Best piece of breastfeeding advice you were given?

[RubyWoooo]

As it says on the tin, really. What was the one golden bit of advice you were given?

Looking for some nuggets of wisdom after miserably failing with BFing DD. Second DC due in a few days.

Thanks in advance

I think i succeeded because i didnt get any advice.

I went into it completely blind, no idea how frequently to feed, how long for, what was normal and what wasnt.

Consequently i just got on with it, fed at every squeak, mostly just left them latched on as it was easier than relatching for the next feed.

By the time my mum came to visit with her ideas of four hourly feeds and my milk not being rich enough, and runny poo not bring normal, i was well established enough to ignore her and just carry on doing my own thing.

Deff if baby crys feed her. Ment I didn't stress about how she "couldnt be hungry again"

Co sleeping and learning to feed on demand.

Also knowing where and how to get support if things didn't go well. Actually probably that is the key, really.

Always have a big (pint sized) drink nearby. You never know ŵhen you're going to get stuck for an hour under the baby and be gagging for a drink.
If you get dehydrated you'll also get constipated and nobody needs that!
Don't quit on a bad day.
It may hurt to start, as long as the latch is ok it will get better.
Get out and feed in public ASAP if you're worried about it, once you've done it once it's easy.

Also if you want to a bit of a debrief on DC1 we can try and work out what might have been the issue if you like and how it can be avoided/what you can do if it happens this time? :)

Oh and baby can have the odd fussy day, and sometimes a fussy couple of weeks! Mine has - had a random 3 weeks where he was so fussy at boob but took formula or expressed milk no problem, then randomly he was feeding normally again!

Discuss in advance with your partner whether you want "keep going you can do this!" pep talks or "formula milk is not poison and it's okay if you want to stop" reassurance. Obviously things change as you go on but it will help him (and hence you) at least a bit, I think it's hard for partners to know what kind of support to provide.

Definitely what Giraffe said. And the bit about just feeding the baby, even when you feel she can't possibly be hungry again. I've just come out of three weeks of 6 hour cluster feeds and two hourly night feeds, and now she's back to normal. I do think trusting the baby is number one. And equally, if feeding is drowning you, or making you resent the baby or causing tension in the family, it's okay to combination or formula feed.

Try and latch on as soon as possibly after birth. Babies have a couple of hours when they are awake after birth and if you miss this window they then become v sleepy and it often takes longer for them to learn

Wear socks and slippers, don't drink peppermint tea (both reduce milk), keep well hydrated and eat well. Rest till you milk comes in.

If it hurts work on your latch.

If it hurts at first on latching count to 20 and by the time you get to 20 the initial pain will have subsided. It helped me get through the toe curling bit. It also soon stopped hurting altogether, so hang in there.

Keep going because it gets easier. They won't always feed around the clock!

Buy sleep nursing bras for at night, much more comfortable than nursing bras.

Washable cotton breast pads more comfortable than disposable.

At about 4/5 months you'll not need to wear breast pads as you'll be in tune with your baby, unless maybe you've got tonnes of milk!

Freeze expressed milk lying flat in bags in small amounts 2-3oz. Saves freezer space and wastage.

I went to hell and back. Infective mastitis, breast abscess and looking back thrush of the inner breast tissues. Zero support from community midwives and HV and NCT weren't much better with their mantra that all women can feed and it's all about positioning. I ended up with PND because I felt such an utter failure.

The advice I give is that childbirth and breastfeeding are very small and very transitory parts of being a mother. Children remember hugs, kisses, stories, favourite holidays, family legend, their matches and triumphs, their concerts and applause, their broken bones and heartbreaks. They remember their mum (and dad) being there and they remember live. They don't remember suckling at the breast or traumatic births.

They remember love.

Tummy to mummy, nose to nipple. Twee but it worked.

I found it easier to have my drink in a sports bottle so I could drink one ha dedicated and not spill it while juggling everything else.

