What's it like to breastfeed?

[justanotheryoungmother]

I'm currently 32 weeks pregnant with my first, and I'm swaying towards trying breastfeeding, but I don't know anyone who has done it. I was wondering if you have done it, what were your experiences and was it easier to do than bottle feed (if you have experience in both)?

Thank you for any replies

For me it was difficult for the first few weeks, some pain and exhausting but after that it seemed so much easier than having to prepare bottles etc. No getting out of bed in the middle of the night for me

Its completely possible to bond just as deeply with and comfort your baby without breastfeeding. It's not possible for everyone and formula feeding is a very valid choice if breastfeeding isn't possible or you just don't like it. When my baby latched, yeah it was nice but my milk never properly came in. I could probably have persevered with expressing but it wasn't worth it in a stressful situation. You don't what you're going to get in terms of a birth until you've been through it and it could affect your supply.

Basically go into it with an open mind and don't be led to believe that the only way to have a lovely bond with your baby is to breastfeed.

I bfed dc2 and bottle fed dc1.
Once you get the hang of it, bfing is lovely. It's easier than bottle feeding (no washing, sterilising etc...), everything is there when you need it.
However, I found the settling down at the start a littéral pain.
That's one of the reason why I didn't bfed dc1. i was in pain, he wasn't getting any milk (think MW telling he was dehydrated).
So I gave up very quickly.

What I found helped was to get ready before hand the second time around. Ready as in I read about bfing, I learnt that being in the breast often was essential at the start. I also had the telephone number of a bfing counsellor at hand if things were getting though. (They did but then I just had to give her a ring iyswim)

The plus side of bottle feeding is that you can get some help, have some else getting up in the night etc.. which is really nice!!

Re how it feels. Good. Really nice and relaxing. I thought if i was bfing until dc2 was 3 months it would be excellent. I carried in until he was 12months and stopped more because we couldn't find a way to feed with some bottom teeth rather than because I wanted to stop.
I remember the contented look of dc2 when he was feeding too.
(Dc1 didn't look as contented but that was because he wa allergic to milk and we didn't know it :( so I can't quite compare iyswim)

Go visit a BF group (LLL or a local 'support' type group) BEFORE you have baby so you can see other people BF & know where it is, where to park etc before you try to visit as your first getting baby out of the house/haven't slept etc trip.
Read kellymom.
My experience has been that neither MW or HV have much BF training (& most medics have even less) so getting good support is really important.
With my first it was fairly awful for 4 weeks (as she has a bad tongue tie but my over supply meant she gained weight so no one would help) after that was good. My second has a lip tie but I was so used to managing with my first it was fine. My third has been a dream - I genuinely don't always know she's feeding!

Remember with your first you are both learning a new skill so be patient with yourselves! After the first few weeks of utter exhaustion, growth spurts etc it gets so very much easier. And if you try & give up your baby will still have had the biggest benefits which are from the earliest milk so definitely try - I decided I would get to six weeks & never looked back.
Good luck

One comment about going in being open to whatever etc...

I did that with dc1, didn't managed to establish bfing and deeply regretted it. The few times when we bf, it felt like it was the right thing to do and I wish I had more support the first time round. And more information (e.g. About being in the breast often, that having an epidural could have an effect to my milk coming etc...)

The second time, I swore that I would stop if I was starting to have bleeding nipples. I did but still carried in because I had the right support around me. And even though it was hard, I also had an end in sight (issue with the ratio between my nipple and the baby mouth).

So YY about never feeling that formula feeding is less than or is a defeat.
But be aware that you might well really enjoy it and discover this is I
important for you. In that case, having the right knowledge and the right support will make all the difference.

I'm currently breastfeeding my almost 3 month old ds. It was really tough for the first 5 weeks but after that got easier and now is really nice and I love the closeness me and ds have. It is so much easier when they wake in the middle of the night to breastfeed as opposed to making a bottle. The pain for me in the beginning was really bad, with me crying throughout some feeds. I would strongly suggest getting as much help as possible from midwives, hv and breastfeeding clinics as they really helped me. However the important thing to remember is for your baby top be fed and there is no right or wrong way. Give bf a go but if it doesn't work for you go for ff. You need to be happy, whatever you choose to do will be the best thing for your baby.

