Breastfeeding- what helped you?

[LouJ85]

Hi all.

I'm currently 33 weeks pregnant and very much hoping I can breastfeed my baby as I personally really want to.

Can anyone share any useful tips of things that helped to make their breastfeeding journey more of a success?

Thank you

I wasn't afraid to do it in public. ime, most women who could continue stop because they feel embarrassed.

Finding out that there could be some discomfort without that being a major problem: I thought if you had pain you were doing it wrong. Turns out that letdown was sometimes quite tingly (like electric pinpricks) for me. After I learned to relax into it, the prickly letdown sensation went away after a few weeks.

Don't beat yourself up if doesn't work out. It's just something to try and not something worth having guilt about if it doesn't go how you wanted.

Expect a little bit of settling in time, a day can make a huge difference so hang on in there. Consider the many benefits, not just the health ones, which are amazing, but the convenience to be able to comfort and feed your baby anywhere with no extras! Once you're up and running you can go anywhere or go nowhere!

Nipple shields! I was about to give up trying to bf - lots of milk from pumping but DS couldn't seem to latch. I'd been in hospital for a week by that point (as DS had some issues) and seen the breastfeeding expert, who wasn't much help tbh. One of the lovely nurses in the SCBU took one look at me, whipped out a nipple shield and he latched straight away! Basically it made my nipple about half an inch longer which solved the problem.

This was 5 years ago, and the orthodoxy at the time was not to encourage use of nipple shields, god knows why!

Perseverance for me - took my first 8 weeks to fully get it. My second got it immediately (suspect I was also more skilled).

I didn’t care about being in public either.

I also have bigger breasts and found it was easier to move myself into position, rather than try to get the baby into position (which meant I was often not comfy). Only works if you have bigger boobs though I think.

And I would highly recommend laid back feeding.

Lansinoh cream - recommended to me by a midwife. It saved me from the initial agony of BF (which nobody had ever told me about). It's worth its weight in gold, IME. You can buy it online or in a pharmacy.

Feeding on my side - lovely, you can really relax and feel your baby next to you.

Feeding in public - I BF three DC for years on end and never, ever received any negative comments, always lots of smiles.

It's immensely rewarding and satisfying. Oh, and obviously costs nothing.
Never sit down to BF without a huge glass of water by your side - you get incredibly thirsty!

Enjoy...

Oh yes that ever present pint of water

No tips really, but just to say don’t feel guilty if it doesn’t go as planned.

My eldest, I tried so hard to feed her. There was tongue tie, depression and guilt. She never got it. We tried for weeks and weeks. I sought endless help. I was told it was my nipples. I concluded I just couldn’t breastfeed. I felt so much guilt.

I’ve recently had my second. Told myself I’d give it a couple of weeks, then if it didn’t work we’d bottle feed, no tears and no guilt.
Latched pretty much immediately and we’ve just ‘got’ breastfeeding. It’s been such a simple experience. Same nipples.

Definitely biological nurturing /laid back breastfeeding. Have a read about it and why it's so useful in allowing babies to use their newborn reflexes to help themselves to feed.

I found that different people had different techniques and ideas so when I was struggling I kept asking different people until I found someone who was able to help me.

She taught me a specific hold that just worked for me and ds1.

I also phoned one of the helplines and the support and encouragement and having someone 'talk me through it' really helped

It was so hard for me: I took for granted that it would be natural. However, I really struggled to hold the baby in position at first. I felt like I needed 3 arms to hold the tiny baby.

The first few days were stressful and painful. I went to BF clinics but mainly my mum helped me. She would grab baby's head and position it in place.

Also nCT friends were supportive. We had a WhatsApp group and we so struggled but stuck to it.

Then, after about a week of hell, it finally fell into place. So I guess the moral of the story is keep trying. It does get easier. In fact it becomes so easy you can do it in your sleep

As odd as it sounds cold Savoy cabbage leaves in your bras for the initial stage. Stick it in the fridge and then help yourself. It's such a bizarre thing but works, although the smell isn't great but it could be worse.

Drinks and snacks nearby all the time.

A good breastfeeding pillow to support you and baby.

Expert / supportive advice when you need it. Milk Making Mama (Instagram) or La Leche League have been the best ones for me. Have a bit of a Google in advance so you know where to look if you need info post birth.

Get help. Pester. Ask midwives to watch you feed. Bring in lactation consultants. Be watchful for weight gain and number of dirty nappies etc.

