Prolonged breastfeeding is breastfeeding that has not been interrupted over time. Usually this term is used when lactation lasts more than one year. In fact, I didn't know this, but after researching more on the subject, talking about breastfeeding with the term prolonged is incorrect. Prolong means doing something that lasts longer than normal or established. And when we use this term in breastfeeding we are considering it as if breastfeeding were something extraordinary rather than normal.
In my case, I have been fortunate to have been able to breastfeed my two children. I breastfed my oldest for a year. My son was the one who decided that he no longer wanted to, and the truth is that it turned out excellent because that was my plan from the beginning, to breastfeed him only for the first year. I started replacing feedings with formula around 10 months, to make the weaning a little more gradual and so we both adapted little by little to the change. He adapted to a different taste than breast milk and for me, it was my body adapting to stop producing the same amount of milk. When he was one year old I was only offering him the feeding before going to sleep. One day, he decided for himself that he didn't want to, I offered it to him and he alone wouldn't eat, he wanted to drink from a glass. The same thing happened for a week and that was when, by decision of both of us, we stopped breastfeeding.
Shortly after, I became pregnant with my daughter. With her everything has been completely different. Since before I had it, I became much more informed about everything. Of course it helped that now I was surrounded by many more mothers than before, you talked and saw things that before being a mother I would not have even known about. And one of the topics that was discussed a lot was breastfeeding, so I started to educate myself. Within this, topics included how to not have pain in the beginning, positions, duration, benefits, risks, etc. Having read about all the benefits, I now don't understand why I had the plan to stop breastfeeding my oldest son when he turned one.
My daughter turned one year old a month ago and I don't see any intention of stopping breastfeeding, in my opinion I think she is looking to breastfeed much more than before and the truth is in times of COVID I will try to continue giving her as much as possible, my goal is not to become for a while, it is being able to give her until she wants it or we both want it.
One of the great benefits of breast milk is that it does not lose its properties over time. After the first year of breastfeeding, the amount of fat in milk increases compared to the first months, which makes breast milk a complete and nutritious food and is of better quality than formula or cow's milk. It has been observed that a nursing baby over one year old obtains approximately 1/3 of its daily caloric and protein needs through breast milk, sometimes more in periods of illness, in addition to a very important amount of vitamins and minerals. . On the other hand, it has also been seen that older children who breastfeed continue to enjoy the immunological benefits of breast milk and get sick less than children their age who are not breastfed.
The advantages of maintaining breastfeeding for longer are not only observed in the short term, but also years after weaning: lower incidence of certain types of cancer (such as childhood leukemia) and metabolic and autoimmune diseases (such as type 1 diabetes) , greater intellectual development, better emotional and psychosocial development of the child.
The longer the duration, the lower the incidence of child abuse, a better relationship with parents in adolescence, a greater perception of care and better mental health in adult life.
The longer breastfeeding lasts, so are the advantages for the breastfeeding mother: lower risk of type 2 diabetes, breast cancer, ovarian cancer, hypertension and myocardial infarction.
In some cultures, especially in the East, breastfeeding over one year of age is normal and everyday, while in the West it is relatively rare.
In addition to all this, breastfeeding my daughter now is sometimes not easy. I currently believe that one of the difficulties faced by mothers who decide to have uninterrupted breastfeeding is the scarcity of public places where you can comfortably breastfeed your baby, the scarcity of breastfeeding rooms in shopping centers, offices, etc. Another difficulty is the rejection of society.
When I passed the 6-month mark of breastfeeding my son, I began to receive a lot of unsolicited opinions about the duration of breastfeeding, including family members, doctors, and even people who didn't even know me. They questioned why I was still breastfeeding my son if it had already been 6 months, that “I had to switch to formula,” that they would both be better off if you changed, that you would get osteoporosis, etc. Obviously I changed doctors when he told me that. As for my relatives, after having seen how my son has developed and how rarely he gets sick, they stopped giving their opinion by the time my daughter was born. Something that was super important for me and that helped me a lot to overcome all those opinions was the support that my husband gave me, he was always by my side encouraging me to continue.
I wanted to find out the experience of other mothers, so I had the opportunity to interview two mothers who were able to breastfeed for more than a year and thus, know what challenges and benefits they saw from having had uninterrupted breastfeeding, if it had been similar to mine or completely different. These were their testimonies:
Mom A
I breastfed for 13 months. My experience with breastfeeding was kind of love and hate, there were situations where I loved it and others where I didn't, honestly at first it was very tiring because I was the only one getting up at night, but I continued because I knew it was the best for my baby . When I started to enjoy breastfeeding more, it was after 6 months that my baby had a slightly more defined routine and didn't have to breastfeed all the time. I received negative comments from the beginning of breastfeeding, especially from previous generations who did not understand the reason for breastfeeding, they thought that giving formula is much better. But now I was able to prove that that was not the case and that my daughter is very healthy. My husband was amazing. The first weeks were very difficult and he was by my side helping and supporting me. I never mention switching to formula. My friends and my mother also supported me and made comments that reinforced my desire to continue breastfeeding. The ones who made negative comments were my in-laws, but that made me more motivated to continue breastfeeding. I weaned because I was ready and my daughter could now drink cow's milk.
Mom B
My son is 19 months old and I am still breastfeeding. My experience with breastfeeding was difficult at first, my son had a frenulum problem, so the first few days in the hospital he couldn't latch on. For a few weeks I pumped, until I tried again and we were successful. There were times when breastfeeding was complicated because I had to change my diet, but that didn't stop me from continuing. I usually don't get negative comments, most of them are supportive, and the ones that aren't, I really don't care. My husband and family have all been very supportive of me from the beginning and have motivated me to continue breastfeeding. There are times when it is difficult to breastfeed my son in public places because he gets very distracted and then there are no places to breastfeed him, but I always try to manage. I haven't weaned yet and the truth is I haven't even thought about it because my son is allergic to cow's milk, so I prefer to breastfeed him rather than giving him other types of milk.
In conclusion, each mother's situation is different in relation to breastfeeding, but I believe that each family's decision should always be respected and the most important thing is support between mothers, not discouraging another mother for having made a different decision than the one yours. I invite you to inform yourself so that you can make a decision tailored to your needs and possibilities, always remembering that the goal is not to achieve successful breastfeeding, but rather happy breastfeeding.