| ~*~A Mommy's World Breastfeeding Stories!~*~ | |
♥On this page you will find many stories about breastfeedng from many moms of all ages and nationalities!
Please enjoy the stories. They are all real and come from the hearts of mommies just like you! Some were able to breastfeed their babies for a long time, some could not at all. The thing is they tried and that is what counts. Trying is better than not bothering to at all. Sometimes moms get a bad rap or a lot of harsh comments for not being able to breastfeed or breastfeed very long even if they tried really hard...even if they breastfeed without supplementing with formula. Some moms worked hard to breastfeed and were successful, some were not successful no matter what they did. Maybe moms who read this page can get some ideas, tips, tricks, information, or guidance from the breastfeeding stories on this page. Happy Reading!!
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| ~*~Submit your story!~*~ |
♥Please share with us your breastfeeding stories. How many children do you have? how many of your children did you breastfeed? Did you have trouble with latching on or making enough milk? For those who did not make enough milk what steps did you take to try and make more milk? Did you try a different diet, A Lactation Consultant, a Cranio-Sacral Therapy, Fenugreek, meditation, acupuncture, Oatmeal, Blessed Thistle, Goat's Rue, Brewers Yeast, Milk Boosters, Herbal Milk Boosters, Mother's Milk Tea, Manual Pumping, Pumping with Electric Drinking a lot of water, More frequest feedings, Allowing the baby to nurse all the time even as a pacifier to boost the milk? What was the overall outcome of your breastfeeding experience? Do you think you tried hard or gave up easily? How long did you breastfeed for?
♥Could you answer these questions and add anything you can about your breastfeeding experience and make it into sort of an article. Do not worry about perfection, One paragraph is acceptable even. Just do what you can, as much as you can remember and share your breastfeeding story with us. No matter how short or long. Feel free to add your own personal tips, tricks, and such.
♥You can make it long or make it short and sweet. Even a sentence is acceptable. Just do what you can within your means. We want all moms' input please.
♥Would you mind if we published your article here about your breastfeeding experiences on this website, with your screen name or name added to the article? If not you can remain anonymous!!
♥This will be to help other mothers and mothers to be really know what it is like and help and encourage them. This will also help those who were not able and will not be able to breastfeed to feel better about it. Sometimes moms get a hard time for not being able to breastfeed, This will make some moms feel more at easy and to not have any guilt.
♥To submit your story email Kat@a-mommys-world.com
Please include a screen name or name, or if you want to remain anonymous
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| ~*~jenandantsmom~*~ |
♥ I have two children. My daughter will turn four next month and my son is six weeks. My kids are both "booby babies." I nursed my daughter for the first time in the delivery room. It took a while to get the positioning right; my husband and I went to a class in the hospital the day after she was born. Because of jaundice, she had to return to the hospital for phototherapy. During this time, I had to pump my milk and supplement with formula so that the doctor could know exactly how much she was taking in. By the time that she was a week old, she was done with formula and never had another sip.
I nursed her exclusively after that and she thrived. According to percentile calculators, she is the average size of a child a full two years older. At age one, I started her on whole milk during the day while I was at work and she nursed when she woke up in the morning, after I got home from work in the afternoon and at bedtime. I made the BIG MISTAKE of letting her fall asleep on the breast. It took a long time to correct this, making it nearly impossible to leave her with anyone, even my mother.
I finally weaned her at 17 months, only because she started to reach into my shirt and pull my breast out in public.
The thing that I was looking forward the most to when I was expecting my son was the first time I could nurse him. I put him to the breast in the delivery room and he promptly gave me a hickey. He latched on immediately and has been doing great. He also had a case of jaundice, but the doctor could tell from my son's stool, which he passed on the doctor, that my milk had come in, so I was able to nurse him during the phototherapy.
Breastfeeding is one of the most rewarding things that I've ever done. The pride that's felt when you see your baby thriving, knowing that you are sustaining him is immense. I know that it's hard, and there are things that no one tells you before you have kids. For example, it hurts for the first couple of weeks, but just when you think that you can't take it anymore, it becomes easier. Also, it makes socialization tricky if you're modest (or have a modest husband, like mine.) It can feel isolating when you're at a party and are sitting in another room. (This is where receiving blankets and nursing shawls come in handy.) You'll learn to ignore the well-meaning people who'll ask, "Is that kid STILL on the boob?"
When I became pregnant with my first baby, I actually wasn't sure that I even wanted to breastfeed. Once I looked down at my daughter, contentedly suckling, I knew that it was the greatest gift that I could give to her and to myself.
