A resource to inspire, inform and empower parents.

Breastfeeding Through the Night

For more on this topic click here for our podcast episode.

When my baby was just a couple months old my pediatrician told me that he should be sleeping 10-12 hours a night without waking up. He didn’t sleep anywhere near that (and still doesn’t at 7.5 years old). So naturally I freaked out! I thought there was something wrong with him. 

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Co-Sleeping With the Breastfeeding Baby

This is one of the early co-sleeping setups we had. It’s funny how fancy and clean it looks. Totally a posed photo. (There is bungee cord underneath connecting the bed to the crib so that there wouldn’t be a gap).

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This Is How Co-Sleeping Can Support Breastfeeding – And How You Can Do It Safely

By Wendy Wisner, IBCLC

One of the things that surprised me most about breastfeeding was just how frequently my baby wanted to do it. I was told that babies needed to nurse every 2-3 hours, and would sleep a longer stretch at night. But that was not my experience at all.

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A Co-Sleeping Family of Four

Abby Theuring, The Badass Breastfeeder's co-sleeping family bed

Four heads in this bed. There are 4 heads that lie down to sleep in this bed every night. One of them is mine and the other 3 are the only heads that matter in this world. Before these 3 heads in my bed the night could be very scary. All alone with my thoughts. Growing anxious about work or family or friends. Coldness and loneliness all around. Things always seem worse at night. Now these 3 heads and their warm bodies surround me and protect me from the night. Even when the thoughts start to swarm or my worry about something keeps me up, these heads keep it in perspective. There is nothing bigger in my life than these 3. Nothing that can harm me as long as they are here. Last week something happened that really upset me. I felt scared and vulnerable. But that night I went to bed between these 3. My head was snuggled against 2 other heads that had spilled onto my pillow and this problem suddenly seemed so small. It shrunk in size right before my eyes. How can anything really be that bad or matter that much when I have these guys? I imagine they feel the same, the little ones don’t think of this as clearly as I do, but I know that they feel safe here.

Breastfeeding Can Feel Old Then Fresh Again

Things get old. Sometimes going outside, making meals or playing the same old games feels old. Even breastfeeding feels old sometimes, like could you please just skip a feeding? But one thing that never feels old to me is sharing a bed with these boys. I never get tired of pulling them into my chest, smelling their heads and watching their sleeping faces. I don’t even get tired of a foot or butt in the face. It’s always a new adventure. Simply going to sleep with 2 small children is a new and unique adventure everyday. I never get tired of finding out what tonight will bring. At the end of the day it feels like such an accomplishment to see them sleeping. Healthy and safe in my bed. The house feels calm and it’s very quiet for the first time since before the sun came up. When the little one starts to stir and asks for “boobie” in the pitch dark, breastfeeding feels less heavy and old than it did earlier. A quiet night and sleeping children can freshen anything up.

Abby Theuring, The Badass Breastfeeder's boys cosleeping, bed sharing.

Review of the Sleepod by Askr & Embla

Cosleeping has many benefits such as fostering attachment between you and your new baby, making night feeding easier and being able to monitor your baby more closely. It’s been found that the co-sleeping mom and baby get more sleep. Frequent night feedings increase milk supply in the breastfeeding mother. It has also been found that co-sleeping reduces the risks of SIDS by up to 50%. All that paired with waking up to your smiling baby makes for a great case to co-sleep!

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Tandem Nursing Nighttime Routine

I didn’t think much about sleep before I was a mom, but it didn’t take long for me to learn that this was one of the most controversial topics in parenting. My husband, Josh, read a bunch of sleep books while I was pregnant, I didn’t read any. It never occurred to me that it would involve anything beyond lying a baby down in a crib and walking out of the room while they closed their eyes to quiet sleep. It’s what I always saw in the moves! Well, HA! [Read more…]

An Open Letter to Doctors About Birth and Breastfeeding

Dear Doctors,

I want to personally thank you for dedicating your lives to helping people maintain wellness. You have gone through a lot of schooling and gained a ton of experience to be able to guide people through sickness and to live healthy, fulfilling and long lives. You have literally saved the lives of family members. When I am sick or injured you are the first person I call. We would be in a terrible place without you.

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A Book Review of Sage Parenting: Where Nature Meets Nurture

Abby Theuring, The Badass Breastfeeder, breastfeeding her son.

Sage Parenting: Where Nature Meets Nurture by Rachel Rainbolt, MA could have drastically changed how I prepared for motherhood. When I became pregnant I read What to Expect When You’re Expecting like it was the holy bible for pregnant mothers. Each month I read the corresponding chapter about 12 times. I enjoyed reading about my baby. I didn’t know that there was a whole world of parenting books out there and when I gave birth to Jack, while I spent the whole pregnancy following his growth, I wasn’t at all prepared to be his mother. I wasn’t even prepared for birth or the decisions made immediately after birth. [Read more…]

Attachment Parenting with Triplets by Davina Wright

Davina breastfeeding her triplets.

5.00am – Everyone wakes up
5.30am – Pump for 10 minutes, get 300-400ml (10-12oz)
6.00am – Tandem feed girls, 2 babies breastfed
8-9.00am – Feed everyone to sleep for nap, 3 babies breastfed
11.30am – Snack feed for everyone, 3 babies breastfed [Read more…]