Succeed when you breastfeed

You’ve just been through the traumatic but amazing miracle of birth and they hand you this tiny infant with goopy eyes and say why don’t you try to breastfeed.  You are tired and filled with emotions of all kinds.  The baby is drowsy and hard to wake up and they want you to try to fit the end of your cantaloupe sized boob into their tiny grape sized mouth.  Not exactly the easiest task.  Now I’m not going to try to explain how to breastfeed.  I mean, you stick your nipple in the baby’s mouth, they suck and milk comes out.  Not rocket science.  What I want to prepare you for is those first few days when both you AND baby are getting the hang of it.  You have never nursed a baby before and the baby has never nursed before.

Think of it.  This precious little baby has been in this nice hot tub with all the food they need piped straight into their bodies.  All they needed to do is exercise and sleep.  When the baby first gets here they are really drowsy for a couple of days.  They have to figure out how to suckle.  All the feelings and sights and sounds are brand new to them.  Even the feeling of hunger!  The baby will have to learn to associate the fact that nursing makes that feeling go away.

The baby WILL lose weight!!!  Usually at least 8 ounces or so the first couple of days.  I think some times new moms aren’t properly warned about this and get so nervous that they give in to formula when they really didn’t want to.  Don’t freak out and don’t let the doctor freak you out.  With my last the doctor tried to tell me that I may have to supplement with formula because she had lost more than the expected 8 oz.  By her 2 day appointment she was gaining weight just fine.

All you have at the beginning is colostrum.  Just nurse that baby as much as you can and let it be a wonderful bonding experience.  In a couple of days your milk will come in and you will be drowning them with yummy milk.  Literally, with my first I was making so much milk that it was squirting everywhere and choking the poor little guy. Squirting him in his eyes and up his nose.  It was a mess.  Tip – Keep a couple of burp cloths handy.  You will need one to put over the breast that you are not nursing with because when your milk lets down it can spray milk everywhere!  In a few weeks your breasts (which are new to this too) will figure out how much milk they need to make and the baby will get the hang of sucking and you will get the hang of juggling this tiny infant.

In the beginning it is awkward.  It feels kind of weird.  Trying to hold your baby’s head at the right angle and your breast up is like a juggling act.  But like everything else, with practice you will both become pros.  Hang in there.  Don’t give up if it doesn’t work well at first.  Don’t be one bit shy or embarrassed to ask a nurse or breastfeeding consultant to help you.  That’s what they are there for.  If it’s not working and you’re both getting frustrated, just strip that baby down to its diaper and put it on your naked chest and cuddle away.  That was one of my favorite things to do is get skin to skin with my newborn.  They hear the familiar sound of your heartbeat and feel the warmth of your body and in an hour or two when you are both more calm, just try, try again!

PS – For moms who have to have a C-Section please see Christy’s comment.  Thanks Christy for the great info!!!

I think one of the most important steps to breastfeeding occurs before the baby even arrives.  I think the very first step is a mental one.  If you go into it unprepared and undecided then you are likely to fail.  If you have the attitude that I’ll give it a try and see how it goes and if it doesn’t go well then I’ll just quit, that’s probably what will happen.  (That’s the problem with many marriages in our world too, but that’s another blog another day).  The key to breastfeeding is Determination!  You’ve got to have the mindset that I’m going to nurse this baby if it kills me!  This is do or die and we are going to do!

Now as I said in the introduction, I don’t think that you are going to ruin your baby for the rest of its life if you use formula!  I think that is absolutely absurd.  There is research out there that breast milk is the best for your baby, but I know that there are instances where breastfeeding at least exclusively is not possible.  If you are in that situation don’t feel guilty or defeated, just breastfeed as much as possible and love on that baby all you can!  If you are unable to breastfeed your baby you are not a bad mom!!!

Now, that being said, the purpose of this blog is for women who do have the desire to nurse their baby and that will of course be the focus of the topics.  So, if you are still pregnant your first step is to get educated.  Take a breastfeeding class and if possible drag dad to it too.  He needs to know as well.  Most hospitals offer them for a reasonable price, just check your local hospitals web sites.  Read books and take their advice, but also follow your instinct.  If the advice sounds crazy to you then don’t use it!  This is your baby and you are the best person in the world to take care of it.  Not some PhD 900 miles away.  Talk to other mothers.  I know the topic can be a bit embarrassing.  It’s not exactly easy to walk up to an experienced mom and say “teach me how to use my boobs!”  (I’m not shy about this!)  But don’t worry about it.  I can almost promise you that they will be more than willing to impart some of their wisdom to you and will be glad that you thought of them to teach you!

Best of luck to you as you start this amazing journey!  There will be ups and downs and I hope that I can help guide you through them.  Check back for my next post – Remember You’re BOTH New to This!

Welcome to ‘Succeed When You Breastfeed’!  This site is not intended to push breastfeeding over formula.  I don’t really believe that your kid will be stupid or obese or anything like that if you choose not to breastfeed them.  I do think that breastfeeding is a wonderful thing for those who are able to do it.  My desire is to give you the best possible start to your breastfeeding journey and to go along with you hopefully answering your questions and giving you insights that will help you succeed.

Breastfeeding is not always a glamorous thing like some would make it out to be.  I don’t want you to be sideswiped with something and say “they didn’t warn me about that!”  I want to talk about how to get started.  About pumping.  About sex.  I want to empower you with the knowledge before hand so you can be prepared to take action!  I welcome comments and questions and will try to the best of my ability to be there for you as you take on this fabulous journey!