Don't be afraid to ignore 'experts' who are clearly batshit crazy and treat you like a child. Numerous HV, community midwife and the area expert would not /could not suggest anything beyond 2 hourly, 20 min breast feed, formula top up and 20 min express for my severely refluxy, slow weight gain DD. DD screamed herself sick while I expressed (burning more calories than had I just let her continue feeding) and I could only express 50 ml in a whole day while making my boobs sore with trying. The area expert snapped at me not to complicate things and accused me of thinking formula was poison when I asked about trying other methods. (She also hand expressed me in front of a room of total strangers, including men). Advice on sites like kellymom and Dr Jack Newman gave me the knowledge to try breast compressions and supplementary feeding systems. I am still breastfeeding at 11 months.

Washable breast pads are great, keep going you both need to get used to it, don't clock watch just feed when they want it.

I failed miserably with DS1 (induced sleepy baby me with no milk for days ....) but DS2 was feeding before I got dressed after giving birth and didn't stop until he was 14 months

Babymoon: any time your newborn seems upset, hasn't fed for 3 hours, is struggling to feed, or you're feeling worn out. You go to bed, take off your top and the baby's clothes and do skin to skin. You stay in bed together for as long as you need - thinking a day or two, not an hour or two. This was helpful with getting one reluctant DS back to breastfeeding.

Wear pyjamas for at least two weeks after the birth. So guests offer to make you a cuppa rather than expecting you to give them one! I think part of successful breastfeeding is to let other people do cooking/cleaning etc.

My Mum said to me to just aim for 3 weeks and then assess. She knew I really wanted to breastfeed and she had breastfed me and my brother for 6 and 9 months respectively and said that the first six weeks were the worst. My dd had a tongue tie which was snipped at 10 days, but she never really fed easily and I never managed to get comfortable - it was always just quite painful, but my dd put on weight well and fed regularly so I just kept going. At 3 weeks I joined a breastfeeding support group and that was helpful just to have support. I would tell myself I'll just do it for another 2 weeks. At 6 months it still wasn't particularly comfortable to feed, but nor was it awful and by then I couldn't be doing with the hassle of bottles! I just carried on and got to 14 months.

Also one feed at a time was good advice for me. I found the "take off your clothes and go to bed with lots of snacks and the TV remote frustrating because it's not practical when you have two children...or it wasn't for me anyway.

"This to shall pass "

When I was feeding DS1, I remember thinking that this was my life now, spending every evening cluster feeding and they like. With DS2, whenever I get fed up of being tied to feeding all evening, sometimes till midnight, it helps to remember that it's just a phase.

Similarly for when it's a bit sore at the beginning. It all eases off. It's tricky in the beginning, but when you're a few weeks in, it's so easy, and you'll be so grateful you're not having to get up and make a bottle, or when trying to leave the house, bottles and milk arnt another thing you have to remember. Good luck !

(Also, it really is magical. When I get fed up I just look at him, getting exactly what he needs from me,looking content and I do feel amazed that my body is able to provide everything this tiny little goblin needs)

Horliks helps boost supply for evening cluster feeding. Many people have thanked me for this tip.

You can tell when a baby starts to get full by watching their hand relax open from a tight fist.

Don't stress about feeding every two hours - 12 times in 24 yes, maybe more. But you won't feed at 9, 11, 1, 3 etc.

Ds2 is nearly 4 months. He fed to sleep at 7 last night then 1, 4:30, 6 and 7:30. Will probably want the next one about 10, then 1/2ish then about 5 and he'll be on and off then till 7 again. So 8-10 in 24 hours but not strictly every two hours.

Right this is all advice if you find the first weeks painful as many do...

Stock up on ibuprofen and paracetamol - don't be afraid to take them every 4 hours like clockwork, I really noticed when I had missed a dose!!

Look up good latch videos online before you give birth, someone posted a good one here a few weeks ago if you look back through the threads. The "burger" method pp mentioned worked for me too and once I had cracked that it was like an epiphany, I remember looking at my DH with elation "I think I've worked it out!!", this was 2 weeks in though so it's good if you can get this feeling earlier .

Try and master feeding lying down asap, makes nightfeeds sooo much easier

Take each feed at a time, just get through it and know that it WILL get easier. And when it does you will LOVE it, I can stop DD crying in 2 seconds just by getting my boob out and it's amazing.

Go to your local breastfeeding cafe/group, I found knowing that other mums were going through the same pain very comforting!!

Ooooh, will try horlicks!