Twinfo

Suddenly it’s happening all over again, terrier jaws meet nipples - Ruby has one gert big tooth bursting out of her top gum which quite frankly chafes like hell! And I seem to recall twatting on about the same subject, that is feeding and pain, almost exactly one year ago. So it’s with some regret that I’m winding down, just over one year of (almost) trouble free feeding, bar the first crazy 8 weeks or so. 

As I prize them off and sneak in the silicone teat (actually they love the bottle, humph!), I recall planning on a year, or at least to try for a year and then to see. However - what I planned and what I feel now seem to be just a little at odds. And I think breastfeeding mothers the world over will totally understand what I’m on about. Actually, if truth be known, I don’t want to stop just yet at all, but I think it will have to be.

Because although with these babies I have no desire to go on for much much longer (in practical terms it’s become very tricky), I’m afraid I’m going to stick my neck out here and say that I’m not one of these prudes who’s shocked by extreme (as Emma would say), or extended, breastfeeding. Nor do I hold with the view that this complete food, natural and unmodified, offers no nutritional benefit for babies over the age of one. The studies that aim to prove this commissioned by formula companies perhaps? But what business is it after all, of anyone other than the involved parties, whether or not a large baby or small child tucks in to a nip of most delicious elixir of breast a couple of times a day? 2 year olds, 3 year olds, 4, 5? Don’t mind me - fill your boots! Free food can’t be bad after all. And your mummy gets to eat all the pies.

If I’m honest, I think we might be designed to breastfeed for two years or longer. Which is what I’ve done, in a way, but condensed into one year, shared between two. And when you consider that at my lactating peak I was producing at least 1.5l of milk (pumped volume: actual volume usually assumed to be significantly higher) each 24 hours, I’d say there’s a fair chance I’ve met my quota and some…

This entry was posted on Sunday, March 9th, 2008 at 10:08 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.