Why I love nursing a toddler #1

Welcome to the April Carnival of Breastfeeding Hosted by The Motherwear Breastfeeding Blog.
*This was a post I published back in September, but I thought it fit this month's topic of "extended" breastfeeding so here it is again!!


A couple of weeks ago, Jacob was having a rough day.  He resisted his nap, and so by 5pm, the "witching hour" as some like to call it, he was especially fussy.  I had nursed him on the couch, and when he was done, he wanted to stay there and play, which is usually a no-no for me, but since he was so fussy I gave in.

Sitting on the floor in front of the couch, watching him walk from side to side, I let my guard down.  He was having so much fun and seemed to be okay, as long as I stayed where I was.  Just as that thought entered my mind, he began to fling himself down on the side of the couch.  It was like I could see it in slow motion; his tiny head falling right above the (unpadded) arm of the couch, me rising to save him just a moment too late.

The second his mouth hit the arm, he screamed.  No delay, like he had when he was an infant and would accidentally hit his head, no, this was instantaneous pain.  I immediately scooped up my poor hurt boy and ran him to his room.  Holding him on my chest for a few minutes to calm him down, I didn't realize how much blood was coming out of his mouth until he looked at me with tear-stained eyes.

After grabbing a washcloth and dabbing his mouth, I popped my little man on the boob and let him nurse for as long as he wanted.  This turned out to be about 45 minutes straight.  I hadn't done this since he was a newborn, but it felt so good knowing that I was helping ease my baby's pain.

Jacob ended up breaking his upper labial frenulum (the piece of skin holding your top lip to your gums). This is a common way for children with tight frenulums to release some of the pull on their lips, (and make nursing easier!!) but it's no less scary because of that.  Because of the nature of this injury, his mouth would have kept on bleeding for a period of time, but it was boob to the rescue!

Here are the ways that nursing a child with this particular kind of injury is helpful:

• The pressure of the nipple on the cut helps to slow the bleeding.
• Breastmilk is a great way to wash away the leftover dried blood in the mouth.
• Nursing releases oxytocin, which is calming for both mother and baby, helping to calm the hurt little one.

With any kind of injury, particularly when your child is a little toddling machine and the head bumps and face plants are inevitable, being able to nurse your child when they're hurt is mutually beneficial.  It stops their crying, sometimes eases their pain (depending on the injury), and helps to calm you while your baby is preoccupied.  Since Jacob has been a toddler I've had plenty of opportunities to use this wonderful, natural remedy, and I know a lot of mama friends who do the same.  

Just another amazing thing that our bodies can do for our little ones, and the benefits only increase as they get older!