Ouch. Double ouch. Over the last few weeks, we gradually replaced nursing or pumping sessions with formula. After nine months of 99% mama's milk, the challenges of pumping for an hour a day while still getting work done, combined with other factors, made me decide to move Axel from the boob to the bottle and sippy cup. On Monday morning, Axel nursed for the last time. It's been 48 hours without milke expression and damn does my chest hurt.
I admire - and envy - those mothers who are able to stick with it. Just 36% of mothers make it to six months. I was lucky enough to have the support of family, a great lacation consultant, a private place to use the dreaded pump at work, and a body/baby that could make it work, with some guidance and training. If I were at home with Axel, I think we'd still be nursing. I've got mixed feelings about it all - the working, the mothering, staying at home, boobs and bottles and babies. Formula is seriously expensive. Thought I hated nursing in public, and could never get comfortable with the possibility of showing that much skin to strangers even if it was for the nourishment of my child, it (after lots of work in the first four months) was easy to roll out of bed, wander sleepily down to Axel's room, scoop him up and bring him back to bed with me for an early morning nursing/cat napping session. But it's also easy to hand Axel a sippy cup to drink from/bang on the floor while I make dinner. He doesn't seem to miss nursing.
As I said, it hurts. Seriously.
Read More...
