Is 7 the lucky number?

My mom has been telling me and everyone else that I plan on breastfeeding Soluna until she is 7. It's kind of her "joke" but she is continually trying to discourage me and Soluna from continuing our nursing relationship. She flat out says to Soluna "Why are you still breastfeeding? You're not a baby anymore!" She tells me that my breasts are going to be down to my knees. Great! I asked my Inang (my mom's mom) how long she breastfed her kids (all 8 of them) and she said around 1-2 years, except my Uncle Alex that breastfed until he was 7. That's where my mom got the number 7. It does not matter that Soluna is still in that 1-2 years stage, my mom insists that it's time to stop. I don't understand why it's such a big deal to her. Actually Ben's grandma also said she breastfed her youngest until an age where she came home from school and breastfed. I think it's our mamas' generation that actually decided to stop earlier and, interestingly, I think it was part of their "Americanization" although I bet neither my mom or Ben's mom would admit it.

With that said, I am posting a link to a blog post that cites some research that concludes that the longer you breastfeed the higher your kids GPA will be and the more likely they will go to college. I think research like this is kind of funny because a) there is no way to prove breastfeeding relates specifically to the two outcomes, and b) you can prove almost anything by the way you set-up your experiment. But, I still like to see this research... because maybe it is true... and that would be nice.

ending hunger... one boobie at a time..

Salma Hayek is awesome! Mamas/Babies sharing milk! What a beautiful thing. I read a blog entry about this a few months back that talks about the culture of sharing milk from ElementalMom.

Would you breatfeed another mama's baby? Would you share your milk?

grow! grow! grow!

Soluna had her one year appointment this week.

The stats: 19lbs 4oz, 28.5 inches long, 45.3cm around her head

Our doctor said she looked great, despite falling a little on the growth chart. He was not worried at all. For those non-parentals reading my blog, a growth chart is used to monitor the height, weight, and head circumference of your baby over time. It shows where your baby fits in compared to babies similar in age and gives you a percentile of how many babies weigh less, are shorter and have a smaller head then your baby. Another way that science tries to dictate what is normal...

There has been a lot of controversy over these charts since some say the actual charts were done in the 70s when the norm was to formula-fed babies and start solid foods way before the 6th month. Sometimes these charts are misused and LLLI has stories about how breastfeeding moms are pressured by doctors to supplement feedings with formula just because babies growth curve is falling. They lable this occurence as "failure to thrive" and fail to take into consideration other factors of why the babies curve may be a little different.

So Soluna is smaller than average in weight and height and average in terms of head size, no big deal. Breastfed babies usually weigh less than formula-fed babies, then catch up later as shown on this growth chart found on Kellymom.com and was created by the WHO:

Soluna would fit a little below the 50% for breastfed babies.

A UCDavis researcher suggests that this difference in weight has to do with how formula-fed babies retain more water and have a different composition in body fat.

We keep fielding comments like: "Oh! She's so tiny!" "She's a little thing, isn't she?" And in both Ben and my families, it always seems like fatter babies are seen as healthier. A few relatives keep giving her clothes that are sizes smaller than her actual age (which totally don't fit). With all the formula feeding trends in our world.. yea she is smaller but a totally happy, healthy, active and funny 1 year old!!

Just because I love advocating for breastfeeding here are 7 Ways Breastfed Babies Become Healthier Adults from Dr. Sears!

Lolas say the darndest things!

Alright two posts in a row with my mom in it! I can't help it. The other day I was sitting with my Mom while breastfeeding Soluna. I mentioned how Soluna actually bit me for the first time (yes, she has 5 teeth now!). She kinda dozed off while breastfeeding and her teeth kinda closed down on my breast. I was quick to get her off and she stayed asleep.

My mom then says, "Just wait, if you breastfeed until she's 2 she's going to bite your nipple off!"

I smiled and laughed. I was like, "Mom! That doesn't happen!"

She didn't smile or even seem the least bit relenting on the fact that she was making this up. So I asked her, "WHO? Whose nipple got bitten off?"

She says, "People! Really! It happens."

So I ask again, "Who? Tell me."

She mumbles something about, "People in the Philippines..." and "... just wait, you'll see. You'll see what happens if you breastfeed for that long."

End conversation.

So tonight we went out to dinner with the whole family and I can't help but mention it. My sister, who is a family practice doctor, laughed hysterically. My mom continues to insist and says something like, "Fine! Breastfeed until she's 5! You'll see! We'll check your nipples then."

