How long to nurse?

[traveler71]

My DD is 5 mos. old and primarily breastfed. I started supplementing with a bottle of formula about every other day when I ran into some supply issues after I went back to work at 3.5 mos., and a storm took out our freezer for a few days and I lost my frozen supply. (While traumatic at first, I've now come to terms with it and it certainly makes things easier to be able to throw in the formula occasionally.)

My goal was 6 mos. of nursing. Pumping at work is a challenge - I have lots of meetings and conference calls, and also travel about once a week (although not usually overnight). However, I'm considering trying to keep this going... I so enjoy our special time together.

Have seen multiple people on this board mention that they initially were trying for 6 mos, but are now extending it. I know the AAP recommends 1 year, but seems like most people I know only aimed for 6 mos. What made you decide to press on? I'm not familiar with the medical literature in this area - is there strong support for extending from 6 mos to a year (for the health of the baby), even if you're supplementing?

What about a 1/2-way solution - eliminating the daytime pumping but seeing if my milk supply will allow me to keep nursing in the morning and evening only? I just wonder how much health benefit for the baby there is for this, or if it just makes me feel better...

So many of you are so knowledgable - I appreciate your thoughts!

[tarahsolazy]

Breastmilk is better nutrition for the baby in the first year, because it is constantly adjusting itself in amount, caloric density, and immune factors based on the age of the baby. Your milk today and your milk next week are different substances! The more BM a baby gets, the better their protection against cold and diarrhea viruses in the first year. In fact, BM is always better than formula for babies (except with a few rare metabolic diseases) because it is so specially engineered for their needs. Look at www.kellymom.com for more info on breastfeeding benefits past 6mo. It is also a wonderful attachment promoting relationship to have with your baby, if both you and she are still enjoying it. I know about the pumping, I am a doctor in an NICU and am running around all day, in meetings, family conferences, rounds, procedures, etc.. I think that if the pumping is just impossible to do, or you just can't stand it, your half-way solution may work very well indeed. Lots of moms nurse for 2 or 3 years, and only a few times a day for the last year or so of nursing. THeir supplies accomodate. Stopping pumping and BF when you are home may work well, and as an alternative to complete weaning, would be great. (I would try to solely nurse on weekends or days off to boost the supply) And as to your "makes me feel better" comment, that's a great reason to keep BF if you and your DD still enjoy it, it makes you feel happy, or more connected, after coming home at night. I plan to nurse my DS for at least 2 years, unless he weans himself before that, to keep that connection since I'm away from him during the day. Pumping is a major PITA, though, I'm with you there.

[pritchettzoo]

I am a SAHM, so I can't help you with the pumping. Several moms on here pumped for over a year, so hopefully they'll see this and help you on that one.

You say you enjoy breastfeeding, so I would definitely keep it up. There is strong medical evidence for continuing past 6 months--your baby will continue to get antibodies from your breastmilk, even if cut back to mornings and evenings. The AAP recommends 1 year of breastfeeding, but the WHO (World Health Organization) recommends 2 years. I don't know how long we'll go (10 mos so far!), but I plan on continuing until DD self-weans.

This page has more information than you could ever need ;) :
http://www.kellymom.com/bf/start/prepare/bf-benefits.html

Good luck!

Anna

[jbowman]

I think that Tarah and Anna gave you excellent advice. Definitely check out the websites that were suggested.

We just passed the 7-month mark of BF and are still going strong. There are many reasons I have chosen to continue to BF: health benefits, bonding, and frankly, the ease of it! The milk is always available, KWIM?

You know what is best for you and your baby. I wouldn't let others influence your decision (I, too, know women who stopped at 6 months and wondered why I would continue--my response, "Why wouldn't I?"). Give yourself permission to do what seems right for you and your daughter.

Good luck!

