Nursing Update

I suddenly realized I have not updated on the "nursing" situation for a while. I hope this doesn't make anyone uncomfortable, but for me it's a nice way to document this as Piper gets older. It will be nice for both Piper and Morgan to be able to look back on posts from their early days and see just what was going on.

Amazingly, I'm still nursing!! Piper is a week away from ten months and I'm still nursing her about four times a day. It's become SO much easier now that she's eating solid food. That has helped supplement her calories, so she also no longer needs as much formula supplement. She's been averaging about 10 ounces a day, but mostly less than that. So...I'm guessing that she's getting maybe the same amount from me. I know it's not a lot, but apparently it's really still so beneficial for her to get all the healthy antibodies she can get from me. I may try to reduce the feedings gradually to two or three a day. I tried dropping the one before her nap a few weeks ago and encountered quite a bit of protest. I think I'll try again soon though.

She still really seems to enjoy nursing, but she's getting really "pinchy" lately, especially on my arms. While nursing, she reaches right over and grabs a piece of skin in the inside of my upper arm with her index finger and thumb! I know it's great for her to build her strength in that "pincer grasp," but OUCH! I'd rather it be on her finger foods and not me. Oh ,and one of her upper front teeth finally busted through the gums today. That was a long time coming! We'll see that affects things, but so far so good.

The plan is still to nurse through a year (as long as there is no major biting or other issues that mess with things), and then see how I feel. As I am still taking domperidone four times a day, so I am now looking forward to the day that I don't have to wake up at 1:00 AM to take pills. For now I am enjoying the (non pinching) cuddle time I get with my girl and see what happens.

Nursing Update - I think I've been "Lapped"

I'm not sure this is a good analogy, but it's sort of how I feel. I think about a week ago Piper overtook me and I've been "lapped." Until then I'd been killing myself to keep up with her, but my supply lost out. She's suddenly taking more formula at bedtime and during the night to get to sleep. I still don't supplement much during the day, but feedings are frequent. I just haven't been able to keep up with her anymore. This is a crucial time (between 4 and 5 months) that babies really ramp up the volume of their feedings. I'd already been wondering how I could possibly feed her more often to increase my supply. I was feeding her 10-12 times a day at that point. Yikes!

This is bittersweet, but possibly also a blessing in disguise. I'd hoped to make it to six months...I still may, but at this point I'm just taking her lead. I suspect she may migrate more towards the bottle (more reliable at this point) and then my own milk supply will just slowly diminish. Hopefully I can keep a few feedings for a while, but weaning off very slowly will be the best for both of us, physically and emotionally. I'm not actively "weaning," but if that's the direction it goes I'll just go along with it.

This is bittersweet because as hard as it's been I've loved this bonding time with little Piper. I really felt like I missed out on this with Morgan, so I've cherished being able to have another chance to experience it. I think I've mentioned this before, but I've been told that this is a bit of a "heartbreak" when it ends for all Moms, no matter how long they nurse. It's a loss that needs to be "grieved" as well.

As I mentioned it's also a blessing in disguise. I've begun to realize that this will be good timing to take advantage of the "freedom" not nursing will allow me. I need to start working with Morgan on potty training and other developmental areas. I've known for a while that too much of my mental energy has been spent with continuing nursing (or figuring out how to continue). It's time to move on. Morgan thrived on formula and Piper will continue to do so as well. David has also mentioned that he is willing to take over some night feedings on the weekends when I am ready. Did I mentioned how great my husband is and what a great Daddy he is?! Who volunteers to do this?! He loves being a big part of his babies' lives. Such a blessing! I'll also be able to focus a little more time on myself by making it back to the gym more often. I found during my pregnancy that this really boosted my energy and mental well-being. Now that I am a Mom of two this is essential!! Morgan does well in the childcare there. It is good for her to have time with other kids. Piper has been a few times now and I expect she'll do fine too.

Overall, I know I've done my best. My Lactation Consultant told me last week, "if all my patients worked half as hard as you have, I wouldn't have much of a job." That made me feel good. This is the same woman who told me with Morgan "I just don't think you have the patience." I remembered that. Well I had a leg up with Piper as she tried harder as well, but I knew I wanted to give it my all. I know I have done everything I can to nurse Piper as long as possible. Now it's time to slowly move towards the next chapter. Thanks for keeping up with my "saga." I hope it hasn't been TMI, but it's helpful to record my thoughts on it. I'll keep you in the loop on how things wind down in the next few weeks or however long it lasts.

Nursing Update

In case you were wondering, I thought I'd give an update of where we are on the nursing front. We are doing fairly well! I say "fairly" because it is still not easy because I will probably never have a full supply. I find that I still daydream about what it would be like to have a plentiful supply for Piper and how much easier it would be. But...then I have to pat myself on the back and tell myself that I've done so much better than I did with Morgan and we are fortunate we are in a place where I can nurse Piper at all.

The difference is that Piper wants to nurse and for whatever reason, Morgan couldn't have cared less. The Lactation Consultants call those babies "happy to starve." Luckily there is formula and the bottle for them and they will thrive that way. I do remember that Morgan took FOREVER to finish her bottle though. I think she also must have had an "immature suck" as they call it. It happens.

So, we are still supplementing about 6 oz total a day and that is just after the nursing sessions in the early evening and right before bed. It's nice to make up just a 6 oz bottle per day (that is used across a few feedings)...the formula lasts a loooong time. Piper is almost 3 months old. Between 2 and 4 months they gradually increase their volume to about 35-40 ounces a day total, then stay pretty consistent from 4-6 months maxing out at 40 ounces. So, the next 4-5 weeks will be key to see if we can keep the nursing going. I may have to increase the supplementing a bit, but I hope not much. We've stayed at this amount for a long time, so I hope to stay there and have my own milk supply increase. It's been working so far. Her weight checks have been good, consistently gaining about 5 ounces a week. Usually the rule is about 1 oz a day, but 1/2 an ounce per day for a mostly breastfed babies is considered OK. So, she's right inthe middle.

We have her 4-month pediatrician appointment set up for right after Christmas. The LC said to come in one time in-between now and then to make sure we don' t have any "surprises." So, I think that means they are confident that we are doing well and they are not concerned. I'd say its good news all around!