Due in 5 weeks, want to breast feed. What do I need?

[RockLovesMincePies]

This will be my 2nd child, but I gave up breastfeeding my dd (now 6) after about 5 days out of sheer frustration.

I am due dc2, a little boy, at the end of Jan and this time round I am determined to give breast feeding a good go this time. But I am not sure what, if any, equipment I actually need.

At some point I would like to try and express so that DP can have a chance to feed his son, also in the hope that we can get out together occasionally which means leaving baby with a family member.

So, what do I need to buy and what are the best makes? Looking at the breast pumps that are available the electric ones are way out of our price range, are the manual ones any good?

Any advice will be gratefully received.

vintageacups - exactly when I needed the formula - in the middle of the night, after shields didn't help with a disastrous wound to one nipple.

Thought of another thing - good absorbent breast pads. It's worth getting the better quality ones especially at night. The number of pyjama tops I go through is ridiculous!

Going with what stickyfingers said, my DH actually resented me feeding our two babies. He has told me since that he felt redundant because he couldn't feed them.

Now I do actually think it was very selfish of him to say that because he bonded with them in other ways but it did upset him a lot.

I think, if you are thinking you will bf for a good while, then perhaps chat to your partner before the birth and explain the importance of him supporting you in your decision.

I think if I had chatted to DH before hand more, he would have understood better.

It is difficult for your partner to see you in pain or upset if you're having difficulties so discuss ways that he can help you most once the birth is over.

I've bought formula because I do live somewhere without 24 hour supermarkets (and without organic formula...). I am even more determined not to use it because I've bought it. It's daring me to succeed!

Personally I would be more likely to crack if I hadn't prepared the safety net.

Thank you OP for asking this question and everyone else for your helpful answers!

Get formula (cartons woman, CARTONS!), bottles, pump etc and more imortantly LEARN how to use them. Then put them away.

That way, the option is there and if you do decide to FF/have to FF for whatever reason, you will know how to do it effectively, and much more imposrtantly, safely.

The head in the sand technique reccomened by so many here is all very well and good, but won't get you a safe bottle of formula should the need (and yes, there ARE cases where there are a need and it is silly to assume OP will not be one of them) arise.

OP: I wish you the best of luck in your BF quest.

I have been breastfeeding for six years and used my breastpump about three or four times! (two blocked ducts and one nursing strike) .I didn't have bottles or anything in the house,actually never occurred to me that anyone did that unless they planned to bottle feed.I did however have the number of a really good lactation consultant.One session with her cost about as much as my pump,and was far far more use than any other baby item I bought,so get a few names ready.

I agree that if you want some in case of emergency then cartons is absolutely the best way to go. The last thing you want to be doing in a crisis is faffing around with boiling then cooling to 70 degrees then mixing with powder then cooling down to drinkable temp.

Lansinoh, breast pads.
The absolute main, Most Important Thing is to suss out all your local support groups, drop-ins - when & where they are, even go along now whislt you're still pregnant & show your face, work out where to park etc. etc. Face-to-face help is The Best Thing, honestly
Get DP/DH on side as well. It can be tough going at first as I'm sure you know, so it helps that they give gentle encouragement at 3am when everyone is in floods of tears Mine even dragged us both along to our brilliant drop-in session at the hospital on his birthday when DD was 3 days old. Probably saved my sanity by doing so as well.
WRT breast pumps, contact your local SureStart centre - many of them have them that they can loan out & they're the proper double electric ones which would cost a small fortune to buy.

Ditto thank you OP and all responders. I am about to embark on TTC #2 (not right now !!!)and want to have as much ammo as possible if we are fortunate enough to have another DC.

Disagree about not having formula in the house. Based on my pretty horrendous feeding experiences the first time round (which came to crisis point with starving 3 day old at around 2am on a Sunday morning when there were no shops open and the hospital wouldn't take me back in), this time I will be hiring an electric pump in advance (you can do this through NCT) and will certainly have some cartons of formula in the house. Hopefully I won't need them, but who knows. Agree with others about locating all possible support in advance too.

Pumps seem to be a very individual thing - I could get nowhere with either hand expressing or a manual pump but hired Ameda one was OK.

(In the end I went on - quite unexpectedly - to bf dd for 4 years, but if the first six weeks or so prove as difficult as last time there is no way I can go through it again, and I'm not feeling that the "trust your breasts and hope for the best" approach is necessarily going to work for me.)

