Breastfeeding a 5 year old with Natalie and Dana

I’ve got two amazing mums for you this week in a bumper episode about feeding five year olds.

Natalie, in Cornwall, breastfeeds her 5-year-old daughter Georgia mainly at bedtime (and occasionally in the morning or when ill), and describes how continuing breastfeeding helped with starting school, bedtime regulation, co-sleeping, and meeting Georgia’s high attachment needs. She discusses societal pressure, comments Georgia received from her classmates, her own feelings about reclaiming her body (supported by returning to exercise), and managing mixed reactions from family and professionals while staying confident in her choices. 

Dana, originally from the Czech Republic and living in Cambridgeshire, breastfeeds her 5-year-old son Alex every couple of days (around her evening work schedule) and tandem feeds him with her 3-year-old daughter River. She shares how tandem feeding worked after River’s birth, how feeds fit around school and very early bedtimes, and how breastfeeding has been largely straightforward for her, supported by family.

My picture book on how breastfeeding journeys end, The Story of Jessie’s Milkies, is available from Amazon here -  The Story of Jessie's Milkies. In the UK, you can also buy it from The Children’s Bookshop in Muswell Hill, London. Other book shops and libraries can source a copy from Ingram Spark publishing.

You can also get 10% off my books on supporting breastfeeding beyond six months and supporting the transition from breastfeeding at the Jessica Kingsley press website, that's uk.jkp.com using the code MMPE10 at checkout.

Follow me on Instagram  @emmapickettibclc or find out more on my website www.emmapickettbreastfeedingsupport.com 

This podcast is presented by Emma Pickett IBCLC, and produced by Emily Crosby Media.