Breastfeeding Truths

Breastfeeding in my book has to be one of the best things you can do for your babies. I am proud to have breastfed all four of my children and I find it quite remarkable that not only did I grow them all inside me for nine months (or nearly ten months in my case as they were all so late!) but then something that my body has made has then nourished them and helped them grow in their early months of life – it is quite wonderful.

I felt very lucky after my third baby to have been bought a gorgeous chair and matching footstool specifically for feeding, a Christmas present two years ago, and one of the best  presents ever! Even the children, who usually climb on EVERYTHING have respected that this is my ‘special’ chair, which is really very sweet of them.

I try where possible to sit in this chair to feed because it really is so comfy, cosy and relaxing …HOWEVER… the reality is that if you want to breastfeed for any length of time you have to be flexible and adaptable, especially when you work and have other children as well. I am not about to give up because I can’t sit in my ‘special’ chair at each feed so I have just learnt to feed, well pretty much anywhere.

Life doesn’t stop when you need to breastfeed but equally babies wont and shouldn’t wait so if my baby needs feeding then that is what happens even if: I am sat in the supermarket car park; I am in the swimming pool changing rooms helping the big ones get ready for their lessons; I am at a school performance; I am typing a report sat at my laptop; I am making dinner; sat in a restaurant or even making packed lunches for school. All of this can be done whilst feeding! … ish!

The biggest problem with all of this is opening the wardrobe in the morning and getting dressed…I constantly have to ask myself “can I feed in this?” because basically you never know when you might have to whip out a boob!

I do however get increasingly irritated hearing people talk about how much weight you can shed by breastfeeding and how women who breast feed can just ‘snap’ back into their skinny pre-pregnancy jeans. Recently lots of celebrities have attributed breastfeeding to their dramatic post-pregnancy weight loss…nothing to do with the personal trainers and calorie counted shakes delivered to the door then?

I can safely say that after four babies I do not believe that breastfeeding has played any part in losing weight. I happened to mention this to one of the health visitors recently, the response was so hurtful that it would have been more comfortable sticking pins in my eyes! 

“It only works when you don’t over indulge on the cakes!” she said…I was boiling inside…I’m not the type of person who consumes their own body weight in cakes and other indulgent snacks on a regular basis! I don’t eat anything that could be included in that category …hot chocolate is about as indulgent as I get, I am breastfeeding and exercising YET still resembling a hippo.

4 comments

  1. Nor do I darling. I breastfed both mine for a year and I couldn't lose the weight until I stopped breastfeeding and then it came off. My body needed the extra weight to breastfeed and I had to keep those calories up or my milk would go away. Loving your truth post! Thank you ever so much for linking up to Share With Me. #sharewithme

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