[Rachels]

The longer you nurse, the greater the health protections for you and your baby. The AAP rec is actually for a minimum of one year, and the WHO recommends at least two. In addition to all the health considerations, nursing works wonders during teething, stranger anxiety, early toddlerhood milestones, etc. The health benefits are not to be underestimated, either. You're doing a wonderful thing for your little one, and there's no reason to stop if you're enjoying nursing. Even if you're supplementing, every ounce of breastmilk she gets benefits her.

Here's a link that has helped me many times. It summarizes a lot of the reasons to nurse, some of which you were asking about. Worth a read!

http://promom.org/101/index.html


-Rachel
Mom to Abigail Rose
5/18/02

http://www.planetsmilies.com/smilies/character/2/character39.gif

"We have a secret in our culture...it's not that birth is painful, it's that women are strong!!" - Laura Stavoe Harm

[sntm]

ditto to everyone.

One other suggestion -- even if pumping is erratic and not always as often as it should be, that doesn't necessarily mean you should stop altogether. Even pumping once a day keeps your supply higher and would allow you to give a little EBM to your baby while you are gone.

I had terrible problems in our early days, which led me to downgrade our goals from 1 year to 6 weeks, then 6 months, then 1 year, and now
I'm also aiming for 2 years or more. The more I learn, the more I want to do it as long as possible. Plus, it is the sweetest cuddle time now and I love how Jack giggles and curls in to me to nurse.

My son is 13 1/2 months and I still pump 1 to 2 times a day. I've been lucky and worked hard and haven't used any formula, but even if I had, I would still be trying to breastfeed as long and as much as possible -- there are so many health and emotional advantages to it.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
shannon
not-even-pregnant-yet-overachiever
trying-to-conceive :)
PREGNANT! EDD 6/9/03
mama to Jack 6/6/03

[miki]

I originally had a goal of 6 months. That was when I anticipated I was going to go back to work and have to do the pumping. But as things worked out, DH found a new job and we relocated which necessitated me quitting my job while I was still on leave. We just decided with the move that I would stay at home with DD for a while. Since I'm at home, I changed my goal to 1 year. We're almost at 10 months. I really think that she has been healthier because of the BFing.

[hez]

I was kind of like Shannon (sntm) with my nursing goals early on. I thought maybe 4-6 months before the baby was born because that's what lots of my friends did. Then we had early trouble and I readjusted my goals several times. When, I got back to work at 4 months, my "90-10" goal was 6 months, "70-30" goal was 9 months, and my "50-50" goal was a year. Well, we got to 6 months, and we weren't ready to be done. We got to 9+ months and we're not ready to be done. I'm considering weaning at a year, but I still don't know if we'll be ready and that's perfectly OK with me.

I like all the health benefits, I like all the convenience (it was *fantastic* on vacation a couple weeks ago), I like all the cuddle time, I like the instant crying solution when needed... I have had multiple friends whose schedule didn't lend itself to pumping, and they still nursed at home. If I were ever in that situation, I would probably do the same thing. I never knew I would feel like this.

Good luck on finding the solution that works for you!

[nitaghei]

ITA with everyone else. I work full time outside the home, and still BF'g at 18 months. My original goal was 6 months, shrank to 12 weeks when we had serious nipple confusion, and I was pumping exclusively, and went to 1 year when those problems were resolved. But when DS turned one, I just couldn't see weaning. I pumped for about 14 months, and didn't need to supplement after the initial few weeks when we were having problems. But I do know women who did exactly what you're suggesting - supplementing during the day, but nursing otherwise - successfully.

In addition to what everyone else said in the previous posts, there are possibly some health benefits to you from extended BF'g. There is some evidence (not conclusive, just tentative), that BF'g for 18 months can reduce the risk of breast cancer for mom. Which is important to me, because I have more than one risk factor for breast cancer.

DS is almost weaned right now. We're down to a single session, and I'm conflicted about it. I will be sad when he weans (we're doing "don't offer, don't refuse"); but I need him to wean so I can start meds I need, none of which I can take while BF'g. Otherwise, I would have loved to continue BF'g until he was 2.

Nita
mom to Neel, January 2003
dog mom to a cocker and a PWD