Last week marked a milestone for me that a year ago I never really thought I'd reach--I've been breastfeeding my daughter for (over) a year now. Initially I made short goals to reach, first it was six weeks, then it was three months, then six months. Before we even made it to six months, I stopped making goals and shifted to the attitude of "we'll keep going as long as it's working" and over the last six months it's been working. I had never really thought about breastfeeding before my daughter was born, other than I wanted to try to make it work, so if you had asked me 18 months ago if I'd still be breastfeeding at a year, I probably would have guessed not.
When Fiona was first born, she latched on easily and didn't have much trouble nursing, but during the first couple of weeks I developed an oversupply where I would overwhelm and almost choke her sometimes. On top of that I'd get plugged ducts, which turned into mastitis once, both of which are very uncomfortable. There were a couple of times when I thought it'd be so much easier just to stop, but I always decided to wait it out a little longer. When I would stop to think about it, breastfeeding was just too convenient to stop entirely and I didn't really want to, I just wanted it to work a little easier. It took a little work and patience, but my supply finally equalized with her demand, which helped. Kellymom.com is a great resource that answered a lot of questions I had. All during this time I also had raging hormones that made me overly emotional (just ask my husband) and exaggerated my stress levels. Plus, although I didn't know it at the time, my daughter wasn't able to easily digest the diary proteins that were being transferred in my milk so she would be fussy and having trouble sleeping which just added to my stress. The first 3 months were the hardest, but sometime around June or July things settled into a routine and nursing became less stressful and more enjoyable.
Fixing the oversupply problem happened just as it was time for me to go back to work when I actually thought an oversupply would be useful for pumping since pumping is rarely as efficient as a baby. Luckily, my supply did not decrease significantly from pumping and I was able to provide enough milk for Fiona to drink while I was at work. I also had built up a stash from my previous oversupply that helped supplement any shortfalls. However, pumping at work presented another challenge, not to my body, but to my mind. At first it was easy to leave twice a day, for 30 minutes each, to pump, but as time went on, it became harder to make the time. I still did, but I'd stay later to make up the time and always ate lunch at my desk. My work's policy supports breastfeeding mothers and requires that I be given the time (without having to make it up), but my own work ethic wouldn't allow me to not make up any of it. So the first 6 months of pumping I went pretty religiously twice per day, but around November or December, I would miss a session some days, until it's gotten to the current situation, where I pump once a day, some days, and after last week not at all during the work day. I will not miss pumping at all.
So now the question comes up "when are you going to wean her?". My honest answer is, I don't know. I think our current situation is working. She drinks some almond milk and some breastmilk (from my ever decreasing stash) during the day as well as lots of water and solids. She still has problems digesting diary, but seems to like the almond milk. She still nurses when I'm at home, although with a reduced frequency. She's not ready to stop nursing (as evidenced by her willingness to pull up my shirt to get to the good stuff) and I'm not either.
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