‘The part of breastfeeding no one ever really talks about’

When it comes to breastfeeding everyone talks about the challenges you may face when you’re starting your feeding journey. 
From the moment they place that tiny baby on you for the first time, there’s help, advice and someone there to talk you through those first feeds.
Then there’s the support of midwives and lactation consultants, to supplements like Elevit which can help meet the increased nutritional requirements of breastfeeding, nipple shields, lactation cookies and breast pumps. There’s so much information and resources out there for when you’re in the thick of it. 
But there’s an element of breastfeeding that no one really talks about: stopping.
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Whether you chose to stop breastfeeding on your own, or your baby self weans, one thing no one really talks about until it happens is how emotional it can be. 
With my return to work slowly creeping up on me and my daughter starting daycare, I knew I needed to start thinking about what we were going to do. 
Could I juggle keeping the morning feed and then pumping at work, or would that be too hard to try and maintain? Did I want to wake my daughter up in the morning to be able to feed her before I had to leave for work? 
There’s so much you have to consider, and I really didn’t think about how emotional the whole experience of stopping breastfeeding was going to be. 
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Breastfeeding – at times – was a real struggle for me and there were a few times where I thought I was done. 
But I got some advice really early on and it was “don’t give up breastfeeding on a bad day” which stuck with me. It definitely helped me get past some of the more challenging times, like cluster feeding, or learning how to breastfeed when teeth are involved.
That’s not to say you should push through if you are struggling, it just helped me personally push past hard days. 
So when it came time to stop, it really wasn’t a milestone I thought was going to make me feel so emotional.
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As we gradually cut down the feeds it became even more special to have that time together and I know I tried to soak up every moment of it. 
I never expected to feel so sad about it ending.
A lot of motherhood has been an emotional rollercoaster, but the sadness that came with this was something that hit me out of nowhere. 
It’s a normal feeling, because it was a shared moment for us and where we did a lot of bonding and anyone who’s really loved something knows how hard it is when you stop doing it. 
And I know from other mums too, it doesn’t matter if you did it for three days, or four weeks, or six months, or two years, ending that journey comes with a lot of feelings.
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Drawing that line in the sand for where our last feed would be was one of the hardest things to do. It felt so daunting to just say, “Nope, this is it.”
My daughter was ready, which made it easier and after that last morning feed, which I can assure you she didn’t care less about while I sat in bed and cried.
We had officially closed one chapter of our journey together. A skill we both had to learn, a shared bond we had for 10 beautiful months, and a comfort I know I gave her through those early months of her life.
The sadness and fear that came with weaning was a hard thing to go through, but we came out the other side of it and for any mums going through it, I see you and you’ll be OK.
The information in this article is general in nature. Please consult with your GP, specialist or other healthcare professional for advice which is specific to your health needs.
This article was produced with Elevit.