Preparing formula and bottles was completely alien to me, and breastfeeding just was the normal thing to do to feed my babies. For both my babies I had rocky starts to breastfeeding due to them being tube fed initially and struggling to latch and feed. We got to full breastfeeding after a lot of work expressing, bottle feeding and working on the latch. I had a huge amount of relief when I was just directly breastfeeding, no more expressing or bottle feeding. I fed my first till 16 months and am feeding my second to 9 months so far. It has been tiring, and painful on occasion, and obviously I do all the feeds, but I knew that was going to be the case from the outset. I find it an enjoyable part of looking after my babies and I'll miss it when it's over I think.

Well I'm glad I'm not the only one who didn't enjoy it ind it bonding.
What's interesting it that lots have commented that if it's easy it's bonding.
For me it was easy with ds1. I had milk. He latched straight away. No issues at all. But nope I didn't like it. It wasn't bonding. I bonded but not because of feeding .

Difficult to begin with and then just very simple, not to mention convenient for feeding and soothing :)

I did both. If you bottlefeed you don't have to warm the milk, just saying...

Try to get the baby to use expressed milk too though. Or you end up feeling like a cow - one who can't go out for long periods by herself!

My daughter is EBF. She's 6 months. I don't even think about it now. It's so easy so natural just so lovely. It's bittersweet as she won't take a bottle at all. But the thought of stopping does make me sad even though I really would like a break. It's strange.

I've had mastitis 3 times and blocked ducts a few times. I remember saying to my mum to give her a bottle and I would leave the room for as long as necessary until she took it. I was seriously at breaking point.

But about 15 minutes later I went back to DD and fed her. The thought of stopping made me so sad even though I was in so much pain.

Now I've not had any pain for ages and I've became an expert in unblocking any blocked ducts.

She's extremely attached to me and I love it. She strokes my face and is just so sweet whilst breastfeeding. She's not been unwell at all and I attribute it to breastfeeding.

I also breastfed my son but stopped at 6 weeks as it was just too consuming and I was naive about how it was going to be. This time I was prepared so my mindset was different. When I was pregnant I knew 100% I would breastfeed until at least 3 months (if physically possible). 3 months came, then 4,5,6 and who knows when we will stop.

Ups and downs - pros and cons. But when it going well it's so lovely - easy, quick, instant, cheap, serene- and both times the extra weight just fell off.

I found it very easy ( I appreciate that some women struggle and some babies don't take to it ) and I loved it, night feeds were easy, saved money not having to buy formula and I felt I was giving my baby the best start in life, though it was hard weaning my dd off breast she had it until she was nearly 14 months old, not during the day though only as a night time comfort to sleep. I did get mastitis both times breastfeeding which was agony and awful but I carried on breasfeeding as it helped get it better.my dd fed for ages on both sides she was a hungry baby luckily both my dds took to it really well and I never experienced any problems. I would definitely say give it a go, if it's not for you then don't worry just switch to formula.

Hi I wasn't able to directly breast fed due to my babba being small but I did ebf for 6months! My daughter is very healthy now so I'm glad I did it! She was 5weeks healthy and up to date with all milestones I rented a hospital grade pump from medela which was fantastic! Please post back if your having issues

I had support from La Leche whilst in hospital, but I found it toe curlingly painful. I was exhausted, and looking back probably had PND. I lasted 3 weeks and moved to formula. Didn't feel guilty or feel that I didn't bond with DD. Having said that, everyone has a different experience so I would still say give breast feeding a go.

Never used a bottle so can't compare , bf first child for 12 months and currently bf 2nd who is 7 months old

From the off I've found it really easy & convenient

Really get for night time feeds in bed, never have to give a second thought to babies food it's always there

Wasn't sore at all. Defo give it a try

I BF my first for two weeks, and then switched to formula after various difficulties and deeply regretted it (suffered from the crazy irrational mum guilt). We had some lovely feeds but most of them were extremely painful for me.

With my second I was determined to breastfeed and went to support groups while I was still pregnant. My baby had a severe tongue tie that was diagnosed at two weeks, and fixed at four weeks and in that time I battled bleeding nipples, thrush, mastitis and 12 hour cluster feeds. It was really hard but each feed felt like an accomplishment. We've now been exclusively breastfeeding for six months.

I don't feel like BF is any better for bonding than FF for me personally, and I don't particularly enjoy it but I find it much better than bottle feeding as it's just so practical and convenient. Night wakings are much easier when you don't have to get up and it's nice not to be always thinking about washing and sterilising and how much milk you might need if you're going out. It also feels very natural.

