why did you choose to BF the amount of time you did? how'd you come to that decision?

I wanted to breastfeed as long as DD would take it, but I never got my milk in so she was not getting what she needed and was loosing weight really bad from it! So I didnt even get the option to do it!!

With this baby Ill take natural supplements to try to boost my milk supply and Ill feed this baby as long as it will let me, or until I feel I can no longer do it!

I wanted to BF for at least a year because I felt it was best but I never wanted to BF more than 18 months. Both of my children pretty much weaned themselves from BFing. Madison just quit one day and Hayden just nursed less and less so I just stopped and he never missed it.

i just stumbled upon breastfeeding as an option while i was pregnant. I originally was going to formula feed because i had never really *thought* of breastfeeding. Its actually pretty sad that it's so hard to discover. but anyway, once i read the facts, how could i possibly have NOT decided to breastfeed? i have a list of 101 reasons to breastfeed handy in case anyone ever needs support (it sites different doctors, pedi's, WHO, AAP, etc). I knew it was going to be a major deciding factor in his life as well as mine, and i felt it was the natural thing to do.
Why have I chosen to bf for this long? well..i'm not done yet! lol i plan to nurse my son until he weans himself. I feel it would be selfish of me to take that comfort and nutrition away from him before he's ready. After a baby is a year old, the breastmilk becomes more concentrated and is JAM packed with nurtrients and anti-bodies, so i am looking forward to having an easy and pleasant way to give him his vitamins so to speak lol. I sometimes get upset when people say their body just couldnt do it because i feel de-valued. It is HARD work in the first few weeks/months, but it gets better if you just stick it out and remember what an amazing gift you are giving your child. But anyway, yeah, those are my answers! :) lol I really am so pleased with our (my sons and my) breastfeeding relationship, i feel so close to him and i can read him like a book. everyone always asks me if he EVER cries, and i think exlusive/extended breastfeeding has a lot to do with that. Are you pregnant? May i suggest La Leche League International!! they have awesome mother-to-mother forums and boat loads of information. Also kellymom.com is an amazing source! sorry if your not pregnant, I didnt really read your profile or signature yet lol! :goodvibes

okay, i just read your profile lol! congrats on the pregnancy!!! i'm pming you, hope you dont mind :)

i just stumbled upon breastfeeding as an option while i was pregnant. I originally was going to formula feed because i had never really *thought* of breastfeeding. Its actually pretty sad that it's so hard to discover. but anyway, once i read the facts, how could i possibly have NOT decided to breastfeed? i have a list of 101 reasons to breastfeed handy in case anyone ever needs support (it sites different doctors, pedi's, WHO, AAP, etc). I knew it was going to be a major deciding factor in his life as well as mine, and i felt it was the natural thing to do.
Why have I chosen to bf for this long? well..i'm not done yet! lol i plan to nurse my son until he weans himself. I feel it would be selfish of me to take that comfort and nutrition away from him before he's ready. After a baby is a year old, the breastmilk becomes more concentrated and is JAM packed with nurtrients and anti-bodies, so i am looking forward to having an easy and pleasant way to give him his vitamins so to speak lol. I sometimes get upset when people say their body just couldnt do it because i feel de-valued. It is HARD work in the first few weeks/months, but it gets better if you just stick it out and remember what an amazing gift you are giving your child. But anyway, yeah, those are my answers! :) lol I really am so pleased with our (my sons and my) breastfeeding relationship, i feel so close to him and i can read him like a book. everyone always asks me if he EVER cries, and i think exlusive/extended breastfeeding has a lot to do with that. Are you pregnant? May i suggest La Leche League International!! they have awesome mother-to-mother forums and boat loads of information. Also kellymom.com is an amazing source! sorry if your not pregnant, I didnt really read your profile or signature yet lol! :goodvibes

yeah i'm pregnant, and i'm definitely going to BF unless there are problems with my Bi-polar disorder or i can't produce enough milk to keep the baby satisfied. i also plan on BF-ing for at least a year

For me it was just the right thing to do. It didn't feel like something I had to decide on though. I went into the whol thing with the attitude that I wanted to bf but if it didn't work tht would be just fine as well. I know a few moms who were dead set on bf and couldn't and they were just heartbroken over it. Anyway, in Germany bf is just a very normal part of raising your kid. I plan to bf at least until Miss K is 12 months. After that I will leave it mostly up to her. I don't think I'd bf past 24months though

My plan with Ellie (while I was pregnant) was to nurse her until she got teeth :giggle I didnt even want her to have the chance to bite me! (my nipples are EXTREMELY sensitive!!) But I planned on pumping throughout as well as nursing while at home so, it really wouldnt matter honestly. But that didnt work out with her. But it is still my plan with my next one!