Damn. And it's funny, but it's also not so funny. I don't know where she's coming from... why she's discouraging me from breastfeeding. (Which in subtle ways, she's been doing since the first few weeks Soluna was born.) I mean, does she really believe she's looking out for the well-being of my nipples?? According to her some of my aunts and other women in the Philippines breastfed their babies until they were 4 or 5. They seem fine, although I haven't done a nipple inspection...

decolonize our breasts: breastmilk vs. formula in the Philippines

For my doula class I have to write a final paper on a topic that interests me: "extended" breastfeeding. I'm already trying to figure out a new term for breastfeeding beyond the age of one because the term extended breatfeeding makes people think that you're going beyond a norm when I think it should be the norm.

Part of my research is to look into breastfeeding practices in the Philippines and I found some interesting statistics on the UNICEF website:

* Out of almost 7 million children (below 5 years old), 87% were ever breastfed. This figure however includes infants whose breastfeeding may have lasted for only one hour, one day, or one week only.

* In fact, nearly 3.4 million children (49%) were given liquid or food other than breastmilk within three days after being born.

* For children below 3 years old at the time of the survey, barely 6% were exclusively breastfed. Bottlefeeding was common for almost half of these children.

* Although 80% of children started breastfeeding within 1 day of birth, 54% were also given any liquid other than breast milk.

* Exclusive breastfeeding lasts only for an average of 24 days.

This is totally different from my original assumptions. I actually thought that breastfeeding WAS the norm in the Philippines and became less common for women who immigrated to the United States.

There has been an ongoing campaign in the Philippines to make breastfeeding more popular. In 2006 the City of Manila, Children for Breastfeeding (an organization that promotes family support for pregnant and breastfeeding mothers) and the Department of Health, with support from UNICEF organized an event where almost 4,000 mothers in the Philippines set a new world record for simultaneous breast-feeding.

Beyond the promotional event, there has also been organizing done to limit the advertisements of formula companies. Nestle, Mead Johnson, Abbot and other milk powder companies spend nearly US$90 million per year in the Philippines on advertising and end up with a sales revenue of around US$470 million. While the Philippines has a National Milk Code that limits the advertisement, promotion or marketing for breast milk substitutes intended particularly in medical offices and by health practicioners, formula companies have been working to challenge the code in court and many health offices are out of compliance. (Yes, one more reason to boycott Nestle!)

Check out this documentary "Formula for Disaster" about how misinformation of breastfeeding and agressive advertising has led to a decline in breastfeding, health problems for babies and an unneeded economic burden for families in the Philippines.

Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5

All I gotta say is: F*ck Capitalism. Decolonize your boobies and give babies milk! I need to figure out a new FilsGlobe Chant for breastmilk. Any thoughts?

Seriously though, breastfeeding gives babies the healthiest start in life. Why give in to the cultural or marketing pressure to give them less AND pay for it??!

brown hippie mama confession #4: i believe in breastfeeding toddlers

(Painting Credit: "Dependent Man" by Samantha Weber. www.samanthaweber.com)

This has been on my mind a lot lately. Most of my family and my husband's family breastfed their babies for less than a year. Most of my mama friends breastfed for a year to a year and a half. Only a handful of my friends breastfed until their babies were 2 years old or even longer.

Here and there I have heard little snips from family that leads me to believe that if a walking, talking Soluna jumps in my lap and I pull up my shirt to give her a snack, I will, mostly likely, raise a few eyebrows, hear a few snickers and, possibly, get a gasp or two.

But now that Soluna is 7 months old, I wonder what we'll do when the time comes. I love our breastfeeding relationship. For the most part, it calms me and her down, gives us time to rest during the day and I enjoy the time I have comforting her. It's not all roses of course and sometimes I wish I had more time in the day to do other things, but I chose to be a mother and want to give her the best start in life that I can possibly give her. It's only in the Americas where extended nursing is rare. Worldwide, children, on average, are breastfed until the age of 4.

