Terrible Tonsils and Other Matters

When I was about ten years old, a doctor told me that I had terrible tonsils. My mum refused to allow them to be removed, claiming that they are my first line of defence. It turns out that this means I get lots of tonsillitis, while they defend me against various invading forces. Or something.

I haven’t had it for a while, but following a fairly strenuous period since Christmas, they have now exploded, and ow! But it’s never just a sore throat, is it? I also have immense back pain, throbbing headache, hot-cold-shiverings, and great fatigue. This is not ideal.

Mum suggests that I could solve all the world’s problems, or at least improve my own health, by giving up breastfeeding, which, she says, takes a lot out of me. I was thinking about this yesterday evening, while sitting comfortably (despite the back pain) on the chair in Bernard’s bedroom, peacefully feeding him to sleep. It was a pleasant half hour during which I could do nothing but rest and relax. Meanwhile, here are a few other things that take a lot out of me, which I have also considered giving up:

• Getting Bernard dressed
• Changing his nappies
• Doing his laundry
• Preparing his meals
• Cycling to and from his childminder
• Scuttling around after him as he takes his afternoon constitutional in the road outside the house
• Going swimming

Apparently, though, most of these things are mandatory for parents.

Meanwhile, here are a few of the things that mothers benefit from, by continuing to breastfeed after one year:

• Reduced risk of breast, ovarian, uterine, and endometrial cancer
• Decreased chance of osteoporosis and rheumatoid arthritis
• Lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes
• A higher concentration of immunological factors in the milk protects the child against illness, therefore less illness-related stress for mum
• The calming effect of oxytocin works on mum too
• Marvellous tool for calming an upset toddler, reconnecting with him after a working day, feeding him when he’s poorly and doesn’t want solids, and getting him off to sleep. Note that I’m not saying mums who are no longer breastfeeding can’t do of these things; there are other tools.

And after all, I feed him just twice in 24 hours, once sitting on a comfortable chair, and once lying down in bed. That’s the kind of work I like best.