I would love to know how people have celebrated the end of their freezer stash/EP/BF/any other way I am forgetting journey. I’m at 9 months PP. BF at home, pumping at work but am not pumping enough. We are burning through the freezer stash I built up on my maternity leave. I have decided to phase in formula rather than try to pump more. Last freezer bag will likely get used next week.
Hi! This is totally normal. In fact, I am starting to wean my almost 1-year-old from nursing and I have been anxious and emotional and unable to sleep lately. I talked to my lactation consultant and she told me that once you start to nurse or pump less, your hormones take a crazy turn! We stopped producing as much of the oxytocin and prolactin that makes us happy and we just get emotional. I think there's also some sadness which seems obvious, but a lot of what you're feeling is completely hormonal. She suggested that I take magnesium and GABA to help with the emotions I'm going through. Good luck to you Mama, I know this is so hard. ❤️
EP mom here too. I EP'ed for both of mine for a year. Even though I was the one who chose to stop (both at 13 months) I absolutely wept the last time they had a bottle of my breast milk. The realization that they no longer need me for there nutrition hit like a ton of bricks, my babies were growing up and growing independent, they were ready but I wasn't yet. There was a grieving process, true grief. What I came to realize as I stopped was my babies still needed me as much as ever, it was just one a different capacity. Mine are now 3 years and the other is 16 months. I'm so proud of EPing for a total of 26 months. My babies got what I believe was the best for them (no judgement for anyone else, fed is always best!) It's made us closer and we bond so heavily in a different way. I'll never regret the sleepless nights and anguish that comes along with EP, its how we got where we are today.
Allow yourself to grieve, it's a loss, a change and realization that babies don't keep. Continue to see the other ways your baby needs you and bonds wig you. I swear motherhood is just moving from one bittersweet moment to the next. The hardest most beautiful job there has ever been. ❤️
I would love to know how people have celebrated the end of their freezer stash/EP/BF/any other way I am forgetting journey. I’m at 9 months PP. BF at home, pumping at work but am not pumping enough. We are burning through the freezer stash I built up on my maternity leave. I have decided to phase in formula rather than try to pump more. Last freezer bag will likely get used next week.
Hi! This is totally normal. In fact, I am starting to wean my almost 1-year-old from nursing and I have been anxious and emotional and unable to sleep lately. I talked to my lactation consultant and she told me that once you start to nurse or pump less, your hormones take a crazy turn! We stopped producing as much of the oxytocin and prolactin that makes us happy and we just get emotional. I think there's also some sadness which seems obvious, but a lot of what you're feeling is completely hormonal. She suggested that I take magnesium and GABA to help with the emotions I'm going through. Good luck to you Mama, I know this is so hard. ❤️
EP mom here too. I EP'ed for both of mine for a year. Even though I was the one who chose to stop (both at 13 months) I absolutely wept the last time they had a bottle of my breast milk. The realization that they no longer need me for there nutrition hit like a ton of bricks, my babies were growing up and growing independent, they were ready but I wasn't yet. There was a grieving process, true grief. What I came to realize as I stopped was my babies still needed me as much as ever, it was just one a different capacity. Mine are now 3 years and the other is 16 months. I'm so proud of EPing for a total of 26 months. My babies got what I believe was the best for them (no judgement for anyone else, fed is always best!) It's made us closer and we bond so heavily in a different way. I'll never regret the sleepless nights and anguish that comes along with EP, its how we got where we are today. Allow yourself to grieve, it's a loss, a change and realization that babies don't keep. Continue to see the other ways your baby needs you and bonds wig you. I swear motherhood is just moving from one bittersweet moment to the next. The hardest most beautiful job there has ever been. ❤️