It's like Pride Week for Zofia and me!

Happy World Breastfeeding Week to Zofia and me!

See how excited we are? Any chance Zofia gets to celebrate boobies, she takes it and RUNS with it... usually still with my nipple in her mouth. This is our 4th WBW together and she's not seeming to lose any steam. In fact, this Saturday marks the first time she will ever go to bed without me or my boobies. She's spending the night with her Yia Yia and I'm having a night alone with my husband. This is a HUGE milestone in our breastfeeding relationship. Wish us luck! I think I'll need it more than her.

The focus is to share with people the benefits of nursing, showcase the people that are out there to help with a breastfeeding journey, and to encourage people to support breastfeeding mothers. I made a joke about Zofia getting me a present to celebrate, but in all honesty, the gifts she's giving me are plentiful. Our relationship certainly isn't the norm in the USA but there are so many benefits to BOTH of us in the extended nursing relationship Kellymom.com says:

Breastfeeding benefits toddlers and young children…nutritionally, immunologically and psychologically.

• Breastfeeding contributes to your child’s NUTRITION

• Breastfeeding contributes to your child’s HEALTH

• Breastfeeding contributes to your child’s INTELLECTUAL DEVELOPMENT

• Breastfeeding contributes to your child’s SOCIAL and MENTAL DEVELOPMENT

• Breastfeeding your child past infancy is NORMAL

• MOTHERS also benefit from breastfeeding for a longer duration

If you see a nervous mama nursing in public or have a special person in your life who is currently nursing, give them a high 5 and a little word of encouragement.

We'll be celebrating with boobies:

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Wordless Wednesday

Today I'm going to let Kim Rosas do all the talking for these pictures because she says it better than me in Oops! I Forgot to Wean My 2 Year Old

My Diagnosis. Also? I think I have a mustache.

Had you told the girl in this picture that in ten years' time she'd be sitting in the bathroom putting Rogaine on her head with hair remover on her lip and an estrogen patch on her butt, I'd wager she'd keel over. Either that or punch you. Probably punch you. I use to be really bitchy. Never in my wildest dreams would I have thought that at the age of 32 I'd be dealing with the body of a 55 year old. The official diagnosis is estrogen deficiency. My body thinks it's in menopause. I've lost at least 50% of my hair, my ovaries have shut down, and for the past 6 years I've honestly thought I was losing my mind. The anxiety, depression, memory loss, COMPLETE emotional instability: ALL symptoms of estrogen deficiency. How did it take so long to figure out? Well, since I've been pregnant or breastfeeding since 2006, it was kind of hard to tell what was what. Certifiable problem or hormonal pregnant girl? Your guess. It wasn't until my body really started shutting down and I really started getting scared that I actually had dementia did I get full bloodwork. What's next? For the time being while we wait for Zofia to wean I'm on an estrogen patch. I shed my tears about the hormone replacement therapy drying up my milk and bringing an end to this stage of Zofia's life, but if left untreated, estrogen deficiency leads to osteoporosis, stroke, and heart disease. As my mom pointed out, Zofia would rather drink out of a cup than have me die of heart disease. Touche, mom. I'm not going to cut her off cold turkey though, so they aren't going to test for the cause of this deficiency just yet, such as tumors, as breastfeeding would skew the findings in lab work. (For now I'm going to pretend like there's never been any mention of tumors as I MIGHT FREAK THE FREAK OUT!!!!!!)

So, that's where I am. Estrogen patch firmly on my butt and a lot of fixing and healing to do. The toll that it has taken on my body, marriage, kids, career, and relationships is hard to put into words. The task of rebuilding everything makes me feel like an asthmatic acrophobic about to scale Mt. Everest. Impossible. I'm scared y'all. Real scared.

If you're the praying type, send me a prayer. If you're the hugging type, send me one of those. If you're the forgiving type, well thank the Good Lord for you.