…be prepared for a mutually-beneficial, fulfilling (but challenging) experience of your life!
I decided to breastfeeding after reading up on it while I was pregnant. When you breastfeed:
- Baby has the BEST start in life – esp if you can do it for 6 months
- Baby absorbs 100% of the nutrients, which means little or no poo
- Baby has NO allergy problems – this depends on what Mother eats
- Baby has NO constipation, NO smelly poo and 99% immunity from illnesses
- Mummy loses pregnancy weight faster than any exercise or diet
- Mummy’s uterus contracts faster – faster healing
- Mummy bonds with Baby – provided you look at him, smile or talk as you breastfeed
- Mummy only needs to have lots of water and a snack when she goes out – no bottles, milk powder, hot water, cold water, cleansing fluid, bottle warmers, baby bags etc
BEFORE BABY ARRIVES
1. Go for a baby-friendly hospital – In its truest sense, from the registration, the gynae, the nurses right down to the floor cleaner will support you in your efforts to breastfeed. This means that they will ensure:
- your baby is given to you immediately after birth to latch on
- your baby is given NO sugar water or formula milk
- that nobody promotes formula milk to you
- that they, your family and you have given the best shot at helping you breastfeed
2. Understand the science behind breastfeeding – basically, the cycle of demand-and-supply. The more you breastfeed directly/pump your milk, the more your supply increases. Your food and water intake must be adequate – you may even need to eat slightly more and be surprised that you’re still losing weight!
3. Practise the 2 key positions - the lying down and the cradle hold. The lying down (shown in photo above) is a life saver for a working Mum like me as I could still get the sleep/rest I needed while I breastfed the boy every 2 hours in the first month, every 3 hours in the second month and then every 4 hours in the following months.
4. Remember that breastfeeding is 100% natural and completely absorbed – This means Baby will feel hungry after 3-4 hours (day AND night), unlike longer periods when fed with formula milk.
5. For working Mums – get your pump, storage bottles, carry bag, breast pads, ice sheets etc well in advance. My personal recommendation is the award-winning Avent ISIS Manual pump, which works wonderfully for many Mums!
You only need to start pumping 2 weeks before you start work as you’d want to enjoy direct breastfeeding as much as possible in the early months. Don’t worry about baby refusing the bottle – they only get smart about this in the 4th month.
Also, learn the art of hand expression – it’s invaluable in times when you don’t have your pump with you.
6. Breastfeeding tops – this is entirely your choice as I managed without any because I always made sure I was around decent breastfeeding rooms any time we went out. You may want to get some if you don’t mind breastfeeding in public. A baby sling works well too.
WHEN BABY IS BORN
1. Breast massage – This is one of the BEST tips a lactation nurse shared with me at the hospital. As the milk usually comes in about 4-5 days later, try massaging each breast when you’re lying on the bed staring at the ceiling. This helps to prevent engorgement, when your boobs become hard as rocks (literally).
2. Breastfeed from the beginning – You’ll be giving baby colostrum, even if you feel there isn’t anything coming out.
3. Be prepared for stress – With a screaming baby like my boy, I was *stressed* when I first latched him on because the positioning takes time to get used to. Get a lactation nurse to help you. I was sweating profusely and getting frustrated while he was yelling his head off, his face getting redder and redder =)
As a new Mum, you may not know yet how to calm a baby down but the nurse would. After soothing him with some soft words, she handed him to me to try again. Keeping the baby swaddled tightly helped me get a firm hold.
Key point: You know it’s right when Baby’s mouth is wide open (like a baby bird) and closed over your entire nipple. If not, he’s not getting any milk and you’re getting sore nipples. See picture below from Kellymom.
4. Sacrifice your social activities the first week – As you’ll be feeding baby day and night every 1, 2 or 3 hours, you need the peace and quiet for concentration and rest. It’s really hard to get it right if you’re trying to breastfeed and then you have to stop to entertain your visitor.
I personally made a special request to my friends and Hubby’s friends for visits to begin only in the second or third week. At the most, I agreed to 4 visits during my entire hospital stay (family was OK as they kept as quiet as mice!)
5. Don’t be afraid to ask for help! A lot of breastfeeding Mums are only too willing to help you get the position, share their tips/problems or just listen to you moan.
Whenever I brought the boy to the paed for his check-ups, I’d meet some new Mums struggling. I don’t charge forward to help but let the Mum try it out for herself until she starts showing despair and baby doesn’t stop screaming.
Then, I’ll gently and slowly ask if she might like some help. Some are only too grateful/relieved someone is willing to help – I felt really happy when this new Mum finally got her baby girl to latch on. Her bright smile and soft “thank you” was the best! And then I’m out of the picture, leaving Mum (and the relieved Dad) and baby to bond.
A few are quite defensive, strongly insisting that they know what they’re doing – sadly, they end up scolding the baby for being “naughty” and declaring breast milk, formula milk, it’s all the same.
6. Join a support group – My saving grace is MyMomsBest, where I met some of the nicest people on earth!
- From phoning me to gently encourage me (Alice – “you can do it! you can do it! Don’t get stress ha…”) helping me with opinions on rooming arrangements,
- offering to send me a bottle of fenugreek ASAP (I remember you, Christene LOL)
- being my buddy as we motivated each other to extend “just one more month” (Syn, my good friend) or
- empathizing with me when my pregnancy weight wasn’t falling as expected (Anita) although it did eventually
It’s great going down memory lane as I mentally prepare myself for No. 2. I’ll treasure these moments of comradeship forever!
Some resources:
KellyMom’s Basics of breastfeeding – excellent overview of what to expect in the early weeks, breastfeeding positions, “Is Baby Getting Enough Milk?” and FAQs. I especially like the “Free Handouts” section which include:
- a quick reference card for storing breastmilk
- recommended breastfeeding practices
Manual expression of breastmilk (using your hands) – A step-by-step guide, with pictures included.
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
thanks for sharing this… you give hopes to mummy like me once again who didn’t succeed in bf… now I know who to look for if I have bf problem next time…
Sharine – Compared to Mums who’ve done it for 2 years, my 9 months is nothing lah. Let’s do it together for No.2 ok?
hi.. found your blog through BDMM.. thx for the great info, wished I saw your blog much earlier then I wouldn’t have gone thru so much stress
HI Sting – Sorry I missed out your comment. Will be sure to visit your blog one day. It’s always nice to meet another Mum