Will I regret giving up?

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  earwig1971

  Mar 18, 2011 4:37PM

  Hi PB...this is very subjective and very personal, and you should only do what you feel is right for you. In my opinion, you have given your baby an amazing start with 6months of breastmilk, and so to 'give up' now is more than acceptable...it's not giving up...it's moving on in my eyes.
  
  
  
  From a personal outlook, I'm completely with you on the 'getting your boobs back' bit!! I've only been bf'ing my lo for 9wks now, and I'm already planning to move her on to the bottle....the challenge over the past couple of weeks has been to persuade her of this! I go back to work in just 4 weeks and so there is that reason, but a large part is that I just can't get on with these new 'boobs' and I want my fried eggs back....I also want to get back to my running which is impossible with these things bouncing around! I also want some help with the night feeds and to get more than 3 hours sleep!
  
  
  
  I don't feel guilty for moving on to bottle/formula for personal/selfish reasons...I consider I've given her a good head start health-wise, and I shall be glad when she is finally persuaded to take the bottle!
  
  
  
  Do what is right for you....be proud of what you've achieved so far, and move your lo onto the next phase. xx

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  Renee+2

  Mar 18, 2011 4:55PM

  i dont get the getting your boobs back thing, as mine are small when not bfing so i want to keep these ones . ive now bf for a year and one thing to keep in mind is the extra cost of formula and extra time with sterilising etc.

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  maydaychild

  Mar 18, 2011 5:09PM

  hey if you are trying to get pregnant later in the year, you get to do it all again, and then maybe 2nd time you can feed for longer!
  
  
  
  Def do not make any changes until you have fully pondered and considered and then still leave it a week to be sure.
  
  Wait until baby has got a bit through weaning to be certain, it is a bit odd putting them on food but giving them breast, so read around on this before deciding.
  
  
  
  I stopped with my first child at 6 months. I did regret it and miss it. i thought that weaning onto food also meant weaning onto bottle!
  
  
  
  Now with my second, we are at 10 months, feeding twice day and still loving it!

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  judithcharmers

  Mar 18, 2011 5:37PM

  Just to throw a spanner in the works...
  
  
  
  I moved from exclusively breastfeeding to expressing at 3 months and then from expressing to formula at 6 months. And if I'm honest, I do regret it.
  
  
  
  My reasoning for expressing was I wanted to know how much my son was taking as he just seemed to want to latch on every 2/3 hours, including through the night. But I didn't want to move to formula so early on without giving expressing a good go.
  
  
  
  And the expressing worked well for me, I'd get approx 200ml every few hours, and it also meant other family members could feed my son. But I missed, and still miss, the breastfeeding bond only a mother can feel. I stopped expressing when I weaned my son, as then he was only taking three bottles a day anyway.
  
  
  
  But I was lucky in that my boobs just didn't change shaper nor size.
  
  
  
  As earwig has said, you have given your baby the best start by breastfeeding for 6 months. Our neighbour is a doctor and has said a lot of new mums don't get past two weeks, so you've done amazingly well. But at the end of the day, only you can decide to continue or stop and I hope you feel comfortable with the decision you make.
  
  
  
  

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  Gail1977

  Mar 18, 2011 6:09PM

  Six months is fab. Every feed you give your baby is brilliant so dont feel guilty. Do what feels best for you. However as for getting your boobs back, I fed my daughter on demand till she was 18 months, then morning and evening till she was 2 and then just at bed time till almost 3 and my boobs have never changed at all! Good luck x

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  PandaBear_

  Mar 19, 2011 5:14PM

  Thanks for the replies.
  
  
  
  Think I'll see how I feel in a couple of weeks and go from there.
  
  
  
  

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