Breast pads for when your milk comes in, maybe some avent nipple cream (you can leave it on no need to wipe off before feeding), a couple of nursing bras and thats it to begin with. Read as much info about breastfeeding as you can - the most important thing is your baby getting a good latch- this will stop cracked/sore nipples etc goodluck

Make sure you get expert help if needed.

I always knew I would breastfeed. Unfortunately my son wouldn't latch to begin with (I didn't count on this). The hospital staff tried their best, but all I heard was "well if he won't feed you can't make him" BULLSHIT - you bloody can! All it took was one amazing nurse who just plonked him on my breast and away we went! Yes it took practice, but nearly 14 months on we're still going strong. It's a bloody doddle once you get the hang of it!

Never even occured to me to have formula in the house, load of crap. If baby does not latch, then express and feed via syringe. Then, get help asap, there is lots out there if you look for it.

A cushion! Surprised only one person's mentioned this yet IIRC, but it was invaluable for me. Made the whole thing much more comfortable as I could lay DS on the cushion and not have to physically hold him up all the time (important as I had awful back pain). I had one of the quite rigid ones you can sort of belt around your waist, bought from Mothercare. This is the only thing I'd say get in advance as the 24-hour Tesco won't have them, whereas they will always have formula, bottles and even pumps - I did use a pump but only after about 4-6 weeks.

The other key thing is to have faith in yourself and not to worry, especially if it seems like baby is feeding for an incredibly long time. I know now this is par for the course. Just settle down with her/him on the cushion and watch a DVD/something saved up on the Sky + box (start stacking up the recordings now!) and be patient even if you are there for a good while. It'll calm down later.

Buy a big flask to fill with tea and take it up to bed at night, then you can have a brew to hand when you are feeding.

Argos do one that has a dispensing thingy so you just press it and the tea pours out save you faffing with one hand

It isn't a load of crap to have some formula in the house as back up, its a precaution, not everyone can get the hang of it for various reasons.

Clare Byam-Cook's book worked for me.

Also, forget Lansinoh - this is the best cream:
kamillosan.co.uk/testimonials

Good luck!

I agree with you OnEdge, not everyone can get the hang of it, i certainly couldn't to begin with. I didn't breastfeed my son properly til he was nearly 2 weeks old. What I'm saying is that there is no need to give formula if you express and feed via syringe/bottle. If you are capable of producing milk, but baby not feeding due to poor latch then just express it! Makes no sense to give formula when breastmilk is available.

DD is 20 wks, I have:

• Muslins
• Breast pads
• Nursing bras

Have Lansinoh, never needed it. Just got an electric pump to try to give her some BM from a bottle, not happening so far! Personally didn't buy formula.

rabbitheart - some women cannot express either.
In the perfect world, of course everyone would express but some women just have the support they need/or confidence to ask for support to get expressing going.

I think that the negative views on here about buying formula just in case are unfounded.

Hello all

I'm currently 14 weeks pregnant & hoping to bf my baby once he/she arrives! I came on for a bit of guidance really, thank you for all the comments they have really helped relax me a little about fears that dd/ds won't latch .etc. :) I also want my fiance to be able to feed the baby so will probably express.

Annie I have to agree with Vintage purely because I read your comment & it did worry me, lucky for dd/ds I am determined to bf as it's obviously the best thing for her/him.

NB about expressing - I have just discovered (on another thread...) that even if you can't get expressing going it doesn't mean that when the baby is feeding they aren't getting enough milk, or that you aren't producing enough (ok I may just be a bit slow on the uptake).

So information from a reliable source (La Leche League / NCT?) is really important!

I really struggled with BF in the first months with DD, but managed to battle through thanks to some great support (mainly from DH)

I would make sure I had:

Phone numbers of breastfeeding support lines to have to hand in an emergency.
Plus info on local breastfeeding support groups etc

Lansinoh or Kamillosan for cracked nipples

A comfortable and supportive chair, and a pillow to rest the baby on so you don't have to bend over.

Some DVDs/ audio books/ music to listen to as you can sometimes be stuck sitting feeding for a loooong time.

Some nice biscuits/ chocolates and something nice to drink for while you are feeding

Plenty of muslin squares

I got a hand pump which I was unable to express anything from, which made me v unhappy - I would get an electric one (we hired one short term from the NCT)

Just a good solid diet right now so you have enough energy for yourself whilst your body feeds your baby!! Lansinoh is brilliant and be prepared for it not to be easy but not incredibly painful. I watched a few videos on getting the latch right, and holding the baby really close. I thought my baby's first word was going to be 'wider' !!

A decent feeding cushion, with back support...I founf the Jojomamanbebe one great at the end of my pg too as it supported my knees and tummy.