Let me start by saying that the choice to breastfeed your child is a decision that is personal to each mother and their individual circumstances. For me, I wanted to exclusively breastfeed Little Bit for the first year of her life (give or take). However, as with everything else, I had to really balance how important that was to me against all of the other responsibilities in my life that required my time and attention. After much research on the benefits of breastfeeding, conversations with other mothers, and some inquiry of my doctor, we decided that breastfeeding was the route for us. This journey is not without struggle.
First, I took it day by day… literally. Breastfeeding was such a struggle in the beginning that I told myself each day just to push through until the next day and see how you feel. Well, 10 months later, here we are. But along those tens months, there were some things that people had told me that continued to torment me.
It Comes Naturally-FALSE!
When mothers talked about breastfeeding their child, I mostly heard of all the benefits it would provide to my child. Not once did I hear of the difficulty that came along with it. I had this fairy-tale idea that my child would immediately know what to do the first time I put her to my breast. NOT. THE. CASE. It takes work in the beginning.
In the hospital, it took a good three tries for Little Bit to latch. The nurses had to help me the first few times. But after a while, I felt like we had the hang of it and we were released from the hospital into the scariness of parenthood.
Our “great latch” fell apart the minute we tried to feed at home. I realize now it was the amount of stress and sleeplessness that I was experiencing that led to our slight detour on our breastfeeding journey. Luckily, the hospital had sent me home with a goodie bag that included a list of ten or so lactation consultants (it’s as if they knew!). You bet your aunt fanny I was on the phone so quick and it was the best $75 I had ever spent for an hours worth of work.
She explained that breastfeeding, although natural, is very difficult in the beginning. She watched me hold Little Bit to see how I positioned her. She looked at how Little Bit latched and even weighed her after the feeding to assure me that I was in fact producing enough milk for my child.
It still didn’t feel natural, but over time, it became easier to manage.
Pumping is Easy-FALSE!
Ugh! I can’t wait to jump kick my pumps out of my home and office. That’s right. You heard me. Pumps! PLURAL! I own two pumps.
In this craziness that I call my life, Mr. Mister and I decided that it would be advantageous to keep a pump at home for the late night/early morning/weekend pumps and one at the office for my workday pumps. With all of the crap I carry around for work and school, I didn’t want to be bogged down with another bag. I must say, it has been a great stress reliever to not have to truck an extra bag with a pump around. Every Monday, I just walk in with a bag of ten clean bottles, put them in my office cabinet my husband got for me, and I only worry about carrying out a discreet bottle bag at the end of each day. That’s the easy part. The hard part was figuring out how to use your pump to your body’s potential.
Pumps come in all different shapes, sizes, grades, colors, personalities (only slightly kidding). With all of the available brands, you have to determine which will be right for you. Do your research. There are so many blogs and resources on line that you can hear people raving about the pump they use or ranting about how another pump has failed them. But keep in mind, what works for one body, may not work for another.
Another thing to keep in mind is cost. Most insurance companies will cover the cost of a breast pump. Just call and ask and they can inform you of all the details. The bad part about this is you get what they got. You can’t choose the latest model or best quality. However, my own insurance company provided me with a top quality Ameda pump. A girlfriend of mine told me her insurance provided her with a Medela. So, I think insurance companies want to get it right the first time in order not to hinder your pumping and for you to be successful. One note here, the company that sent me mine had to replace it when the motor went out. It was no big deal. I call, they confirmed the model, my address, and had the new one sent out overnight. I am not sure how easy it would be to try to return or exchange a pump at a retail store.
After you have the right pump for you, you need to figure out a schedule that works for your daily responsibilities and the milk intake of your child. This is the hard part. I started by pumping every two hours to create my supply and to store some for when I returned to work. Eleven months later I am down to pumping twice a day. As Little Bit has gotten older she has dropped feedings and not taken as much milk. Another thing I noticed is that when I am stressed out or sleep deprived (which is usually every day) my milk supply is totally affected. At times like those, there is not much you can do when you are carrying such a busy schedule. You just press on and move past it. Never fear supplementing.
It’s Quicker than Making a Formula Bottle- FALSE!
In the middle of the night when you are ripped from your sleep at the sound of a crying baby you don’t really have all of your faculties yet. It’s super easy to lay the child in bed next to you and nurse as opposed to fumbling your way through the dark, with a crying child, to make a bottle, heat the bottle, stumble your way back to the chair and finally feed your child. A 30 minute bottle process can be a 15 minute nursing session that only requires you to relocate your child next to you.
Most Women Fail as a Milk Supplier-FALSE!
Studies have shown that providing breast milk to your child for a even just a few days can be beneficial to your child. The colostrum itself has so many health benefits and can protect your child from infection and illnesses you, as the mother, has been exposed to. For some women, that is all that they can provide for their child. This is not failing as a mother. It’s physiology. As much as I wanted to nurse my child through to her first year, I don’t think we will make it. At 10 months, I started supplementing with formula because my body could no longer keep up. I haven’t failed as a milk supplier, I have given my baby the best that I could and that my body would allow. We are both happy because of it.
Whatever route you decide to take with your child, definitely consider what your schedule will permit and how realistic your goals are. I set out with the goal of a week. Then a month. Then three months. Every time I would reach a goal, I would feel so much more motivated to set another goal. Set yourself up for success and gauge your success by your own standards when it comes to breastfeeding.
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