Is breastfeeding like riding a bike?

[Surprisethird]

I ask because I am currently 31 weeks pregnant with my third child, however, I bf the other two no problems as all, but my first is 15 in September and my youngest is 9 in June, so it feels like light years ago! I am taking it for granted that I will have no problems, but then I keep dreaming it will go wrong or I can't do it! It's a huge part of having a baby for me and one of the things I most look forward too, but just panicking a bit that I will struggle as it's been so long? So is it like riding a bike and you never forget?
Xx

It was for me, with a 7 year gap too.

I had forgotten how tiring it was and how long it all took (cluster feeding) but yes, I knew exactly what to do!

Good luck!

I only had 18 months between ds1 & ds2 so can't say after a big age gap but it did fall into place fairly easily with ds2. Also I had an idea of what to expect which helped, the cluster feeding was a shock first time round!

The bit I found odd was remembering how to bf a newborn rather than an 11 month old as the newborn needed more help latching.

I'm due in just over a week with dc3 with a 3 year age gap this time and hoping bf'ing clicks into place again.

Good luck I'm sure it'll all come flooding back when your little one is here.

Hi thanks for your replies, it's really appreciated , sounds like I should be ok!

All babies are different. I bfed my first at 18, no problems, good feeder until he was 2yo.

11 years later I had dc2, good feeder, no problems. Bfed til 2yo.

10 years later (!) dc3 had tongue tie, it was excruciating but it got snipped and we soldiered on and I bfed til he was 14mo when he had a nursing strike as it turned out I was pregnant with dc4!

Dc4 has never really taken to it, feeding every hour until she was about 12 weeks, then with no visible pattern to it, I was night feeding 3-4 times up til she was 7 mo. finished sadly at her behest at 10 months . She just wasn't interested.

It is like riding a bike in that you have more realistic expectations than a first time bfer I think but they are separate human beings with their own minds.

As thecakeisalie says, the hardest bit is remembering that newborns need a little extra help/support as your last memory of feeding is an older, bigger child with good head control who knows exactly what to do.

I suspect you yourself will be fine and you'll just need to teach your newborn to do it right. If you want to do a bit of revision remind yourself what good positioning and attachment looks like beforehand so you can spot and correct any issues before they arise, and maybe get together a list of local breast feeding support so you know where to turn to if you have questions or concerns.

I'm 28wks pregnant with DC3 with a nearly 4 year age gap and feeling like I have the experience and assertiveness now that I didn't with DC1 so that even if it doesn't go smoothly I know where and how to get help.