Now what are the benefits of breastfeeding after a year?
Breastmilk is still liquid gold for toddlers. It enrichens a toddler's diet by providing protein, fat, energy, vitamins and minerals and passes even more of the mother's immunities. Research shows that toddlers that breastfeed get sick less often and for shorter time periods. And, beyond these kind of nutrition and health reasons, breastfeeding toddlers get comfort and security from breastfeeding. Ultimately, they are well nurtured and their emotional needs are met so that they can be more independent children and adults. (This country is always pushing for independence, which I think is so important for children and young adults. But, why do we push our babies into independence so early?) ... And some research even claims that the longer babies breastfeed the smarter they are! (From Sears & Sear's The Breastfeeding Book and Kellymom.com)

And, the "experts" agree ... (copied from kellymom.com)

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that "Breastfeeding should be continued for at least the first year of life and beyond for as long as mutually desired by mother and child... Increased duration of breastfeeding confers significant health and developmental benefits for the child and the mother... There is no upper limit to the duration of breastfeeding and no evidence of psychologic or developmental harm from breastfeeding into the third year of life or longer." (AAP 2005)

A US Surgeon General has stated that it is a lucky baby who continues to nurse until age two. (Novello 1990)

The World Health Organization emphasizes the importance of nursing up to two years of age or beyond (WHO 1992, WHO 2002).

So as Soluna and I grow together, if we continue to breastfeed, I'm going to have to divert criticism and stand my ground. And hopefully, at the least, Soluna will someday learn that it's important to do what you believe is right and meanigful regardless of the attitudes of those around you and the discomfort they might have in your choices... Isn't that how we want to live our lives?

sleepy mama rage

Alright, I have always gone crazy on folks who have woken me up while I'm asleep. That's just who I am. But when you're a mama, no matter how loco you want to get on someone, it's your job, your joy to get up to take care of baby. Now after 6 months of truncated sleep, even though things are relatively "hella better" then the first few weeks when it seemed like we were waking up every hour or less, I think this sleep schedule is playing with my emotions and my body.

After taking care of a somewhat fussy Soluna by myself for 12 hours, as soon as Benji got home I was ready to pass her off. I tried to breastfeed her to sleep and she wanted to play with daddy so he took her into the living room while I was ready for a much needed nap. And I woke up to her whining in the other room. It hadn't even been an hour. I was ready to bite Ben's head off. RAGE MamaAya, watch out!

He swore up and down that she had just started whining, that he had just changed her diaper and she started, but I woke up with the feeling that he had let her whine the entire time I was asleep and I had gotten no rest. I, in my sleeping state, always want to just grab her and put her to my boob so she can doze off. But this didn't work, especially since I spent the time multi-tasking: shooting Benji the "I'm fucking pissed off that I didn't get any sleep and you couldn't take care of the baby for 30 minutes"-look while Soluna drank at my breast, poor thing (Benji and Soluna). I eventually asked him to take her back and he drove her to Can't Fail to pick us up some dinner. When he got home, he put her in the sling (that he didn't want to find during her 30 minutes of whining) and she was asleep. I ended up getting at least an hour and a half of sleep. Now I feel as "refreshed" as ever, if that means anything anymore. Sigh.

breastfeeding ain't easy...

I heart breastfeeding. It wasn't always this way. Before Soluna’s birth day, I had taken a breastfeeding class with Kaiser, read through all the paperwork and read all the information provided to me in various baby books. But when Soluna was finally in my arms, I was at a loss of what to do. The nurses tried to prepare me before I left the hospital. I had flat nipples that became sore nipples and then bleeding nipples. I got thrush and plugged ducts. And, throughout the whole process, after each feeding for the first 2 months or so, I seemed to get an unexplained, undiagnosed pain that shot through both breasts.

I bought The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding by La Leche League, scoured the internet, attended a La Leche Meeting (where I was surprised to find no Latino women), and I went in to see a Kaiser Lactation Consultant about 6-7 times. Luckily, I had the will to continue and, unfortunately, became a self-proclaimed nipple martyr before I got a hang of things. All of this, I know now, was probably unnecessary. I lacked the proper education and support to prepare me to breastfeed correctly.

After 6 months of breastfeeding, when I hear of mamas who are having trouble breastfeeding, I want to offer some advice and support in all ways that I can. Because once you get a hang of things, looking down at your baby as they drink from your breast is so beautiful. Those days when Soluna looks up at me and smiles as she drinks, I know I have done something good. Here are my top 10 pointers on making breastfeeding work:

#1: The first 6 weeks: breastfeed! breastfeed! breastfeed. Breastfeed on cue, meaning whenever your baby shows signs of hunger and know in advance that this might mean your baby is at your breast 12+ hours a day. Your babies sucking will trigger the production of milk and the awakening of milk producing glands. The more your baby sucks, the more milk you make. The first 6 weeks will establish your ability to have enough milk for the long term.