It's a very personal decision to breastfeed, but I can guarantee that with patience and perserverance, it's the best one you'll ever make
Submitted by : jenandantsmom
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| ~*~Kerribug~*~ |
♥Hello my name is Kerri.
I have two little boys. My 1st son is Kadin, he is 2years old.
My 2nd son is Henry, he is 3 half months old. I started beastfeeding my 1st son in 2005. It really hurt to beastfeed him because it seem like he would bite down so hard. Plus my breast were so swollen. So I started pumping to feed him beastmilk. It was so painful for him to be on. So he got it though a bottle. I pumped for six months. My flow of milk was so much, that I had a year and a half worth for him.
My 2nd son started beastfeeding a few days after he was born because he was in the NICU. He had my milk though a bottle. I have stop giving beastmilk becasue he has acid reflux so bad that we had to put him on 4 differnt formulas now we have found the right one for. But he had beastmilk for about a month and half.
Just don't give up. I know its hard but it will get easiler. Put alot of cream on your nipples. Hope everyone the best.
Submitted by : Kerribug
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| ~*~wildbrownrice~*~ |
♥I breastfed my daughter within minutes after she was born and was her primary source of nutrition until one week before her first birthday. We were lucky and each took to it with ease (aside from the first few days of painfull let-down, which resolved itself). Having had a drug-free birth she was alert and ready to go as soon as she arrived and boy did she!
I feel lucky to have shared this with my little girl. There was never any question that she was thouroughly well-nourished, and I took comfort in knowing that she was getting the best nutrition possible.
There are so many positives to breastfeeding, the bonding and quiet time are priceless. Being in possession of something so valuable that only you can give your child is the perfect starting block to building your sense of yourself as a mother. Giving of yourself and seeing them grow and thrive because of it is the ultimate reward of motherhood!
Submitted by : wildbrownrice
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| ~*~maryjane~*~ |
well Isaac never breastfed. When he was born he wouldn't suck, so the hospital had to give him formula from a little measuring cup. We stayed in the hospital for 5 days trying to get him to suck, when he finally did...he wouldn't take it from me at all. He got too use to the formula. Even after we got home i tried and tried but he just would not take it from me.
It was kind of a good thing though b/c i never made a lot of milk. Since he wouldn't take from even from a bottle he wouldn't take it. So I just made it to where i wasn't producing milk.
I think I tried my best with it. but just couldn't do it. I was a little upset it turned out that way but I got to snuggle a lot with him and stuff so that was enough for me. I know they say mommy's milk is the best for babies, but even though he didn't get it, he is very healthy, strong, and very smart for his age. He is tall for his age too.
I will try again when we have another baby, any tips on what to try next time will be great!
yes you can use this if you would like. You can put my name on it too.
Submitted by : maryjane
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| ~*~black_rose~*~ |
I nursed Chrissy for 16 months, despite people who didn't think I should nurse more than 6 weeks(if at all).
We had an AWESOME nurse who put her to breast as soon as she came out. He was awesome. We had a great experience. The only reason I stopped bf was because I had an ectopic pregnancy rupture, and got PRESCRIBED narcotics (note I say prescribed, not that I took them), and I didn't want to take the chance that she would get them through my breastmilk if I took them. Turns out I never took them, and I could have continued to nurse.
With her I had plenty of milk, only she wouldn't nurse from my right breast. Would not go NEAR it, so I nursed exclusively from my left side, which was weird. LOL I had a HUGE left boob (which was bigger to start with), and a smaller right one. At one point I was a DD-DDD on the left side, and a B on the right.
Bubba and I had problems nursing. He was in the NICU right after birtdh, so he and I didn't get to attempt nursing right away. I tried and tried with him. I pumped milk and tried giving it to him in bottles, but I had a problem making milk for him. We ended up giving up at around 6 weeks.
I *WILL* try it again with another child.
Submitted by : black_rose
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| ~*~grumpybear~*~ |
I tried so hard to breastfeed Daniel. I wanted nothing more but to be able to. I had a c-section and when the lactation consultant came to my room she claimed that I had flat nipples and would have to use a nipple shield. I did for about 4 mo but I had to supplement with formula as I was told that I wasn't producing enough milk. I decided to try a lactation consultant from another hospital to get their input & was told that the nipple shield wouldn't let me produce any more milk & that apparently the other lc hadn't taken into account that I had just had a c-section & that the anesthesia from that made my nipples look flat but they really weren't. So I tried renting a hospital pump to see if I could produce more but by then Daniel had already started to like the easiness of a bottle. I'm still very upset about this & can't wait to have another so that I can actually have the chance to breastfeed. I've already decided that I will write out my birthplan & that in capital letters it will say "DO NOT FEED MY CHILD FORMULA" so I can do what I think is best. I feel really bad that I just eventually gave up especially after finding out that it would be possible.
