A MUM-of-eight has revealed she has been breastfeeding continuously for 15 years despite thinking she’d never conceive because of an incurable medical condition.
Greta Dench, 38, and her husband Simon, from Melbourne, Australia, were desperate to have children, but struggled due to Greta having polysistic ovary syndrome, which stopped her from regularly releasing eggs.
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But the couple defied the odds 14 years ago and welcomed their first child, Jeremiah, and since have gone on to welcome seven more babies.
After Jeremiah’s birth in 2004, the couple welcomed children Felix, 13, Ezra, 11, and Hugo, nine, within a span of five years – and the family weren’t keen to stop there.
Their fifth son, Jasper, now seven, was born in 2012, followed by three more, all almost two years apart to the day – Vera, four, Benji, two, and Elsie, five months.
Greta believes that daily exercise and nutrition are the key to her raising her eight children – admitting that she’s never suffered from a single stretch mark.
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And she wants others to know that they too can have a big family, so long as they are ‘organised’.
Greta explained: “Having a big family was never part of our discussions when we got married; but I knew I loved kids and babies from an early age, I even became a teacher because of my passion.
“Four kids seemed like a big ask so I worked on my husband, who was happy to stop at three. Once our fourth boy came along, we felt like we might be getting the hang of it, so we contemplated and prayed.
“We felt like there might be another one out there for us, so along came our fifth boy, and the same cycle continued, so then along came another three.
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“For fifteen years I have either been breastfeeding or pregnant. It hasn’t been easy, but it’s been the most fulfilling thing in the world.”
Greta’s polysistic ovaries meant that it took her a year to fall pregnant initially, and with each of the others, it took three to six months.
The mum keeps her home ship shape by ensuring that each of her children has a job and responsibility – but it doesn’t stop her from having a huge workload.
“I am up early at 4.30am to feed the baby and put her back to sleep. I then go for a run to be back for six to have a coffee and quiet moment with hubby; the kids are all up by seven in the morning,” said Greta.
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“They all have their job or routine. Jobs not done means no screen time later that day. They have to pack their own lunchboxes with pre-made sandwiches and snacks from ‘snack tubs’.
“All beds must be made, music practice done and pets fed before heading out the door. Having them work independently leaves me to focus on the youngest two or three kids.
“After school we have a similar routine; unpack bags, snack/homework, dinner time, jobs and at least one or two sport training’s. It is busy but rewarding as we see our kids grow and develop.
“They have learned to share and have well and truly realised the world cannot revolve around them. It is noisy, expensive, exhausting and we have made many sacrifices but there is also so much love.
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“It also can be a lonely place because with so many, invites out can be few and far between and life is just so busy we don’t have much time for a social life.”
Greta admits that while she has been tired more times than she can count and often doesn’t have time for herself, she wouldn’t trade her mum-life for anything else.
“It also can be a lonely place because with so many, dinner invites can be few and far between and life is just so busy we don’t have much time for a social life,” she said.
“We simply wouldn’t change it for the world; the workload is only outweighed by the feeling of fulfilment and reward.
“Having said that, we know we are done; little Elsie is our final puzzle piece and we are finally complete.”
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Greta ensures she drinks plenty of water, keeps up with her vitamins and a good diet, and exercises daily in order to keep her ‘happy hormones’ up.
She added: “Surprisingly I don’t have one stretch mark despite having big babies. So, I am grateful. I had long labours, but they were all completely natural, so I am thankful for that too.
“Having the privilege of growing life in my womb eight times; the miracle of it still blows me away. I am just so grateful my body could do it.”
