Try and Try Again
Joanna Emery
Dundas, Ontario, Canada
From NEW BEGINNINGS, Vol. 17 No. 4, July-August 2000, pg. 121
We provide articles from our publications from previous years for reference for our Leaders and members. Readers are cautioned to remember that research and medical information change over time.
When I gave birth to my
first child, Veronica, 10 years ago, I was young and naive. Breastfeeding
went smoothly, but after one month, I felt worn down by new motherhood.
My family doctor suggested I take a "break" and have someone
give my daughter a bottle. Needless to say, nursing stopped soon afterward,
but seven years later, when I had my son, I made a new commitment to
breastfeeding.
It was a joy to nurse Monty
in the delivery room - an experience I didn't have with my first baby.
A week later, difficulties set in when I developed mastitis. I started
antibiotics and continued to nurse but unfortunately, the mastitis reoccurred.
My doctor told me that I should wean my son to a bottle as the new antibiotic
I was to be prescribed was not "baby-friendly." It was a sad
day when I last breastfed my son. At the time, I felt I had no choice,
but have since learned that I could have had more say in the decision.
By the time my son was a month old, I had a full-blown breast abscess.
I believe this was due in part to the sudden weaning. I had surgery
and required home-care to change the dressings on my wound for the next
six weeks.
I thought that would be my
last experience at nursing but I was wrong! Two years later, I was surprised
to find out I was pregnant. It wasn't an easy pregnancy and I almost
lost the baby. Frequent ultrasounds showed that the baby might have
a "stressed bowel." I was told that could mean the baby might
be fussier than most at feeding times. I was more determined than ever
to give this new child the best possible start in life. That meant that
I wanted to breastfeed. Many people, including my own mother, thought
I was crazy. "After all you've been through," they'd say,
"why not just start the baby on a bottle?" But I wanted to
try to take one day at a time.
When my second daughter,
Mimi, was born she nursed right away and all went well. Since I had
a rather abundant milk supply, my midwife suggested I nurse her only
on one side per feeding. This proved to be the best advice I'd ever
received. As it turned out, Mimi was healthy but rather colicky. Her
colic improved when I nursed her on only one side per feeding. I feel
sure formula would have only made her digestive troubles worse. When
she started eating solids, I thought that I might be developing mastitis
again due to the change in her nursing pattern. I talked to my doctor
right away, who prescribed a course of antibiotics that helped keep
everything under control. Despite relatively smaller challenges such
as thrush and teething, Mimi and I are still a happy breastfeeding couple.
We went to our first LLL
meeting when she was three weeks old and we continue to go every month.
I'm grateful for the support the other mothers give and have even introduced
a pregnant friend of mine to the meetings. Although I am saddened when
women I know tell me they don't want to even try to breastfeed their
newborns, I'm glad that I was given another chance. When my little one
is nursing sleepily in my arms, it is one of the most precious times
of my life, and worth every moment.
Last updated Wednesday, October 11, 2006 by njb.
Page last edited Sun Oct 14 09:30:27 UTC 2007.