If it’s persistently painful (sometimes, early on, at the start of the feed it can be quite shheesh intake of breath painful, and it’s nasty when it prompts your uterus to contract - aftershock pains, the worst! But this should die down after the first couple weeks, days even sometimes) - if the thought of the pain is stopping you want to feed at the next feed, yep get help. It could be a great many things other than latch.
Don’t beat yourself up - some babies just don’t get it. I was lucky with my first, less so my second. It’s lovely if it works but if it’s not to be, let it go and embrace the fact that the father can do every other feed and nighttime feeds too. You will still be close and cuddle and bond and it will be lovely. Enjoy your baby.

It will be tough at the beginning.
The baby will feed and feed and feed.
The baby will sleep all day and feed all night. Your partner may have to spoon your food in for you as you’re too busy feeding to eat.
It will hurt for a little while until you both get the hang of things, if it still agony weeks down the line something is wrong (tongue tie/position etc)
I found a V pillow good for breastfeeding
Always have snacks, drink and tv remote in reach
It will be tough but when it works it works well in my experience.
If you need a break your dp can hold the baby, change nappies, bath them, talk them for a walk in the sling/pram. Just because you’re feeding doesn’t mean it all falls to you
Housework does not exist while you are feeding your baby.

Oh and bottles aren’t the devil and you are not a failure if you decide not to continue.

Childbirth methods and interventions can also have an impact on both yours and baby's ability to breastfeed
www.bellybelly.com.au/birth/birth-interventions-and-breastfeeding/

Whilst you get established in the first few days it really helps to have some 'hands on' support. My husband would help me position our baby, make sure she was latched correctly etc. It can be quite difficult to position baby correctly with only one free hand. Also, just in case it's relevant, we really struggled in the first 48hrs because our little one just fell asleep as soon as she was on the boob and didnt seem to latch properly. I ended up expressing a tiny bit onto a spoon and feeding her that way. That seemed to give her the energy for a proper feed.

Hope this helps!

I didn't know that the let down reflex doesn't happen (easily) if you are feeling wound up or tense. Wish I'd understood the reflex better earlier. My dd has terrible reflux so was often screaming when I was trying to latch, this made me tense, creating a vicious circle. If it's known I could have fixed that by consciously relaxing it would have gone better. Second dc was so much easier because I understood it better. I do think midwives could explain that better, at least mine could have.

Lansinoh!!!!!! After every single feed.

Feed lying down and co-sleeping really helped us. Everybody sleeps.

Nothing you do with your baby is ‘making a rod for your back’. Listen to your instincts you know more than you think you do.

A supportive partner that lets you feed without worrying about the house/washing/laundry whatever.

Eat and drink properly.

There are 24 hour supermarkets with formula and bottles within reach of most people so just take one day at a time and relax about it. It totally took the pressure off me when I realised that! If it doesn’t work out, your baby baby won’t starve, fed is always best.

Study the Kellymom website.

Don’t worry too much about a routine. It’s just one more thing to stress about. Feed on demand - by 12/16 weeks you have a rough natural routine anyway.

I fed in total for 9 months + 2.5 years + 4 months and still going strong, it is worth persevering if you can x

Good luck!!!

Nipple shields! Without them I wouldn't have lasted longer than a week. I used them for a few months. Buy them in all sizes as it's hard to gauge which one will be most comfortable for you and baby.

Neuners nursing tea.

Staying calm and relaxed and snacks/water to hand or phone to occupy myself for longer feeding sessions.

Keep doing skin to skin. It helps improve supply. Especially when they are growing quick and your supply may not catch up in time. So when baby fusses who otherwise feeds nicely then down to their nappy and topless for you and lots of nice cuddles under a blanket to soothe them.

It is really hard to begin with but then gets do much easier, don't be hard on yourself take it one feed at a time.

Oh and learn the signs a baby gives off for early signs of hunger. If they are crying apparently that means they are starving by then and it's harder to latch. In the first few weeks it will feel like they are forever on the boob but that's normal. Good luck!

Topless telly time, as advised by a twin bf group. Helped regulate my supply up to ebf, just as I was about to give up. Good luck!

Breastfeeding cushion!!
easy access clothes and bras.

Shields and nipple cream from day one. I asked every midwife I saw to check latch.
It fucking hurts the first few weeks, that's when I used shields. Stopped using the around week 3. Baby is now 6 weeks and it's going well.

Remember, every feed is beneficial so even if you decide its not for you, the feeds you've done so far will have given them the best start

A really great doula and lactation consultant who both cared and knew exactly what was going on with the latch. Also an american friend who was both of those later on explaining what about my milk was causing the reflux which none of the NHS staff here had a single answer for.