#2: For at least 6 weeks: Keep the bottles away & keep the pacifier away! Bottles and pacifiers can lead to nipple confusion. Ouch. You want your baby to know how to latch on properly. The use of pacifiers might fool your baby into eating less than he/she needs because he/she may get most sucking needs satisfied in another way.

#3: Keep the formula a way! Mamas always seem to worry that their baby is not getting enough milk, especially when you can't see the amount that they eat. It can be a quick relief to see a baby gobble up a certain number of ounces of formula from the bottle. If you skip a feeding and give formula instead, you are telling your body you need less feedings and your body will respond by producing less milk. Therefore, even if you were producing enough milk, giving formula because you thought you weren't may actually cause the problem you were worried about.... Does that make sense?

#4: Seek expert support! Ask your lactation consultant, midwife or doula to help you if there are any problems. If you are in any pain, don't keep it to yourself. Fix the problem as soon as possible.

#5: Learn your baby's cues and trust yourself. You have incredible mama hormones that will make you more sensitive to your babies needs. Trust your heart and learn your baby. Most babies make very obvious cues when they are hungry: clicking their tongue, opening and closing their mouth, bringing their hands to their mouth. Feed them when they show these early signs of hunger and do not wait until they are crying. It can be more difficult to get your baby to latch properly if they are anxious. Babies will also tell you when they are done eating by delatching or falling aleep and letting the nipple fall out of their mouth.

#6: Know that breastfeeding is not just about feeding your baby, but comforting and socializing with him/her. Enjoy this time with you baby! Babies may cue to you that they are hungry right after they eat. You may think, "She/He's not hungry! I just fed him/her!" Or you might worry that he/she didn't get enough milk. In actuality, the baby might not be hungry, but they are cueing to let you know that they want you and they want to be in your arms. Babies have sucking needs. Do not worry about over-eating. Breastfed babies cannot over-eat and they will change their style of sucking for comfort, for eating or for getting mamas breasts to let-down milk.

#7: Get through the first 6 weeks! Do all you can to get past the sore nipples or early problems. By 6 weeks, you'll probably be lifting your shirt, unclipping your bra and having the baby latch in record time.

#8: Prepare! Prepare! Prepare! Read-up on breastfeeding, take a class and get all breastfeeding supplies before you have your baby. You will need some breastfeeding bras, breast pads and clothes that allow for easy booby access.

#9: Do not listen to moms who had their babies in the 70s or 80s, especially if they were unsuccessful breastfeeding or didn't breastfeed for longer than 6 months. You can get all kinds of wrong information. This is from my experience with my mother-in-law and mom. At the time when they had their kids, formula was just becoming popular and they were fed with so much misinformation on how to properly breastfeed.

#10: Get some support!! Make sure that your husband/partner/friend are there to help you in the early weeks. They can bring you drinks, extra food, a magazine to read, or chat with you while you breastfeed!

BONUS: Don't forget to eat... a lot & well!!

"she's so alert!"

In the first few months of life, Soluna got that a lot. "She's so alert!" Actually, she still gets it every once in awhile. It was/is hard for us to keep her in a little cradle hold. Instead, she is content in looking out at the world. I think she had/has good eye sight. They say breastfed babies do have better eyes. But in the first month or so, as my dad carried her in his lap, she followed me across the room. It was well before the books said that she could do such a thing.

She was a very quiet baby, at first. She slept a lot in our arms, in her little bassinet and sometimes in her carseat. Mostly, she was in somebody's arms. Her grandparents, aunts and uncles took turns carrying her when Ben and I got tired. And since I was breastfeeding around the clock, she was in my arms at least every 2 hours... usually more.

After Soluna was born, she had jaundice. She didn't eat one night. I was scared and called the advice nurse at Kaiser to find out what to do. She scolded me, "She's crying because she's starving." Why would anyone say that to a new mom? It was only a few days after Soluna's birth. I was tired, hormonal, scared. I cried and cried. I went in for several appointments with a lactation consultant. Soluna slipped well below her birth weight. I was determined to do things right. I was a mama obsessed. I pushed through horrible breastfeeding pain. Soluna got back to her birth weight in a few days and was well on her way to growing beautiful round cheeks. But I kept wondering if I was breastfeeding right, if she was eating enough, if I was doing something wrong... It took me quite a while to have more confidence in feeding her. It also didn't help that some days Soluna was REALLY hungry and other days she seemed to eat for only a few minutes at a time. I hadn't yet learned to trust her cues and my ability to read them.