I'm currently on my 3rd breastfeed journey and feel so lucky and privileged that I've been able to feed all my babies. It is the most incredible thing to watch your baby thrive and the bond that is created is beautiful. It still absolutely amazes me that each of my children grew purely because of my milk. Every day I'm in awe of the female body.
I breastfed my first baby for 18 months, he was a real fussy baby, wanted fed constantly and because he was born in lockdown i just thought that it was normal. He would wake every 1.5 to 2 hours and it was relentless. Fast forward to 7 months in and I finally plucked up the courage to reach out to someone to seek support. Although I had loved feeding my son, I knew something wasn't quite right. With the support of a member of the health visiting team, we cut out dairy to see if this made a difference. Giving your all to feeding your child is one thing, but to give up all the pizza and cadburys chocolate was another. I knew it was only for a short time and I wanted to continue our journey. The difference was incredible, and he was thriving with no sore tummies. I still have oat milk in my coffee even to this day. There are so many fantastic websites with amazing recipes. One of my go to bakes even now is a dairy free lemon drizzle cake from Janes Patisserie!
I had a few month break between finishing feeding my 1st and falling pregnant with my second. Despite the intolerance, my first latched perfectly from that very first feed.
I breastfed my 2nd until she was13 months ( I was 4 months pregnant and couldn't give anymore of myself) but i thought i was an expert and just wanted to get home to my little boy. Also crazy sidenote, she was born with a tooth! When we got home from the hospital, I got lazy, and so did she. I think because i had a 2 and a half year old around i wasn't taking the time to help her latch correctly. This resulted in cracked nipples, wow! We took a bit of time correcting this, lots of unlatching and relaching but we got there and it was a beautiful journey.
I am 4 months in with my 3rd breastfeeding journey and it's the dream. I definitely learned lots of lessons from the other journeys, which has resulted in a easy stress free time. This is our last so I feel I won't want to stop, it really is the most amazing thing. Breastfeeding journey isn't easy, but it is incredible. And they are all different, even when you think you have it sussed. Please reach out to someone if you're struggling, don't give up 🩷
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