If you decide to breastfeed find good support before your baby is born and take it one feed at a time in the early days. People kept telling me it would get easier after six weeks when I had my first, but it was so hard they may as well have said a million years. Second time around I kept telling myself I'd just get through the next feed and before I knew it we'd cracked it.

It's been nearly 20 years, but I found it easy, convenient and rewarding. I had to go back to work after 3 months (stupid feckless ex-DH didn't work) so pumped for a few weeks and it gradually dwindled but I'm so glad I fed her for a while. I didn't expect it to be difficult or painful, and it wasn't. Lucky I guess.

I hated every minute of it tbh but it was cheaper than formula
My first had sn and had to have formula, the second I mix fed, third I bf for about 18 months and I had to grit my teeth
I'm glad I did it as I felt I was doing the right thing IF I could do it but no way do I judge people that either choose not to or can't

There are two things you're not allowed to say about breastfeeding. One is that you found it really really easy, and the other is that you didn't like doing it / didn't want to do it,

I am so glad that there are representatives of both camps on this thread!

It's just the most special and rewarding thing you can do for your new baby. I BF all three of my children, and it was a different experience with all three. I have to say I was determined from the start to BF so didn't buy any equipment at all so that I had to make it work. My first baby was a dream and it couldn't have been easier - lots of milk, good latch from the go get and a happy mummy, baby (and daddy!!). Second baby was a real suck monster and the first two weeks were such a shock as suddenly there was pain! Get through this toe curling time and it's the best feeling. I have just stopped feeding baby number 3 at 2 years 3 months and I am not sure who is missing it the most.
BF makes you stop and take time to be with your baby, creating a really strong bond with no worries about sterilising, boiling kettles, measuring powder and so on.
I understand it's not for everyone for various reasons BUT it is such an amazing thing you can do for you and your baby, it would be awful to look back in years to come and say 'gosh I wish I had tried'. Good luck.

I tried to bf my first but gave up after 2 weeks as I just felt too exhausted to continue. I was like you and didn't know anyone who had done it and hadn't read up on it enough beforehand. If I had prepared myself more I might have been able to ride it out as everyone says it gets easier. After a traumatic birth, being massively sleep deprived and struggling to adjust to having a newborn I just couldn't continue and beat myself up over it.

Second time around im mixed feeding and it's great. I bf during the night and the morning feed. I then top up during the day but don't have a rule on it. For me this has been the best of both worlds as I enjoy bf but wasn't prepared to do it non stop for at least 6 weeks.

Mixed feeding isn't encouraged as it can mess with your milk supply but touch wood I've been ok. I wrongly had the impression it was all or nothing with DC1 and gave up bf entirely.

It's all kinds of things. It's hard...but then it's easy. It's lovely, messy, relaxing, stressful, convenient, knackering, amazing...it's impossible to sum it up. I liked the burning sting of the milk let down, and the relief of latching the baby on when you're engorged or can feel a milk duct getting blocked and the baby chomps away and eases the pressure - ahhhhh. It's annoying if the baby won't take a bottle and wants boob all night - but it doesn't last forever. It just feels like it at the time.

Certainly give it a go if you want to. If you don't like it you can stop.

Breastfeeding scared me before I had my kids and I really didn't find it easy in the beginning, but I wanted to breastfeed and managed to stick at it for a long while. I was sad when that chapter closed, even though it was the right time. I surprised myself how much I loved breastfeeding.

I repeat your bond will be just as strong no matter how you feed your child.

Amazing gets easier can be v hard at first

Give it a try

Can consider combination feeding I found that a happy medium x

It's lovely. Painful at first as you both get to grips with it. You also feel like a milk factory to begin with. Baby takes from you, all the time, and you get very little in return except sore nipples and tiredness. You also have to contend with other people's ignorance about breastfeeding on demand, and they will ask you whether baby is in a routine and look when you tell them that they're not sleeping through by 4 months (unless you're extremely lucky of course!) But it does get a lot easier, much more enjoyable and is incredibly convenient (except when your baby hits a fussy phase and is intent on showing the world your whole boob and pulling it around!) Most issues at first are around the unpredictability of it and inability to plan for several weeks - you just have to go with it and adjust your expectations accordingly. Dd has just got to an age where she looks up at me and smiles/ strokes me while she's feeding. It's lovely.