Submitted by : grumpybear
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| ~*~chicken_mary~*~ |
With Sylvia, I wanted to breastfeed but she had hypoglycemia and elevated red blood cells (she was overdue and the cut the cord too soon basically) so I had to pump and one I could nurse from the breast she was so used to bottles it was impossible and I gave up, with Maddy I had no support, she was born in a navy hospital with no lactation consultant and my grandmother was dying and I had to drive to Atlanta from Virginia with a 5 week old and a two year old and so breastfeeding didn't go to well, with Perry, I had determined myself no excuses I was going to breastfeed him for atleast a year and I did, he latched on right after he was born, I just knew he was latched on right, had lots of support, had a lactation consultant at the beginning (though didn't really need her) an I offered him the breast as often as he seemed interested,even and especially as a pacifier, and I drank mother's milk tea, atleast a glass a day (still do) and at night he gets in the bed and nurses. After he came home from the hospital Geoff took a week off and took care of the girls whil Perry and I stayed in bed and nursed for the first few days, this was one of the biggest helps for me ever. Perry is going to be 11 months old tommorrow and we're still nursing! yay!
Submitted by : chicken_mary
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| ~*~purplefantasy_3~*~ |
hi well i have two kids and one on the way I brestfead my oldest for about 3months befor i stoped producing milk all together my doctor said that there was nothing he could do course I just making it but with my son i was un able to brestfeed couse of meds I was taking and it would not be good for me to brestfeed but i made alot of milk i did not stop lacktating for 3 1/2 years it was a month befor i got pregnant with this one when I stoped I wanted to brestfeed but I couldent and I got so much crap for it I was told that every women is able to brestfeed and that i should have tryed harder but i found out by my doctor that I tryed to heard and there was nothing i could have done to change the fact that my body just couldent make milk and not to worry it happens to alot of women
Submitted by : purplefantasy_3
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| ~*~jsm91986~*~ |
I breast fed Jenna until she was a month old i had orignially planned on bf unitl she was about a year old. but unfortunatly that didn't go as planned from the very beginning we had problems i made it very clear to the hospital's staff that i did not want a bottle or a pacifier any where near my child that i would be breast feeding ONLY they also asked me before talking me in to the or if i wanted the baby brought to me in the recovery room so i could bfandi told then absoluty i want to feed my child asap.
They never brought her too me until after i had spent a hour in the recovery room and then another hour in my room so it was about 2 1/2 hours after she was born that i finally got to see her, and they had already fed her formula twice and when they brought her too me she had a pacifier in her mouth. I was one very pissed off personwhen i was finally able to try bf considering i was a new mother i had no idea where to start and neither did any of the nurses in L&D but "they had seen in done enough times thay could could try to help the best they could" which was complete BS. after finally being able to come home and get settled in things started going more smoothly we finally had the latching on part down and i was producing more than enough milk when we went for her 1 weeks check up at the ped.'s office she was doing great and her ped was very pleased with the fact that she was bf but wanted to see her back in another week just for a weight check to make sure everything was gonna go ok with it.. well a week later every thing wasn't ok she had actually lost weight so her ped. suggested i try supplementing with formula (which i was totally against) and then see her again the following week for another weight check well i didn't follow the ped's advice i instead went and bought a pump so i could could pump and see exactly how much milk she was getting and she was getting pleanty.
The next week when she went back again she had only gained a lb or so and her ped thought that still wasn't enough so he determined that my milk wasn't any good and that it didn't have the nutrients she needed to be gaining any weight and told me that i was go go to strictly formula and see if that solved the problem i as still against the idea becuase i was very stuck on bf my child. but after listening to every one in my family and her dad's family about how i was starving my child and blah blah blah i decided that i would at least try supplementing with formula and see how she took to it.. It wasn't an easy transition for me or her, but she did gain enough weight by the next week to atisfy the doctor.
After that she bf less and less and eventually by breast dried up and i had no choice but to stop. I was very upset by the fact that i wasn't able to bf and it still bothers me to this day.
I will definatly try again with my future children and hopefully it will go alot better!
Submitted by : jsm91986
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| ~*~sheli~*~ |
I breastfed Elena until she was 4 months old... It was so hard to pump and work but I tried.. She was getting so big so fast that she just wanted more than I could give her. By the time she was 6 months she was 24 lbs and 27 inches long. Huge,. With Natalya I had my tubes tied at 6 weeks so I stopped at that pint even though I tried for a little while longer.
