my nursing cover and feed her wherever we are. No worrying about bottles to clean, hot water or accidentally spilling her food (I'm a klutz remember?).
- Bonding - Even though those middle of the night feedings interrupted my sleep, they were (and still are) my very favorite times with my daughter. She's cuddly and sleepy and I love the way her little body curls around mine and her hand finds a spot to rest on my chest. <3
- It's FREE - nuff said.
- Incentive to watch what I eat - I know I feel better eating healthy foods but that doesn't always keep me from going overboard with the sweets. The knowledge that what I'm eating helps make nutritious milk makes me think twice before I have a plate of cookies for dinner.
- BUT I can eat like I'm still pregnant! - Breastfeeding torches calories (about 500/day) and I can definitely tell that my hunger levels are still in overdrive. I love it - when I was pregnant and super hungry I never worried about the weight gain because it was 'for the baby'. Well, now that I'm breastfeeding it's the same way. I'm going to miss being able to eat those extra calories!
- Appreciation for my body - I still can't believe I made a person. I grew and nourished Lyric for 9 months and my body still continues to produce the perfect food for her to grow big and strong. Whenever women talk about being super anxious/nervous about their ability to give birth or to breastfeed I always tell them their body was made for it. Just have faith, relax and let nature take it's course. If it works, it works - if it doesn't, it doesn't but it's truly amazing what the female body can do.
Any other nursing moms have something to add? I'd love to hear from you.
unless they really can't breast feed...I JUDGE HARDCORE if they don't. LIKE HARDCORE. I'm a bad person with no kid.
ReplyDeletethere are many benefits to feeding your baby breast milk, Those all are amazing benefits, yes its a nature thing to children s happybenefits of breastfeeding
ReplyDeleteAs one who tried and failed at nursing, it's hard not to feel judged by those who manage to do it so easily. My son was a big enough baby and I didn't produce enough milk that he was basically starving. I wasn't about to let him go on like that until my milk supply came in, so yes, he was a formula-fed baby. It wasn't for lack of trying. I pumped constantly when he wasn't trying to feed, just in the hopes of getting more milk. It didn't work. He's almost 4 now, and I still carry the guilt and feel like a failure as a mom about the fact that I couldn't do that for him.
ReplyDeleteRachel, thank you for your post. I had a 9.5 lb baby and I too had to supplement formula at the hospital for my hungry baby. There is way too much guilt and judgement over the breastfeeding issue especially by people that don't have children. At the end of the day, we have happy healthy children that are loved and nourished and not the least bit concerned if their milk came from a breast or a bottle. As a bottle fed baby myself, I can say that mothers have enough guilt, lets not pass judgement when at the end of the day, we all do the best we can.
ReplyDeleteAnd I should point out, I probably am way too sensitive about it--My son is happy, he's healthy, and he could care less about how he ate as an infant. It's something that I had hoped I could do for him, and it just didn't work for us. If I have another child, I'll certainly try again, though!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the dialogue ladies! I have a friend who was in a similar situation (couldn't BF due to breast reduction surgery) & she has a big, healthy, 14 month old boy who has always been in the 98th percentile! Like I said, no judgement, we all do what is best for our children.
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