Travel and breastfeeding
My daughter is coming up to 3 yrs old. This was going to be the time I would have started to cut down on night feeds. This is also the time we begin our travels. Long-term travels. So what do I do?
This is going to be a very hard time for her since we will not be living at home anymore. Home will now be where the family is. Whether it is in a rented house, tent or hotel. That place will be home, and home is where mum and dad are.
She gets a lot of things from breastfeeding, whether it is healing, nutrition, regrouping, healing after fall, comfort, sleep initiator and loads more other reasons. There are so many things that this one thing does. I don’t think I want to stop night feeding unless she is completely ready. I feel she will be ready once we have travelled for a few months. Once she has got used to the idea of moving around.
The first few months of travel will be lots of short stays, then we will start to slow down into more of a weird routine. This is when I think she will start to become more confident in what we are doing and won’t need to feed as much.
It is such a small time in my life that I have to devote to her.
By no means do I want to stop feeding her as it is the easiest way to calm her and regroup her to the present. Sometimes it doesn’t work but this just a sign of the times to come. We are trying new methods of regrouping to the present like breathing. I have taught her to take a breath. This is not only very beneficial to her, it is also the cutest thing. Along with this, I try to explain the feelings that she looks like she’s going through. Fear, excitement, sadness, happiness. I want them all to have names so she knows how to describe the feelings she is having. This will be a great tool to help me get through what she needs to get through.
So I look forward to being there for her physically and mentally, whether I am ready for it or not. It’s a bit like parenthood. Get ready for the rollercoaster because it is going to be one hell of a ride.
It is such a small time in my life that I have to devote to her, in no time she will be on her own journey and I so look forward to seeing what it is and seeing her flourish in her passions. For now, I will continue to breastfeed her until she needs me.
Breastfeeding a toddler is just as important as feeding a baby.