Submitted by : sheli
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| ~*~zombiesatemyneighbors~*~ |
I was 19, single and alone when I had my first child. I turned 20 just a few months after she was born. I read a lot of books prior to her birth and amongst other things I wanted to breastfeed her. I leaked colostrum well before she was born, so naturally I believed it was a sign that I should breastfeed. My mother was completely digusted at the thought. she gave me a hard time about it. My dad encouraged it. He was mad at my mother for not even attempting to breastfeed me when I was a baby.
So from the start I tried to breastfeed her. Unfortunately my family would make that difficult for me. Eventually it came down to her not gaining weight and me not producing enough milk as a result. Her pediatrician insisted I had to start her on formula straight away. That of course very much upset me. I was hurt, I felt like I had failed.
I did not want to give her formula, I felt angry every time I had to give it to her.
I had no internet and no support. So it was over. I had books but nothing really solved my milk production issues. At the time I had no one to point me in any other direction, so I just gave up.
With my second child I was determined to breastfeed. However as hard as I tried it did not work ouot. He got thrush. I kept calling his pediatrician and my ob/gyn and got no where. They told me to put nystatin creme on and feed him with the creme on. That did not work for me. The thrush did not properly go away no matter what I did. So I had to stop and switch to formula. Another failed attempt. We tried Similac with him and he was allergic. So he ended up with Isomil which worked out well for him.
With my third child, I tried again. It went well and I breastfed her til 15 months. I let her nurse all the time and even as a pacifier. It helped her fall asleep. All was going well til I realized she was so hungry and not getting enough from me. I tried talking to her pediatrician and nothing helped me to produce more milk. I supplemented her with formula. I had to. I tried Similac, then quickly found out she was allergic to it. So we went with Isomil. She was also allergic to it. So there we were. I wanted to ONLY breastfeed her, had tried to supplement with milk based formula and then tried soy based formula. neither worked out. We ended up going with the hypoallergenic formula, alimentum. It worked well but it was super stinky! So i would feed her then supllement the end of every feeding with formula. That went on til she was 15 months old with both the breastmilk adn formula regularly all day every day. Including nursing between feedings to help her sleep and pacify her when she was fussy.
I am having twins soon and I plan to breastfeed them. I am currently looking into the best nursing pillow. I used boppy with my other three children. However I am hearing after they get a little bigger the boppy is not large enough to hold them both at the same time. I also have my back up plan for if I do not produce enough milk again. I have been reading a lot of literature, websites, books and talking to mothers who sucessfully breastfed even with milk production issues since my last child who was born 8 years ago. So in 8 years I have been given the knowledge that I feel confident it will work this time.
Wish me luck!
Submitted by : zombiesatemyneighbors
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| ~*~TahraM~*~ |
Hi,
I have 2 little girls, one is 11 mths old and 1 is 5. I am very proud to say I breastfeed both my girls. But unfortantly I was one of those moms that had a very hard time producing enough milk with both of the girls. One cause, my doctor had stated was the stress I underwent after having each of them and I had lost too much weight too fast.
I tried many things to produce more, a lactation consultant, uping my vitiams and nutrient intake, pumping manually (in between my daughters feedings) but nothing seemed to work for me. My doctor said- 'my body was just stressed and I needed to relax and try it'. So I did, but the stress of feeling so guilty of not being able to nurse (it was SO important to me) really hit me. After (I think) a ton of effort, I had to put them on formula.
With my first daughter I made it to 6 weeks of breast feeding and with my second only 4 weeks.
With my second daughter I wond up getting mastidis (clogged milk ducts) in both my breasts, and had to stay in the hospital to have them drained. And that was the cause of why I had to stop with the second daughter. Thats also why I was not producing enough milk. You see, I was, but, with clogged milk ducts the milk is trapped in the breast, and my daughter was not getting much milk.
Overall my breatsfeeding expierence was wonderful. I wouldn't take back those little amounts of time I could! My only wish was that I could have at least made it to 6 mths with both of them. Breastfeeding made me feel so close to them. I also truely believe it gave me a very strong bond with them, even in those short time periods. Any advice from me would be to breastfeed no matter what!!! At least try!!!
