Disclaimer: I write my experiences and my opinions. I am a huge breastfeeding proponent. I have used formula in the past. I believe a fed baby is best. But the close second is a breastfed baby. I’ve formed these opinions through research and personal insights. Not everyone has the same views on this topic, and that is okay.
Most pregnant women I talk to are focused on the baby’s arrival. After all, labor is what you’re prepping for the whole pregnancy, right? You need to know everything about how to get the baby into the world safely. For some reason, many women don’t plan for what happens after labor. Sure, the nursery is ready and baby has clothes and gear, but if you plan to breastfeed, it never usually goes any further than: “it’s the body’s natural instinct to feed, I can do this.” In the weeks following labor, I mentally kicked myself for thinking this, hard. I learned so much. Mainly that: just because something is a natural function doesn’t mean that you’re prepared for it.
I’m going to preface this with: it doesn’t matter how many children you have; each child is different. I breastfed my son for three weeks. I didn’t know much about breastfeeding then. I tried it, it hurt. I didn’t have a breastfeeding support system in place either. As well meaning as they were, having people around wanting to help me and feed him led to early weaning. I didn’t have an electric pump and it just seemed easiest to switch over to formula. Why breastfeed if it hurt so much? Why breastfeed if I have to get other things done? Why breastfeed if I need to go back to school? At 19, the world was a simpler place. If I couldn’t afford an electric pump, formula was the only other alternative. It never occurred to me to stick with it a little longer. I thought I was “doing it wrong.”
If I could go back and give 19 year old me some advice, I know what I would say:
-it’s going to hurt for a little while, don’t quit.
-use the money you saved from the shower on a pump, a good bra, some nursing clothes, it’s worth it, don’t quit.
-educate yourself about breastfeeding, call a lactation consultant, don’t quit.
-if the latch doesn’t work, try it again and again and again, don’t quit.
-don’t get discouraged, you can do this, don’t quit.
-trust YOUR instincts, your his mom. People will think its weird, you will constantly hear about him “getting enough” and you will doubt. He’s always been very big…he’s fine. Don’t quit.
-one day, he will grow up with recurrent fevers and you’ll ask yourself: could I have done more? And you’ll wish you’d stuck with it. Don’t quit.
-his dad won’t always be in the picture, don’t beat yourself up over dumb things, prioritize your son, don’t quit.
Clearly, 19 year old me had a lot to learn. Most of it was learned the hard way.
This time, I knew I wanted to breastfeed baby girl for more than three weeks. I’d done my research, I knew that I wanted to make it at least three months exclusively. For many moms who breastfeed, that’s a blink. Some mom’s are all out power houses and do it for over a year. I knew my plan for three months seemed small, but it was my goal. It doesn’t mean I’ll stop there, but I wanted to at least make it that far.
We are now seven weeks in. The first four weeks were miserable. Although I came close to it, I didn’t quit. (That’s another story for another post.) This time, I had an extremely supportive partner. I didn’t let criticism sway me. I had a pump. (Now I have two, one with a battery pack for “just in case.”) I had nursing clothes. I have an experienced friend to talk to (who happens to be a doula) as an extra lifeline when I am having issues. I had a better idea of what breastfeeding entailed. I spoke multiple times with lactation before I left the hospital. I had a better outlook on the concept of breastfeeding in general. I might not have known everything, but I was more prepared to handle hang ups this time. And so far, I’ve taken my own advice: I haven’t quit.
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article sponsered by Northern Michigan certified lactation consulting and Mother Hubbards Country Cupboard
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