During all the craziness of finding out I was pregnant and my thyroid going haywire. Elise and I passed one very important milestone.
I made the decision to stop nursing her. I think I had been ready for awhile, but just didn't know how to stop.
When Elise was diagnosed at 12 months old, I was still nursing her 4 times a day. When we met with the dietitians in the hospital, I was told I would have to either stop, or start pumping and feed her my milk that way. I had just put away all my pumping supplies, and there was no way I was going to do it. I hated that contraption.
But there was no way I was going to stop nursing my baby just because they said so. She was still MY baby and I knew what was best for her. I could not cure her diabetes, but I could offer her one thing that nourished and soothed her.
It was hard to know how much she was getting, but we soon figured that it only affected her BG by about 30 points. I don't know why, but it always seemed to work out.
Then, one by one, I dropped a session, until only the bedtime one remained. When I found out I was pregnant, I knew I couldn't continue to nurse her (for my own health reasons). It took her about a week to get used to it, and her tears just about broke my heart. But life goes on and so did she.
I'm glad I made the decision to nurse her as long as I did. It's not for everyone, but it worked for us. I've said it before in another post about nursing, but I think it has contributed to Elise's overall good health. To this day, she has never even had an ear infection. And when we all came down with the Swine Flu in September, she fared the best out of all three of us!
It was definitely a sad milestone for me, but hopefully if all goes as planned, I'll be back at it again in September!
10 months ago
Good for you Joanne sticking to your guns and doing what you thought was right.
ReplyDeleteHope the "girls" enjoy the break...at least for a little while:)
Good for you for sticking to it for so long!! I stopped nursing when I found out I was pregnant too. It's just more than I can handle! And sorry I never responded to your comment-- I am pregnant and there was no official announcement on my blog. :P But I'm due in July with another boy! Poor Charlotte may not ever get a sister!
ReplyDeleteHUGS to you, my friend. I know how hard those tears can be. Well, done...you'll be surprised how quickly you'll remember come September!
ReplyDeleteYou gave your daughter such a gift Joanne. Congrats on your pregnancy and on the milestones you have created. You surely have many more ahead. Hope you enjoy the next few months of your pregnancy.
ReplyDeleteI'm sure it was heartbreaking! I know it had to be so hard. Good for you for doing what was right for you, and not letting the world tell you otherwise!
ReplyDeleteKudos to you for doing what you knew was best! I nursed all three of my kids, and I remember well the emotions and tears that come with the end. I'm looking forward to your baby news and photos in September!!! :)
ReplyDeleteYes good for you Joanne drs are not always the best decision makers for our lives indeed .
ReplyDeleteBitter sweet Joanne. I love that you stuck with what your believed was best. I would have done the same thing. I loved nursing my babes too...
ReplyDeleteHugs
Amen. Doctors know a lot, but you know your daughter best. I would love it if you added me to your blogroll...
ReplyDeleteYou are such a trooper. I lasted a year and then desperately wanted my body back. And now... I'm back at it again, getting used to the leakage, the sharp pains of latching on and the tenderness if ANYTHING so much as looks at me wrong... but it's totally worth it despite all of that.
ReplyDeleteAwww....sweet Elise. It can be a tough transition, but it sounds like you're doing great and so is she!! So glad you're giving your body a little bit of a break!
ReplyDeleteGood for you, Joanne! That is awesome! I don't plan on nursing JAke for that long, but I do agree that nursing contributed to my kiddos overall good health too. Both Abby and JAke have never had ear infections as well, and I had swine flu when he was a couple months old and Jake nver got it even though I was coughing all over him for a week before I realized I had it. Do you think you will nurse baby #2 that long?
ReplyDelete