Submitted by : TahraM
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| ~*~jenilynn3441~*~ |
With Natasha my oldest daughter i didn't breastfeed.. Then with Tiffany i breastfed her and bottle fed her because i was not producing enough milk. I bf her for 6months. And Emilee my youngest i breastfed her from day one because she was allergic to the formulas they tried her on. I pumped milk only from one side because one breast didn't produce as much. I fed her until she was 1yr old. And still pumped regularly because she was allergic to reg. milk and the ped. suggested i continue pumping. So i did that until she was almost 2.
Submitted by : jenilynn3441
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| ~*~j-9~*~ |
I have one child and I breastfeed him for 8 months the last two months only at night. I worked at a hotel that had a lactation room for mothers and I had an electric pump at work. I took Mother's Milk Tea which was fantastic! I have even sent it to my friends who are new mothers. When I was in the hospital they tried to convince me to give my baby formula and I said "no" I want to breast feed him. My milk came in and I was so happy, then I could finally get my little baby to latch on. I had to put my finger in his mouth and help him to latch on. It seemed really tough at first, but I truly believe it made a bond between my child and I and I believe it is one of the best things that you can do for your child. When I have more children, I will definitly breast feed them as well.
Submitted by : j-9
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| ~*~ Sh3LLB3LL~*~ |
I am a mother of 2 girls. I breastfed both. The first I only breastfed for about 3 months due to milk shortage. I didn't produce enough. The second I used Fenugreek and Mother's Milk herbal tea. Both of those worked great. I wish I had this knowledge with my first and I would have nursed her longer. My second child nursed for 6 months because I became pregnant with baby #3, I plan to nurse my last baby for as long as possible. With any of my babies there was no problem with latching on. I truly believe you have to work with the babies to get them to continually latch on for those who say they have trouble. Breastfeeding is truly the best gift you can your baby and there is no going back. No Formula is as good as mother's milk. Babies are healthier, less sickness and even smarter when breastfed.
Submitted by : Sh3LLB3LL
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| ~*~slinksgirl~*~ |
I knew from the second that I found out I was pregnant that I wanted to
breastfeed. It was the right choice for me and my child and I was
determined--nothing would stand in my way. It was what my body was
meant to do.
My daughter's birth was horrible and traumatic. I had an emergency
c-section under general anaesthesia and didn't even get to see her until
24 hours after she was born. At that point, she was still on a the CPAP
and had an IV and was not feeding at all. I was able to hold her for
short periods of time, but the NICU nurses told me that she wasn't doing
as well as they had hoped and that I couldn't hold her for long.
Thankfully, she made a miraculous turn-around that night and was healthy
enough to be taken off of the CPAP while I was sleeping. Unfortunately,
as it turns out, the NICU nurses gave her a bottle because she was so
hungry--completely without my knowledge. By the next morning, I was
ready to start nursing. I spent hours with my LC in the hospital
without any success. I tried nipple shields without success. My
daughter would sob for food while I tried to get her to latch on over
and over again. No matter what position we tried, she couldn't latch.
After 40 minutes with the LC (who, thankfully, was a friend of mine and
spent lots of extra time with me), I gave up for that session and let
the baby have a bottle. Lather, rinse, repeat...every feeding for 5
days. I never succeeded in getting her to latch on. After I would
attempt to nurse my baby, I would then pump so that I would at least be
able to give her breastmilk. My LC told me not to worry, my milk would
come in soon. I rented a hospital pump and scheduled an in-home
appointment with my LC. At home, I pumped every 30-40 minutes every two
hours. Even after a week, I was still only producing 1-2 oz a milk a
day. My LC watched me pump and recommended kangaroo time with my baby
or holding my baby with one arm and pumping at the same time. No
change, even after a week of this. I would feed her with a bottle, get
her to sleep and then pump...over and over again. Then, my pediatrician
recommended Regulan, so I saw my OBGYN's LC to get the prescription. I
took it for as long as I was allowed, even while struggling with PPD and
the fall-out of the traumatic birth. It had absolutely no effect on me,
short of worsening my PPD. When I went back to my LC and OBGYN, they
both recommended stopping pumping. Well, to be specific, they told me I
could keep pumping if I wished, but that 2 oz a day of EBM really wasn't
worth the struggle. Shortly after that, I quit pumping.
Not a day goes by that I don't wish with all my heart that I could have
had a healthy nursing relationship. I feel enormously guilty that my
body didn't function as it should have.
Submitted by : slinksgirl
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| ~*~Dara~*~ |
Before my daughter was born, I didn't realize how strongly I wanted to breastfeed. I guess I just thought I'd try it and see how things went.
After my daughter was born, I spent a horrendous night on a gurney in the recovery room after an emergency c-section, holding my newborn to my breast and not realizing that she wasn't latched on at all. Because I wasn't on the maternity floor, no one would help me to feed her.
