Teething is a rite of passage and a major milestone, but having a baby who's teething is difficult — not only because all the toys you buy get chewed up, but because it's hard to watch your baby be in pain.
One mom, however, has come up with a hack to soothe her baby's painful gums — and keep him full and happy at the same time. Tasia Blackwell recently posted a video to Facebook of her infant son munching on a "milksicle" that she made by freezing her breastmilk into popsicle form.
"He LOVES it," she wrote alongside the video. "Helps with his teething pain and helps fill up his tummy."
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Along with the video, she posted photos that show how she made and stored her breastmilk popsicles in freezer bags.
Since Blackwell posted her video and photos last week, they've gone viral — the video has been viewed over 21 million times at the time of writing, and the post has been shared over 248,000 times.
And in case you're wondering, it's totally safe to freeze breastmilk — in fact, doctors recommend it. Last year, Chinyere Anyaogu, MD, vice chair of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at New York City Health and Hospitals/North Central Bronx, told us that she recommends pumping breast milk and storing it for later usage. Breast milk can be stored in a fridge for for three to five days, in a regular fridge freezer for two weeks, and in a deep freezer for up to six months, Dr. Anyaogu said.
The "milksicle," then, is a pretty genius solution — it's safe, healthy, and soothes your baby's teething pains.
Welcome to Mothership: Parenting stories you actually want to read, whether you're thinking about or passing on kids, from egg-freezing to taking home baby and beyond. Because motherhood is a big if — not when — and it's time we talked about it that way.
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