Totally self congratulatory thread - but I deserve it damnit

[TruthSweet]

I have now reached a total of 100 months of breastfeeding/nursing/lactating (cumulative) and 61 months concurrently of breastfeeding/nursing/lactating-

42 months for DD1
40 months for DD2 (and counting!)
18 months for DD3 (and counting!)

I know this is a bit (ha! a lot) self congratulatory but I think I deserve it. It's not been easy - in fact it has been damn hard at times so I'm glad I've continued even though my children are deserve being quarantined/put on plague ship and I have even considered painting a cross on the front door and investing in 'biohazard' tape for the fences (I'm peer supporter and have been warned off mentioning my children to new mothers as 'they aren't the healthy bf babies we promote' nice confused).

Ok back to real life.....

Wow! At the risk of sounding like someone from a cheesy American talk show, it's really inspiring to hear from mums that let children self-wean and/or tandem feed, before I came on MN I had no idea that women BF for that long or that you could tandem feed. So well done from me

Congratulations :o

Thanks EauRouge - I'm feeling a little crappy today the plague ship is calling:-

DD1 & DD2 are in the throws of a weird virus (rash/fever),
I've had a seizure this am plus I appear to have the adult version of the virus,
DD2 has just tested positive for arthritis factors so has been bumped from ordinary paed to the arthritis paed. cons.,
DD1 has failed TWO hearing tests and needs to see audiology for further test,
DD1 needs another eye test as she had problems with the last one,

and

DD3 has ripped holes in the backs of her knees and torn the back/lobes of both her ears from teething/ezcema so I need to take her to Drs.

Oh and it's the start of the Easter holidays today so it's not a good start.

Anyho - How are you finding tandeming?

So please excuse the back patting

Well done! I'm a bit in awe of anyone who does it long-term. Did you know Martha Sears (wife of Dr Sears and co-author of 'The Baby Book') breastfed for 18 years?

Wowsers, makes the 9 months I've reached so far sound very insignificant! Well done!

japhrimel - I am NOT going to 18 years! Please don't give DD2 & DD3 any ideas

Well done! I contemplated starting a self congratulatory thread last week when my dd turned 1...I was so chuffed with myself and my dd, but no one mentioned it in rl :(...apart from the usual incredulous "when do you think you will stop breastfeeding?"

(p.s I'm not hinting for complements, honest)

Woodlands & Haverina - It doesn't seem we get any kudos for bfing so a big huge CONGRATULATIONS to you both from me. Remember every feed counts (even if they now number in the 10,000s)

Things are going well here now DD1 has finished her regressing and started eating solid food again. DD2 is getting to the pleasingly chubby phase

Congrats to Woodlands and Harverina on your milestones.

18 years How many children did she have?

DD1's regression was pretty spectacular ( posted about it today funnily enough) with her feeding 20+ times a day. It was bliss when she got over it . I'm envious over the 'pleasingly chubby' stage mine don't do that for some reason.

Martha had 8 children according to wikipedia so that's only an average of 2.25 years per child not that much really

Wow truthsweet that is completely amazing, no, you are completely amazing, not to say inspirational.

A well deserved self-congratulatory thread if I ever saw one.

Congratulations and to Truthsweet, Woodlands, Haverina, Eau Rouge and Mrs Sears it seems. Thought I'd done well at 6 years of either being up the duff or bfing!

Wow. Congratulations all (especially TruthSweet). I'm approaching 26 months (on Sat with DS and am 12 wks 'gone' with DC2).

As an aside Truth DS was ebf until 6 months and then BLW. No history of illness or allergy on either side but still he has been hospitalised with a chest infection (at 5 months), was cosistently ill between 9 months and 11 months and had 2 courses of antibiotics at the time, was hospitalised with acute pyelonephritis (abroad!) for a week of IV Antibiotics at 12 months and is being worked up for Coeliac disease at the moment. Other than thanks is a strong, independent, active child .

Wonder what he would have been like without bm?

Oops typo. 16 NOT 26 months

I try not to think what DDs would have been like without bm - though to be fair DD1 was main bottle fed formula/some ebm/a few bf until 8 weeks when she was ebf) but DD2 was ebf until 23 weeks when she stuffed her sister's yogurt in her mouth (was sitting unaided from 18 weeks) we carried on BLW then and DD3 was ebf until 26 weeks before BLW.

I guess we'll never know......

Oh and we have atopy on both sides (asthma, ezcema, allergies, hayfever) and auto-immune disorders on both sides too (too many to list!). My children were destined to be lab rats I swear!

A big congratulations, TruthSweet and to all the other bf'ers here.

(Thanks again too, Truth, for your help a couple of months ago when DS was on nursing strike.)

Sorry to hear about yet more health complications for your DDs though. Hope you're all clear of the virus soon.

Thanks everyone and well done to you all too.

Sorry to hear about all the problems you are having truth, you sound like you have had had a stressful time. Its inspirational to hear your story.

I'm not sure long we will keep breastfeeding for. Sometimes I think that I am ready to stop, other days the thought of stopping makes me want to sob. My DD is feeding less and less and it has been gradual. She is feeding morning, night and sometimes once during the day. She will usual feed if I offer it to her but only for a couple of minutes. Sometimes I feel that she is not that bothered about feeding, other days she feeds non stop. Most nights she doesnt need a night feed anymore which is wonderful. Aaaarrggg not sure how we feel and sorry to highjack!

Anyhoo, well done everyone, you are doing a fab thing :)

Not feeling inspirational today more of a cautionary tale against having children!

We've had another health problem today to add to the mound - I had a seizure again and been all confused today so my mum had to take DD1 to the Drs as she has an infected sore on her mouth (Pharmacist said anti-biotics needed) and the Dr said it might be impetigo but gave fucidin cream and said try for a week to see if it goes. Warned us it's very contagious and if any of the other DDs get to share the cream (!?!) Though that might be my mum getting confuddled....

Oh well, only got 2 days to the weekend

Haverina - agree everyone else is doing a fab thing!