Once we reached our room in maternity, it was just as hard to find help with nursing. My daughter would scream, I would feel frustrated, and sometimes, after 20-30 minutes of this, she would latch on. The nurses came in to ask me how long she nursed and on which breast, but beyond that, they did nothing.
Until they started worrying that she was losing weight. Then they were quick to push formula on us. That was when I started to realize exactly how much I wanted to breastfeed. Any time the word formula was mentioned, I would burst into tears.
Finally, one of the nurses suggested using a manual breast pump to help draw out the colostrum and then quickly remove the pump and latch on the baby. After even more tears on my part – I didn't understand that she didn't want me to pump and then bottle feed the expressed breast milk – we did this and it worked.
My milk came in after 3 days at the hospital and nursing became easier, but the previous weight loss was still on my daughter's chart. A pediatrician from our chosen practice came into the room while my daughter was latched on and nursing and told me that I should keep my baby swaddled. Why wasn't she swaddled? Because that was how I woke her up to feed her. After taking the baby from me for an exam, the doctor told me she was begging me to supplement with formula. Needless to say, I refused to see that specific doctor for almost two years!
After we got home, the blues set in. I was crying constantly. I talked to my OB about the problem and he told me it was ok to stop breastfeeding if it was making me crazy. Actually, it was breastfeeding that saved me. From not feeling like my daughter was mine and rather had been ripped from my body, breastfeeding bonded us like a mom and baby should be bonded. When she needed me, I provided for her. In fact, I regret that I didn't nurse her even more in the first few weeks, as she may have actually slept more if I had!
I weaned my daughter shortly after her first birthday, as I had difficulty getting pregnant with her and wanted to try for a second child. I do feel badly that I chose when she should stop nursing, but I did not get my period back until after she was weaned, and now I have my little boy. I plan to nurse him longer than I did with my daughter. Everything with nursing him went smoother than with my daughter, although I had to have a c-section with him too. This time I knew the tricks and was ready. No one offered us formula either! And at his one week visit, he was above his birth weight by 6 oz.
Currently I am staying at home with my children, but I want to become a breastfeeding counselor or a lactation consultant sometime in the future. I feel that if more moms had help with and information about breastfeeding, more moms would breastfeed their babies. No one was there to help me, so I want to be someone who helps others. I was lucky because I stuck with it. Hopefully someday other moms and babies will be lucky because of me.
--
Dara, Dave
Gabriella (4/1/05), Zachary (6/7/07)
and Rudy the dog
Submitted by : Dara
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| ~*~kthartline~*~ |
My daughter was born on March 16. Since it was the weekend there were no LC's on staff so I had a pretty rough start to breastfeeding (not really knowing what I was doing and all- just what I had read) but by the time we left the hospital on Sunday afternoon she was eating well even though my nipples were screaming every time she did! Breastfeeding was really hard for us at first. I gave birth at 4:50 PM on a Friday and all the LCs went home 10 minutes later and were all off for the weekend. The first night she didn't eat much at all. I was one of the lucky ones though that got a hospital with a staff that knew sometimes it took some time to get things down and didn't try to force me into giving formula. It wasn't until like 12 hours after birth that she finally latched on and ate - not for lack of trying though! At about the 8 hour mark, the nurse did bring me 2 bottles "in case I wanted them" but they didn't make it sound like I had to. For a bit, I thought maybe she had sucking problems, but I put the bottle up to her mouth and she sucked like a champ so I promptly took it away and just kept going at trying to get her to latch every 15 minutes or so. She would start to latch and suck and then she'd stop. Turns out, she just wasn't hungry yet. I later read that sometimes babies aren't hungry right away since they are basically fed constantly before birth.
Anyways, she was fine all day - eating every couple of hours and then all of a sudden the second night in the hospital she ate for LITTERALLY 12 HOURS STRAIGHT!! It hurt so bad that after a few hours I resorted to sitting on the edge of the bed with my baby girl attached to my boob bawling my eyes out while my husband sat there not knowing what to do. The nurses on staff tried to help, but aside from switching sides and applying lots of lanolin cream to the one not currently being sucked on, there wasn't much they could help with. They didn't really know what to do either but encouraged me that it would be fine and we'd get the hang of it. The latch was fine - the problem (which I also found out later) was two things - 1. all of a sudden having over-used nipples that were previously basically untouched and 2. I hadn't realized it before, but I had flat, almost inverted nipples and the sucking was pulling them "out of hiding" (for lack of a better way to explain it!).