With my daughter I wasn't able to breastfeed exclusively and she completely stopped bf'ing when she was 3 months old. I felt really guilty for not being able to nurse her and I vowed that with my next child I would nurse exclusively. I have been nursing my son now for almost 11 months and it has been awesome! I love the special bond that we have and I love how convenient it is to not have to worry about having bottles and formula. I will continue to nurse him for as long as he still needs me :yes

I always shoot to bf for at least 6 months, and up to 12 months. I just think that's what's best for my kids (not to mention free!). After 12 months, they go on regular milk (I'm not really too keen on bf kids once they're over 1 year old, it's just not comfortable for me).

I bf Kat for 6 months, Cadence for 11 months, and hoping to go 12 with Kaylie. :)

I started out with Sylas with my plan being 6weeks since I had never made it that far before. After the 6 wks I said 6 months, then 9 months and now Im hoping to go a year. I made the goal because I felt like I cheated not just the older kids but myself as well for giving up and not trying harder.

I was hell bent on bfing my first for 6 months then I wanted to wean. I had poor supply and she was lactose intolerant, not to mention we had a very difficult time with the nursing. I nursed for a week, stopped then pumped for 2 weeks and discovered her intolerance. My supply was bad anyway so I just stopped. Couldn't have cut out dairy if I wanted too.

My second I really didn't care. I pumped for 3 weeks, she had 4.5 weeks of milk total. I had a great supply but I hate the sensation of something tugging my nipples. I was going to pump for 3 months but once dh went to work and I was left with two babies I couldn't keep up with it so I dried up.

yeah i'm pregnant, and i'm definitely going to BF unless there are problems with my Bi-polar disorder or i can't produce enough milk to keep the baby satisfied. i also plan on BF-ing for at least a year


the percentage of women who's bodies cant produce enough breastmilk is like itty bitty teeny weeny, i want to say like less than 3%, so dont worry too much about that lol!

the percentage of women who's bodies cant produce enough breastmilk is like itty bitty teeny weeny, i want to say like less than 3%, so dont worry too much about that lol!

yeah but there is a decent chance i'll be back on meds after the baby is born and depending on the meds that can greatly affect the quality of your supply

Call me 3% and I think that is a totally bias opinion considering your first post in this thread on your opinions of BF.

Harry it happens to a lot of women for a lot of reasons. Just keep making sure you are stimulated enough, when baby isn't nursing stimulate with a pump, those first 2 weeks are vital towards your production. XO

For me it was just the right thing to do. It didn't feel like something I had to decide on though. I went into the whol thing with the attitude that I wanted to bf but if it didn't work tht would be just fine as well. I know a few moms who were dead set on bf and couldn't and they were just heartbroken over it. Anyway, in Germany bf is just a very normal part of raising your kid. I plan to bf at least until Miss K is 12 months. After that I will leave it mostly up to her. I don't think I'd bf past 24months though

:yes

I planned to bf till 1 year and start slowly weaning. I ended up going to 22 months and letting her decide for the most part, and I never thought twice about bfing. I knew I was going to do it. Although, if I had problems and was unable, I probably would have been heartbroken.

Jilly, just stick too it. You can attend La Leche League meetings in your area too for support! They are great! Some women like Bunkie said dont like the sensation that bfing creates sometimes. I didnt really experience anything that bothered me. BUT I had a great support system and WANTED to quit the first week. Its HARD, but doable. :) You'll do fine, and if in the end you can only bf for a short period, you are still a great mom!

thank you veronica :) that means alot.

I have been nursing my dd for 6 months and 1 day. I plan to nurse until she is 1 years old or until she gets teeth, then I'm planning to pump. I chose to nurse because it is the most healthy thing for my dd and it has health benefits for mom-i.e. losing baby belly, prevention of certain cancers and osteoporosis,etc.

I hope to breastfeed at least 6 months but my goal is 1 yr. I just have always wanted to. Known this is something I wanted...I know it's not for some people and for whatever reason if I CAN'T BF very long I will ff but I hope to really have a good go with bf-ing. And like someone else said it helps to lose the baby fat and other benefits to mom BUT it's got the greatest benefits to the baby no matter HOW long you do it :)

I was a teen mom with my first... so a lot of it was economics. But I really liked it. I was still in school and they would phone me (on site daycare) when he was awake and hungry, so I go to be with him all the time. I really liked nursing. I also enjoyed the instant weight loss that happened (shallow I know).
I was quite sad when my daughter weaned herself. That was it for me. I nursed them all to just over a year.