There are a ton of books written on breastfeeding, as well as classes and even lactation specialists that will help you get a good latch or up your milk supply but there are a few tips that no one seems to mention before the baby comes. I found that knowing this information first, helped me continue to nurse my son (he is 9 months now) even though some challenging times. We all know that breast is best and all of that. Best of all in my opinion is that fact that breast is free! That is what makes it worth seriously considering if the whole better for the baby thing does not swing you.
First of all a myth – Breastfeeding hurts like a monkey biting you (I really did read this from a book written by a mom) Fact: Come on people, if it really hurt that bad the human race would not have survived in its current form. We would be laying eggs. Done right breastfeeding does not hurt. Your boobs might be sore for a few weeks as you get used to it and your milk comes in but it should not feel like your boob is going to fall off. If it hurts that bad, see a lactation consultant. Another myth – Formula feeding is easier. Fact: This depends on the mom. For working moms I would think they are right because pumping is rather tricky, for stay at home moms it is much easier to stick a boob in the baby’s mouth then getting up and making a bottle. There is also less stuff to haul around with you when traveling.
There are a lot of assumptions that women make when they decide to breastfeed. One assumption that should not be made is that your child’s pediatrician will help you if you have questions or problems with breastfeeding. This is not usually true. Unless the pediatrician is also a lactation specialist or has one on staff they are probably not experts on breastfeeding. Most pediatricians are what I call fair weather breastfeeding supporters. They will happily support you breastfeeding your baby as long as there are no problems. As soon as there is a problem, they say supplement with formula. Even if the problem is fairly minor, they are interested in the over all health of the child, not the extra benefits of breastfeeding to your child and your checkbook. When my son was not gaining well at his 6 month appointment, the pediatrician told me to supplement with formula. He told me that this was the easiest thing to do. Easy for him maybe but not for me. I ignored him and simply gave my son more breast milk (by offering him the boob more often) and more solids. He is doing great now, no formula needed. This doctor did not even think there was another option. If you are committed to breastfeeding, you may have to do your own research to solve your problems. Pediatricians are not the best resource.
Another thing that many new moms (even me) do not know is that just because your baby does not latch well when he is born does not mean that he will not get the hang of it possibly even weeks later. I belong to a birth board for the month that my baby was born. There are several women on the board that could not get their babies to latch when they were born. They continued to pump but stopped trying to get the baby to nurse. A few weeks later, they tried to get the baby to nurse and found that the baby had no problems! So if you find that your baby just will not latch when he is born but you kept pumping, giving nursing a try a few weeks later. Of course this will not work for all babies but it is worth giving a try. A lot of new moms wonder if their baby is getting enough milk and will offer a bottle after nursing and then if the baby drinks it, assume that the baby is not getting enough milk. Babies love to suck. That is why pacifiers are so popular. A website that explains this better is kellymom.com. That website saved me so much grief. Over all I would say to give nursing a try, and don’t feel guilty if it does not work out. I welcome any other unknown tips to help women that want to breastfeed.
