Alaynah's Last Latch

This last latch story comes to you from Colorado. Photographer, DeAnna Weyhrich, of DD Weyhrich Photography  sent me the words and images of her client, Khrystal. 

"I remember our first time together. I lifted her up awkwardly and tried to line up her mouth where it needed to be so she could get her first big drink of milk. “It will come natural!” they said. No one tells you how far that actually is from reality. It hurt. It was hard. My nipples were bleeding and I had no milk. When my milk did come in, I didn’t think I had enough milk. There are so many things that happen at the beginning of a breastfeeding journey that no one warns you about. I couldn’t believe how many people I knew stopped breastfeeding because they thought they weren’t producing enough or that they were doing something wrong. Yet, society expects that is what a mother is supposed to do."

"I joined a group on social media, asked a million questions, visited an International Board of Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC), and told myself I would never give up. This meant too much to me. As the days and weeks went on, things started to get better. My nipples healed and I would see milk dripping from my daughter’s mouth when she ate." 

"I returned back to work and she started going to daycare, so I began pumping during the day. As time went on, those moments of breastfeeding grew more and more special. We didn’t get to nurse during the day while she was at daycare, so each and every day I couldn’t wait to pick her up so we could nurse! She would nurse once or twice and then off to bed she went. I really looked forward to her middle of the night wake-up for her ‘snack’ so we could have our beautiful moments together."

"Breastfeeding has been one of the hardest, most complicated journeys I have ever been on. I can’t believe we made it as far as we have. My milk has healed her dry skin, diaper rashes, cradle cap, and even a stye on her eye. My milk has kept my baby healthy and full. My milk has shortened the length of time of her colds and stomach flu. My milk is resilient, beautiful, and nutritious. My milk began to mean a lot to me." 

"I knew once I saw the pictures of milk bath sessions that I wanted to do a milk bath session as well. There is nothing that means more to me than the bond that myself, my child, and my milk were able to create since birth. I am saddened that our journey will soon be coming to an end, but I will always have these pictures that represent everything we have been through together over the past year and I can’t wait to see what the future holds for us. "

Khrystal, thank you so much for sharing your story. And thank you DD for sending in this submission! If you or someone you know would like to share, please fill out the contact form on the home page to set up a FREE Last Latch session.