I had a vaginal birth with epidural anesthesia and they put Ella to my breast as soon as the cord was cut. She nursed for about 15-20 minutes then they took her to a small table in my room to be cleaned and weighed. After a little while, they brought her to the nursery for a full medical exam. She was away from me for about 2 hours or so and those were the LONGEST 2 hours of my life! Then, she was back with me for the rest of my (short) hospital stay.
I had planned on breastfeeding for 1 year - I had my pump ready, had prepared a private place at work for pumping, and had discussed this with my colleagues at work. What I did not expect was the difficulty I had in producing milk. My milk came in late and, during her first week, Ella lost more than the expected 10% of her birth weight and so I had to supplement with formula while I tried to increase my milk production. During my maternity leave, I was pumping/nursing every 2-3 hours round the clock. I also took fenugreek capsules and drank tons of water. All of these helped and I was able to cut out the formula after a month or two. During Ella's first year, my trusty Medela breastpump and I were inseparable!
I took it to work, to medical conferences, to vacations, etc. etc. I finally stopped pumping when Ella turned 1. The day that I packed up my breastpump was one of the happiest and most liberating days of my life!
I thought at that time that since I had so much difficulty starting breastfeeding that I did not want to give it up too easily. So I continued breastfeeding and both Ella and I really love the special bond and closeness that we enjoyed when she is nursing. It was also a great way to reconnect with her after a whole day spent at work away from her. For my own sanity, I did wean her off night-nursing after she turned 1.
She is now 2 years 8 months and showing no signs of self-weaning. The only times she nurses now are when she wakes up in the morning and right before going to bed. Contrary to popular misconceptions, breastfeeding her past infancy has not made her more dependent or clingy to me in any way. In fact, the very secure attachment she has with me has allowed her to develop into a confident outgoing self-assured little person. She has never been known to throw a temper tantrum and it is generally very easy to calm her down when she is upset or hurt.
As for weaning? I am thinking when she turns 3 years old in July, or when we seriously start planning for another baby. I have asked her when she wants to give up her beloved "nyah-nyahs" and she says, "when I gwow up."
So, we'll see....
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