Try and Be Present

by Alison Kramer

Visitor Breastfeeding Tip: Try and be present.

I know it feels like there are more important things you could be doing. Especially when you are tired and sore, or your baby is teething, or you're in the mall/on a bus/at the bank....

Babies grow so quickly. The gift you are giving yours is time you will never regret. When I watched my 7 year old son participate in his school play yesterday, i realized just how much he has grown. I look back at the three years of nursing him - hours and hours, all the challenges - I never regret wearing him, sleeping with him, or nursing him.

I've been nursing for 7 years. Three children later, my youngest now is 3 and has almost weaned. She nurses every few days at night before she goes to sleep. I really enjoy those times, when she curls up in bed beside me and is my baby again. She takes what she needs to help her be a big girl the rest of the time. So Precious.

When you can, try and put everything else aside - the tv, computer, books etc - and be there in the moment nursing your baby. You can carry the feeling with you as they grow.

Enjoy your time nursing your baby. Savor it. Fight for it. Talk about it. Do it in front of other women and girls. Be proud of it.