I really want to breastfeed.. Help!

[LittlemissMama67]

Okay ladies, I’m soon to be a third time mum.

I tried breastfeeding my first but it was a disaster, it was painful and stressful and I gave up after 2 days.

second time I went for bottle feeding just because it was what I knew and I felt confident with it.

this is my last baby and I really want to give it another go. I’ve bought bamboo breast pads, large muslins for privacy when around extended family because I’m not the most confident person. And lansinoh cream and a breast feeding pillow. Is there anything else I will absolutely need?

I have a few questions also..

1- how will I know my child’s had enough/ is full

2- sounds silly but when they stop feeding will the flow stop? I saw a video of milk squirting uncontrollably into a babies face and I’m concerned about that a little because I will be going back to work after 9 months and don’t want wet patches on my top.

3- what do I do if I get engorged? Will I need to pump?

god it’s such a minefield to me, I know I need to put in the time to do my own research and I will

I think the first thing to do is relax and don't get stressed up .
I breastfed my 2 and once you get going and establish a good way of doing it that suits you both it becomes easier.
Try to get as much nipple in as possible , so that your baby has enough to latch on to , less painful for you as well .
In the early days put baby onto the breast as much as possible and hopefully before then get into full on crying .
Good luck.

1. They will cry for more and be quiet when you put them to the breast. They tend to put on half a pound a week which shows they are getting enough (even if they lie and keep telling you they want to be on the breast all the time😜 they just like it there!)

1. The wet patches only happen in the early days so you will be on mat leave and can use breast pads. By 9 months they will be on food and you're unlikely to be producing so much milk in the day that you will get wet patches at work.

1. If engorged, get in a warm shower and some will naturally leak out or hand express some. I breastfed three and never used a breast pump. Also never used any bottles so it's cheaper and far more convenient once established. They went straight to sippy cups for water/juice when weaning.

It does hurt, but only for about the first 10 days then it stops and is far easier when out and about than having to remember bottles ect. But you do have to devote the time and put the effort in to get it established initially. Don't be tempted to supplement with bottles until well established, your body needs the baby suckling as much as it wants to get your milk supply up. The only time mine got a face sprayed with milk was when they got a bit older and nosey so would pull off to turn around mid feed to see what was going on in the room, just use the muslin to mop up.

Good luck🍀💐

Hi, congratulations! As Maybee said, the first thing to do is relax. Don't think about going back to work after the 9 months yet as by that time you'll be very in tune with your baby's needs if you do choose to breastfeed that long.
Positioning is key. Baby needs to come to you, not your breast to him/her or you'll be bending over and the likelihood of pulling on your nipple becomes more real (and very sore). So, lots of pillows on your lap, up to the height of your breast. Turn baby on her/his side facing you, and bring baby to your breast. You may need to rub the mouth with your nipple for baby to open her/his mouth.
Then - I know this might seem strange/scary- bring baby's open mouth quickly onto the breast. You'll want not only your nipple but aerole to be in the baby's mouth. It's the stimulating of the aerole by baby's mouth which will encourage the flow of milk. And a baby pressing on nipples will be very sore.
I was told to not worry about suffocating baby with that rapid bringing baby to the breast and the lovely turn up of a newborns nose was pointed out to me as nature's way of ensuring they breathe.
Water or drink of choice to hand as you'll be thirsty
The reason I mentioned placing baby on her/his side is that if baby's on her/his back, they'll need to turn their head towards your breast - it's uncomfortable for them, can cause pulling on the nipple and your back to ache as you might be leaning forward.
I've written a lot there. Didn't mean to bombard you but hope there's something useful there. Best of luck ☘

Have a look now for local support groups. Search on Facebook for baby cafe or local NCT or la leche league branches. In person support is back in a lot of places and knowing where to go for help is invaluable.

Prepare your partner and older children as well. The most helpful things your partner can do is do 100% of the older children care and the housework until you feel ready to take it back.

Talk to the children about how baby will want milk and you'll have to sit and feed baby. You can read stories or play games with them once things are more established.

The baby will stop feeding when they have had enough. Yes, the milk stops flowing when they stop, the only time I had is streaming out was BEFORE a feed, when I was very engorged after a night away from him. I didn't need to pump, I just fed him. I leaked with my first but not the other two. Buy some nipple pads if you are a leaker. And it doesn't always hurt. It was only painful with my first baby and that was because I produced a lot of milk and he wasn't latching on correctly. I stuck at it and all was fine after 3 weeks.

The best thing to do would be to contact your local breastfeeding Support volunteers and/or a lactation consultant beforehand so you have all the info, it's very doable with the right information and support 👍

Mine did used to spray out in the first month or so, I had over supply, so I would quickly hand express a little before I fed, but it was quite common to sometimes have to change her baby grow after I'd drenched it, usually when I hadn't been able to latch quickly enough. It calmed down though once my supply settled.

I'd buy and read the book "the womanly art of breastfeeding" by La Leche League if I were you. I found it very practical and had lots of answers for my 2am questions (latch, hold, supply etc). It really helped me through it and I breastfed for over a year.

1- how will I know my child’s had enough/ is full

You will just know.

They will stop drinking and probably fall asleep.

2- sounds silly but when they stop feeding will the flow stop? I saw a video of milk squirting uncontrollably into a babies face and I’m concerned about that a little because I will be going back to work after 9 months and don’t want wet patches on my top.

Everyone is different, but this has never happened to me. I certainly wouldn't expect it to happen at 9 months post partum because your baby will be on solids by then and you would be feeding much less. You can get pads to put inside your bra which will soak up any leaking milk, although I never needed to use them, even in the early days.

3- what do I do if I get engorged? Will I need to pump?

You can pump but you don't have to, and pumping when you don't need to may cause an oversupply. I would get a Haakaa and put it on the side you're not feeding from when your baby is feeding to collect any excess milk. You can then freeze whatever you collect. It's a good idea to get your baby used to the occasional bottle from about 4 weeks onwards - get a small bottle with a newborn teat - because if your baby refuses to take a bottle it will make it difficult for you to be away from your baby for any length of time.

If you get a clogged duct, fill the Haakaa with warm water and a spoonful of Epsom salts and put it on the clogged side. It should be full enough that your nipple is in the water. The warm water will draw milk out and ease the clog. You can also massage the area and hand express whilst under a hot shower.

It can hurt but it doesn’t always. Your baby will tell you when they have or haven’t had enough, it is hard not to know how much they are taking in but you can see the results in their weight gain.

By 9 months your supply will be settled and your baby will feed less. You may have wet patches at the very beginning but it doesn’t last forever.

The main time mine got uncomfortable was when DS started going longer at night without a feed. I used a manual pump while he had his first feed of the day and froze that for if I wanted to go out. However I only started pumping at 6 weeks.