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Monday, October 27, 2008

I Almost Fell Into That Trap

It's something that every nursing mother experiences at least once. It's mostly known as "The Holiday Wean", but really it can happen during any major transition or stressful period.

Like moving.

Because the Knight and I were in a hurry to get the house painted and us moved in, the girls spent a lot of time over other people's houses while we packed, painted, and unpacked. In fact, the night before the move, the Guppy and I spent our very first night apart: she slept over her Grandmother's while the Knight and I stayed up until midnight to finish the painting. I figured she would be okay with it.

The next afternoon, after the move, when my MIL brought her home, I thought she would want to nurse immediately. Imagine my surprise when she wanted nothing to do with me. She was angry.

It took about four hours before she would finally come over and give me a hug and kiss. And it wasn't until the next day that she decided she would nurse again (to the relief of my sore and engorged breasts).

You would think that I would've been more aware of what was happening. I did mention to the Knight once or twice that she wasn't nursing as often during the packing phase, but didn't really think much of it. I got too wrapped up in other things in life, and forgot the important lesson that the Guppy teaches me every day: sit down and rest, slow down, take care of yourself.

Thankfully, the Guppy is now back to her regular nursing schedule. She and the Mermaid love their new room and the house. We are all grinning ear to ear over here.

Have you ever experienced the Holiday Wean? How do you remind yourself to take time to make sure your nursling is getting his or her "na nas" during stressful and busy times?
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2 comments:

Jen said...

Our "holiday wean" happened at 6 weeks when our stressful move coincided with finding our baby was failing to thrive due to a very weak suck and having to supplement with a bottle. Because I just didn't have the time to meet with a lactation consultant, and because I was already pumping to supplement her feedings, it was easy for both of us to fall into a bottle-feeding (with breastmilk) routine. If I could go back in time and do it differently, I would in a heartbeat - as it played out, she went on nursing strike and I wound up having to completely retrain her.

Andrea said...

I'm actually in the process of moving right now. I'm terrified of weaning my 7 month old unintentionally, so moving has been quite slow because my little one still nurses every two hours. We've been moving for 2 weeks and right now all I have unpacked is most of the kitchen and our bedroom!