“Breast is Best,” they say, and this notion often ignites fierce debates among mothers. I stumbled upon the term “Mommy Wars” while desperately searching online for answers to my breastfeeding struggles. For a mother hesitant about continuing breastfeeding, the internet can be a minefield.
To provide some context, this is my response to a close friend who, in the early days of my motherhood journey, simply asked, “How is it going?”
Exhausting. My newborn is latched on all day and night, so much so that I often forget to cover up. My partner, Tom, joked that he might never want to see them again. She wriggles around as if my breasts are some kind of chew toy. When Tom asked if I was feeding her strawberry milk, I snapped back, “No, that’s blood from my nipples!” The pain was real, and it didn’t stop there. She only sleeps for short bursts, preferring to doze on me. On top of that, she seems to have gas but won’t relieve herself. My hormones are all over the place—crying because I finally got a shower and then again because the house still smelled like breakfast!
Yet, in those fleeting moments when she gives me a goofy look or when my older son, Max, runs to comfort her, I realize just how much my identity has changed since she arrived.