We went home on Sunday afternoon. For the next two weeks I dealt with cracking, sore nipples. Then one day, it seemed that all of a sudden everything was all better. For a week or two everything was great. Then, she started to fuss & cry every time she ate. Turns out I had overactive letdown and she had food sensitivities. We started block feeding, I eliminated a few things from my diet (she was sensitive to acidic foods - tomatoes, citrus- I had been eating alot of italian and drinking OJ and it really bothered her!) and started burping her after every few minutes of feeding and all was better. The 6 week growth spurt was pretty rough and I know understand why a lot of women don't last past the 6 week mark. It's hard sometimes and as a first time mom, it's difficult to do nothing but nurse for a few days in a row. But, I was determined to make it to at least 3 months and here we are still nursing at 11 months and I am so proud of us!
I always knew I wanted to breastfeed. My theory on it is why not? I can think of a million reasons to breastfeed and only a few reasons not to and all the reasons not to are selfish ones. I hate pumping at work (I went back at 6 weeks) but it's all worth it when I get home and my baby girl wants nothing more than to be held and nursed by me. The bond is wonderful and I couldn't even imagine not doing it! I try to set short goals (3 months, 6 months, 9 months & 1 year) so that I can meet one at a time and not get too overwhelmed by setting too big of a goal.
We've never had any problems with plugged ducts or infections but at 11 months, I'm having a hard time keeping up with what she needs to take to daycare. I'm just not responding to the pump like I used to so I just yesterday started taking Fenugreek, Fennel Seed (helps with letdown I hear), and I ordered all new pump parts in case that is one of the problems. So, we'll see if those help. If not, I'm only a month away from my 1 year goal and after that we'll start suplementing with whole milk at daycare and I'll get to hang up the horns (after I put some in the freezer to replenish my stash a bit!) at work.
My advice to moms-to-be that would like to nurse is to read as much as you can and really believe in your mind that you can & will do it. It's really the most rewarding and wonderful thing I've ever done.
Submitted by : kthartline
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| ~*~Tara~*~ |
MI was an extended breastfeeder. LOL! That is the "nice" way to term us. Most people think breastfeeding beyond a year is nuts and weird. My son, Ethan, is my only child and is now 4 years old. He nursed until 10 days before his 3rd birthday. Honestly, I wasn't trying to break any records or be a fantastic mommy! I just had NO idea how to wean him! Everything I did failed miserably. He weaned himself when he was ready, I guess.
Anyway, I nursed within 10 minutes of his birth and never had milk trouble or latching issues. I drank tons of water, drank mother's milk tea, and ate oatmeal EVERY day for breakfast (someone told me that helps)! My son was only 5 pounds when he was born, so I didn't have the demands of a larger baby. BUT, I suffered terribly with thrush! Ethan had a high yeast count in his body and it took months to figure out the problem. Once we did figure out the issue, he was put on a daily dose of pro-biotics which helped tremendously. For the first 6 months of his life, though, I cried when he nursed due to cracked, swollen, thrush infected nipples and his mouth was constantly purple from the gentian violet treatment. He also suffered from a yeast diaper rash during that time, so we were both equally miserable.
Ethan nursed alot his first 15 months. I felt like it was all the time, some days. Especially when he was sick. When he was first born until about 4 months, he nursed about every 2 hours. I was determined not to give up. I am a single mom and I also felt like nursing was easier. I mean, when the baby cried, I popped him on my boob at night and dozed while he nursed. I look back now and I am proud of our nursing time, but I also think that is was exhausting and alot of work. Rewarding, but work.
Submitted by : Tara
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| ~*~tjan_mommy~*~ |
I breastfed all 3 of my children. During my first pregnancy I decided to do so because it was the cheapest option and I felt it would give me personally a better bonding experience. I also found out that it was so much simpler since I could put Tony in bed with me and he would eat while I rested. For my second and third pregnancies I also breastfed because I had such a wonderful experience doing so with Tony that I wanted to have that with Jacob and Abby. I was fortunate enough to not have any problems breastfeeding and would whole hearted recommend it to any mom who is able to do so, if she so chooses. If I have any more children in the future I plan on breastfeeding them also, but that remains to be seen.
Submitted by : tjan_mommy
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| ~*~meldess~*~ |
My daughter was born after a normal, uncomplicated delivery. She
nursed for the first time when she was about 2 minutes old and stayed
with me for about an hour. We roomed in the hospital together and
stayed close after we went home by co-sleeping and wearing her in a
sling. She never had any formula or bottles, even though I went back
to work. I just came home at lunchtime to nurse her and she reverse
cycled by nursing while we were sleeping instead of during the day.
