I breastfeed my husband, here's how I do it now my children aren't babies
Rachel Bailey, 32, from Florida, US, told how she is desperate to continue breastfeeding her husband, Alexander, 32, and has turned to her own methods to keep their bond strong.
However, now that she's done with having children, she's explained the new ways she's producing breast milk.
The couple told how their typical feeding routine has been on hold for over a year so now she wants to bring back what her partner has been missing.
Rachel said: 'I am finally taking steps to lactate so I could give my man what he's been missing for the past year that we have stopped.
'And don't worry to those who think this is a sexual thing. This isn't about sensationalism, it's about reclaiming softness.'
Rachel first started breastfeeding her husband in 2016, and since then things have been going great with the pair as they told how it brought them closer.
She continued to let him feed from her until 2023 when her child was then old enough that her natural flow had come to an end.
But after over a year of not having their home comfort, the couple have decided they want to try new methods to bring it back.
Rachel explained that she is now researching and exploring the possibility of lactation without having to fall pregnant.
She revealed that she will be starting with breast stimulation, manual expression and tea as well as lots of relaxation and a supplemental nursing system.
They hope that with consistent work they will be able to experience the bond they once shared.
Rachel said: 'I miss that bond. It was sacred, hilarious, healing, intimate and yeah, a little weird to some. But it was ours.
'Now that my son's older, I started wondering if I could bring that bond back without having another baby?
'Research shows yes, so we're beginning a new chapter. Exploring whether it's possible to reintroduce lactation without being pregnant.
'I just feel the power, the bond, the energy, the conjoined with nature, and just how much power it brings to us.
'I saw that there are so many ways that you could get your milk flowing again. This is amazing if you're not pregnant, but you want to like it.
'I'm going to be massaging my area... herbal teas, in order to get the milk flowing and get our bond flowing even more than it already has.'
Alexander said: 'I feel like it takes us to another level.
'Although we are the freakiest couple on social media or the most sexual couple or central couple on social media, this is not a sexual thing.
'It's actually more of a spiritual thing to me.'
The mother previously explained that Alexander didn't get a cold in two years and he was getting plenty of compliments on his skin when she was breastfeeding him.
'It's a bit of a taboo subject, but we wanted to share it because we don't think it's bad and we aren't ashamed,' she said in 2023.
Alexander initially began drinking Rachel's breastmilk to help her when she was over-lactating while nursing their children.
'When my middle child, Aria, now six, was breastfeeding, I went away on a cruise with Alexander,' she explained.
'However, I forgot my breast pump and was badly engorged for two days.
'I was in so much pain and I was scared about getting an infection, so we decided that my husband was going to try drinking the milk to relieve me.
'We were nervous about the idea of him breastfeeding from me but as soon as we did it, we realized it was perfectly fine.'
Rachel said it was 'an instant relief when Alexander latched on'.
'On top of that, it has also created a more special bond between us which we never would have had if we didn't start this,' she added.
When she was producing the most milk shortly after giving birth, he was drinking her milk 'three to four times a day'.
Rachel says her diet also affects Alexander's as a result.
'It's funny because if I eat something spicy, it also gives Alexander gas too,' she said.
The mother also stressed that her children are priority - and has always made sure that her babies are fed first before Alexander finishes the remaining milk.
The couple talk about breastfeeding on their social media and have also appeared on TLC's My Strange Addiction.
'I love breastfeeding him as it allows us to spend quality time together. It's definitely brought us closer as a couple,' Rachel explained.
'We realised there was nothing wrong with me breastfeeding him, and it would actually be good for him as it is so nutritious.
'He didn't get a cold for two years after he started drinking my milk and so many people said his skin was so much better too.
'It's not a kink for us. It started as Alexander just helping me out when I was in pain, but it turned into more of an emotional bonding thing.'
When she fell pregnant again for the third time with her youngest child, Matthew, two, she'd begin over-lactating again and Alexander was on hand to gladly help her out.
She would breastfeed her husband at breakfast, lunch and dinner, but as she is now producing less milk, she is only breastfeeding him at night.
'I have just stepped away from nursing our youngest child as I am producing less milk, so he just feeds on my milk in the evenings now,' Rachel explained.
'I am sad that our breast feeding times have reduced now because I feel like it has taken away our routine of those blocks of quality time that we had together.'
She says it's 'such a nice experience' and the couple are 'so glad' they started doing it.
'Nothing bad has come from it at all, so why should it be something that is hidden?,' she remarked.
'Alexander felt so much more energized when he was drinking my milk and he said that he even felt in a state of medication while he was latched on.
'It was really special and brought us closer than ever before.'
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