Friday, April 6, 2012

Exclusively pumping

So again I've decided to exclusively breastpump for Arfan just like I did with Azalia. I did it for Azalia ever since she was 4 days old till up to 10+ months old and for Arfan I hope it will be longer.

With Azalia the decision was made because my nips bled. Azalia was a biter. Don't lecture me on her not latching properly because she did and you're not at the receiving end of it, I am and I know she bites. She latches properly but she bites. Heck, she tore the Avent nipple when she was barely 2 months old. No teeth yet ok.. she did it with her gums!!

I thought that maybe this time around I'd be able to breastfeed. But again, I only did it for 4 days. Arfan refused to latch properly and one nip bled and the other cracked. Luckily this time around I was prepared at the hospital and brought my pump along. One lactation consultant was supportive of my decision but the other thought my decision was premature. I couldn't care less with what she thinks. I did this for Azalia and she was a healthy baby and now an active and healthy toddler so I didn't see anything wrong with it. Plus its my body, my life and my child.

Besides... who says I'm taking the easy way out. You're talking about pumping every 2-3 hours to make sure your supply is up (1-2 hours the first few weeks to build the supply in the first place) and waking up in the middle of night just to pump even if your baby's not up and not to forget the endless amount of washing up to do. Oh and planning is key to ensure efficiency.

Read this article about mothers who chose to exclusively breastpump instead of direct breastfeeding and I could identify myself with some of them. So I guess if I have a third I'll just go straight to the pump.

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