In fact, she is still sporadically nursing at age 3. It's the most
natural and normal thing in the world and I'm so proud of the work I
did to create my happy, healthy daughter.
Submitted by : meldess
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| ~*~Poopzillz~*~ |
My first child was born when I was 18 – I had no idea what I was doing when it came to feeding him. I am the second eldest of 8 and I knew that people breastfed but I grew up with just seeing bottle fed babies and hearing horror stories about breastfeeding and how it is not enough for babies, how it ruined your breasts. After gaining 40kg in pregnancy the last thing I wanted to do was wreck my body any further. (A lot of body image issues). I attempted to nurse in the hospital but was not happy about it – Ash would not latch so out came the nipple shield it kind of worked but my family was telling me how I was doing a terrible job and that I should switch to formula as he was such a skinny scrawny baby. (He is now 13, taller than my husband and weighs about 35kg – so he will always be skinny). I felt like I was failing but I kinda wanted to give it a go – then I went for my 10 day check up with the Health Nurse who also informed me that he was skinny and scrawny and I need to supplement with Formula to top him up. This was the beginning of the end. By the end of the following week he was 100% on the bottle.
When Amber was born 4 years later I was in a better place in my life and in my skin. I had a supportive partner. Amber was a champ at Breast feeding to begin with and latched on first go (I have to put here that this time the nursing staff were really supportive and helpful) She was very small when she was born and by 6 weeks my family were trying to convince me that she was too small and that she needed to start solids. This time I stood my ground but by the time she was 4 months old my partner started to join my family that she was tiny and that maybe we should supplement. The night she got her first top up bottle she slept straight through from 10pm to 7am – this in my family’s eyes meant that apparently I was not enough for her and she should be on formula and starting solids. After 2 weeks of my husband telling me she needed formula I caved and gave in. During those 4 months we endured recovery from emergency c-section, engorgement, mastitis and weaning both myself and the baby off high dose steroids.
Eight years later and I was blessed with a major miracle named Lincoln. This time I was adamant that I was going to breast feed him. I spent hours and hours pouring over information on the internet and books – I was like a first time mother but this time I had the information available for me. Lincoln was born by emergency c-section (again) and latched on as soon as I was wheeled into recovery – the staff at the hospital were amazing but I still ended up with severely cracked nipples. On day 2 my milk came in and man I was in so much pain I could not even pick up the baby. He was slightly jaundiced but like a super pooper he nursed and nursed and he was all clear to go home on day 5. On day 5 he was also back up over his birth weight. This should have been a sign that I was capable of providing for him. I never knew how much easier it is to care for a baby in the hospital until I got home. I felt like I was nursing all the time and I was not getting any sleep. Lincoln was not sleeping during the day at all and hardly at night – when he wasn’t nursing he was screaming. The health nurse who came to my house was no help – I told her how miserable I was and how I wanted to get a pump she informed me that I should get a nipple shield and forget the pump BUT I should be careful as I did not want a baby that comfort nursed (she was a nurse I thought she new best) I bought a shield and it seemed to get better but he was still nursing all the time. I also went and bought an Avent Isis pump and started pumping and feeding him while we worked on our latch. This continued until Lincoln was about 6 weeks and I ended up with mastitis it was horrible I have never felt so sick in all my life. I spent the entire weekend in bed nursing by the end of it I was much better and my little bean was much happier.
Friends of our’s had a baby the day before Lincoln was born so my husband kept comparing us to them. She started supplementing and her baby was sleeping through the night and gaining weight and we were not even at 6 weeks and I was getting up every 2-3 hours. My husband bought formula and forced my poor wee little one to drink it. He slept for 4 hours after that formula bottle – I cried for the entire time he was sleeping – I had flashbacks to my previous failures. I found the breastfeeding community on LJ where I found amazing support. Then we hit a growth spurt and I thought that I was failing – I had the screaming always hungry monster back. My partner and family started on the formula and solids rant again. I was then directed to Adopt-a –mom and was given a mentor – her name was Shannon and she was amazing. So with Shannon’s support and the support of Breastfeeding on LJ I found my confidence to stand up for myself.
Lincoln turned 6 months last week and we are going strong. I love him and the amazing bond that we share (tearing up while writing this) I am dreading the fact that I have to go back to work in July but I am planning on pumping while at workI should also put in here somewhere that we also had to undertake the dairy elimination diet which made for a happy baby but a miserable mum. But hey I gave up alcohol for my little worm so why not my beloved dairy (not that I ate that much being lactose intolerant).
Submitted by : Poopzillz
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