Maybe it's time to stop pumping??

"PattyMomVA" wrote in message
...
Donna,

What have you decided? Did you get the message from so many supportive
women (and men) on this group that you have done an awesome job? They're
really *not* just saying it! :-)

Hugs,
-Patty, mom of 1+2

We're introducing cow's milk now. So far she'll take it just fine from
anyone BUT me and DH-I guess she knows we have the good stuff available.
I've dropped trying to pump when she's awake at all, which is enough to
still let her have some EBM, but isn't as stressful. I plan to replace one
feed at a time with whole milk and drop one pumping cycle at a time, and see
how that goes.

Just not worrying about keeping my supply equal to her demand has helped a
lot. So does just thinking of this as a more natural weaning process
(especially since two of my friends who have babies about 6 months older
than Alli have children who are really cutting back on their nursing a
lot-and neither really was ready to stop yet).

Thanks for the support from everyone!!


"Donna Metler" wrote:
I really had planned to keep going past the first birthday since things
had
been going so well, but Alli is making it next to impossible for me to
pump
unless she's completely asleep. She now goes into a tantrum if I try to
pump
when she's awake, when previously she'd let me do it as long as she was
right there or as long as she had someone else to play with. Now, if she
hears the pump at all, it's scream city. And I don't know about you, but
I
have a hard time getting a good letdown with a 1 yr old in tantrum mode,
even when I know daddy is there to deal with it. I've tried getting up
to
pump before she does, but I think she hears the pump even in her sleep,
even
in another room. Same with napping. She's gotten so hard to deal with in
the
last few weeks. It's almost like a switch was flipped on her first
birthday
from giggle to whine, with a special random tantrum generator. And she's
perfectly healthy and perfectly normal, according to her pediatrician.

Pumping for her has generally been something I've felt good about-maybe
I
couldn't nurse her, but at least I'm doing the right thing, even if it's
not
easy, but it's just causing so much stress right now. I ended up
bursting
into tears when her bag for MDO spilled and a bottle leaked earlier
today-because it's taking so much to get that breast milk to her. Add
that
to the usual Christmas stress and end of the semester stress (college
students all save their observation hours until the last minute-at which
time I often don't have children for them to observe because the
preschool
programs are doing their special activities), it's just too much!

Am I a bad person if I wean my 1 yr old off pumped milk? I know all the
benefits of extended nursing at least until age 2, and I'd like to do
it,
but I don't think I can. I honestly haven't felt this overwhelmed since
she
was a little teeny tiny preemie.


--
Donna DeVore Metler
Orff Music Specialist/Kindermusik
Mother to Angel Brian Anthony 1/1/2002, 22 weeks, severe PE/HELLP
And Allison Joy, 11/25/04 (35 weeks, PIH, Pre-term labor)