It's absaloutely fine to breastfeed or formula feed - main priority is baby and that baby is fed and healthy. Happy mum is also an added bonus!
Breastfeeding is not easy. Theres the whole debate of (which I'm sick of hearing about) "breastfeeding in public should be done discreetly" "fed is best" "My mums cousion twice removed did this so its fine" yadah yadah yadah - great okay.
When people post or are proud of doing something that they have achieved, they should damn well have the right to post about it. And I get that feeling because of society, some mums don't feel that they can. Breastfeeding can be an achievement.
"I've been breastfeeding my son for 6 months" - I personally would congratulate anyone who said this, or any mother who has managed to breastfeed; even if for 1 week. That sh*t is hard! It isn't easy.
When I was pregnant, I didn't think twice or even once come to think of it about how I'm going to feed my son (oops). Matter of fact, I forgot babies needed milk!!! (ISh*tYouNot)
Anyway, I went and spent £70 (on offer) the Philips Avent steriliser which came with a breast pump. I didn't contimplate looking further into it really. Until my 37 week midwife appointment when my midwife said that I can start to collect colostrum (other wise known as 'liquid gold' in 1ml syringes. My face was like, errr whut? Excuse me? Come again?
It then hit me that my baby is going to need feeding. I attempted at 39 weeks to harvest this liquid gold - I was so scared to do so. I didn't get anything out anywhere so it was a massive fail.
The morning my son was born, I tried to get him to latch and it was perfect. We did it for 10 minutes or so - I had no idea if I was doing it right but we went with it. YAY!
I then began harvesting colostrum whilst in hospital as ... well why not? I have no idea why.
I then recieved supper support with latching from a lot of midwifery assistants at the Norfolk and Norwich hospital, making sure I was confident with the latch and that my baby was getting the good stuff. Once they were happy with it they sent us on our way. When we got home, thats when realisation kicked in...
Terms I'd never heard of until breastfeeding! :
Cluster feeding Yes this is something. It's pretty self explanatory. Cluster meaning "a close group, or close together" in terms of feeding and very regular - if not non stop! Newborns go through a stage of just wanting to cluster feed. They want to be on the boob 24/7 if they can. However, at the newborn stage - this is when babies actually get a lot of sleep during the day. Whether that be on yourself or in a mosesbasket/crib that's in your hands (my son always and still does nap on me to this day at 9 months old).
Tip for surviving cluster feeding:
- Have lots of snacks and fluids near by, if you don't have this make sure you have someone waiting on you hand and food.
- Get comfy, a nursing pillow is a big help (personally). My back, shoulders and neck thanked me for it. Until I recenlty became lazy and don't use it.
- Be prepared to try many positions that suit yourself and your baby. It's trial and error, you may like some, your baby may hate others.
- Enjoy the cluster feeding, it goes past quickly when they're this small. Admittantly my son has chosen to cluster feed(what feels like it) every now and then, but it sure isn't the same as when he was newborn.
- Enjoy holding your tiny new baby that you created mumma! Once they start to grow, it gets harder - especially around the 5 month stage where they would rather look at everything else.
- If you're going out in public, good on you. You do what you gotta do! Be confident and be yourself, you are protected by the law in UK. Your baby comes first.
- Its an emotional roller coaster for some, its overwhelming. You're trying your hardest to do righy by your baby (and you are) - just go with it. Babie are highl demanding when they're newborns. Keep it up!
- Physially, mentally and emotionally draining. It is so worth it I promise you. To see your baby thrive from just you. It truly is an achievment.
Pumping - This I was not sure of. Yes we milk ourselves like cows and its actually pretty natural. I was shocked to say the least to see milk coming out of myself for the first time properly!
It isn't recommended for a new mother to pump until at least 6 weeks once their supply is established. However, some mums do because they physially are struggling to breastfeed with pain or the latch in general. Do what is best for you.
It's overwhelming how many pumps are out there, but I have to say the best purchase I have made is with one of these bad boys. You can get other sources such as this one called the Haakaa.
This is a godsend, a similar one that I have is the Naturebond Silicone Pump. I WISH I had one of these when my son was a newborn, you can use these when you have a newborn and you become engorged (which i will explain next) - simply by catching the milk that leaks. In the first stage of the 4th trimester, boy oh boy I leaked!
Engorgment - This I was not prepared with. After day 4 of having a baby you are an emotional wreck, and so you should be. Your body has been through a lot, and that is an understatement.
At this point when I was an emotional wrech and wanted to give up breastfeeding, it was mainly down to my breasts being so engorged. It was painful, my breasts were super heavy. I wasn't sure what I was doing was correct. I tried to hand express after a warm shower to eleviate the pain and the engorgment/temporary boob job(it looked like that). No one explained this to me. But it does happen when your milk arrives. It soon settles and does't last long. You will get throigh this.
Letdown - Another form of letdown relates to boobmilk! This is basically when our body says "produce milk". From what I've learnt by myself, letdowns tend to happen when your baby goes on the breast which then triggers messages to your brain (clever huh?)
Over all, if you're forumal feeding. Keep it up mummas, you're doing great. Happy mum, happy baby.
Breastfeeding mums, keep doing what you're doing also. Don't be ashamed of it. Be proud of doing it for your baby. It also burns 500 calories per day, so that's an added bonus trying to get back into shape?
I'm not expert with breastfeeding - but I do understand how demanding it is. If anyone wants some moral support or a bit of motivation to keep it up, please do contact me. I'm happy to advise if I can or offer support. You can contact me in the form at the bottom of the page.
