The posts this week have all been centered on breastfeeding. I love that we have a guest post today on exclusively pumping. For some mamas, this is the right path to take. It's a HARD path. There is nothing easy about this, and certainly nothing enjoyable about hooking yourself up to a pump all day. But it has some benefits as well! Here's a wonderful guest post from Caitlin at Twin Mom and More about the realities of exclusively pumping.
"Pumping… ugh. Is there anyone who can honestly say that it’s an enjoyable experience? I haven’t met a single mom who has enjoyed the experience. There are many reasons women choose to exclusively pump breastmilk for their babies and to enjoy the experience is not one of them. I breastfed my first until he self-weaned at ten months old. I planned on at least attempting to do the same thing with my twins. The idea of exclusively pumping was not one that even crossed my mind because my breastfeeding experience with my first was so easy.
I believe that the choice to feed your baby is deeply personal. There are so, SO many factors, and nobody knows what you’re going through except for you. I want to encourage you to make your choice and be a champion for yourself. If you want to push through and continue nursing even under extremely hard circumstances, all the power to you. If you choose to stop breastfeeding and formula feed your baby, that is your choice and it is just as great of a choice as breastfeeding. If you choose to exclusively pump, that is also a great choice, and possibly the choice that’s the most work."
This week, all of the bloggers in the Babywise Friendly Blog Network, will be sharing their ideas on the topic of breastfeeding. Here's the full line up. I'll be linking to each of these throughout the week:
- Monday: Valerie at Chronicles of a Babywise Mom
- Tuesday: Christine at Christine Keys and Kimberly from Team Cartwright
- Wednesday: Katrina from Mama's Organized Chaos and Natasha from Let's Be Brave
- Thursday: Caitlin from Twin Mom and More and Carrie from Wiley Adventures
- Friday: Emily from Journey of Parenthood