June 6, 2022
Dear Milky Mamas,
Patience is key! breastfeeding for me has been a wild and wonderful roller coaster ride. Like a roller coaster, ascending was the most nerve-racking or in other words, learning how to have the baby latch. Once I mastered that, then came the loops aka those darn cluster feedings! My baby was wide awake, eating for 10 minutes, and then sleeping in the next thirty seconds, every one to two hours! Can you say whiplash!? It wasn’t until my baby started to sleep through the night did I see the light at the end of that roller coaster’s tunnel.
I gave birth to my first child Josiah in March 2016, weighing just five pounds and four ounces. Just two years later, my daughter Isabella weighed five pounds and seven ounces in August 2018.
I occasionally had to supplement with formula with both of my children during my hospital stay and also at home to get their weight up. Once my milk came full throttle, I was breastfeeding and pumping like I had been doing it for years.
I won’t sugar coat anything here, breastfeeding was a challenge for me but I will never regret my decision to do it. We produce milk whether we end up choosing to breastfeed or not. Why not give it a try right? It comes with many Pros and Cons and I experienced everything from painful engorgement to cracked and sore nipples. Things that made me stop, scream, and cry in frustration. But it was the bonding with my baby that kept me from giving up. The way their soft skin layed against mine as I would hold them in my arms made it all worth it. Those milk-drunk smiles will forever warm my heart. The thought that my breast milk was truly the only thing that could soothe my baby, was the icing on the cake.
When my milk supply would run low, I would try upping my fluid intake. This included Lots and lots of water and Mother’s Milk tea. WARNING for those of you who aren’t tea lovers, I wouldn’t recommend this product to you. It is listed on the instructions to drink at least 3 cups of this tea a day to boost your milk supply.
It can be found at your local Target or Walmart. I was also able to find and purchase lactation treats via Instagram from milky mama. An easy way to snack with a purpose.
How long you want to breastfeed your baby is completely up to you! Any breast milk is better than none at all. With my son Josiah, my goal was to be able to nurse him up until his first birthday. Truthfully, it felt like the longest 12 months of my life! After he was introduced to solid food at six months, I was both breastfeeding and giving formula. The teeth cutting through was both painful for both him and me. Seeing as my nipples were the ones who got nibbled on now and then. Nothing a little nipple balm couldn’t fix though. A good episode of Grey’s Anatomy while pumping kept my mind off the pain. With God’s grace and my support system, I will be able to breastfeed Isabella up to her first birthday as well. Fingers Crossed!
A challenge I often faced was how to breastfeed in public. There are so many videos on social media of people shaming women for doing what is not only beautiful but also legal in the United States. Covering myself while feeding wasn’t fun and it ruined part of the breastfeeding experience for me. My baby would get hot quickly under there and would fuss even more because they weren’t comfortable. I quickly decided to no longer be worried about what other people thought or said. If my baby is hungry I will feed her no matter where I am and with a smile on my face.
I created the idea to use my baby carrier that I would strap my baby in to breastfeed when I was out and about. You start by placing your baby in the carrier facing you, adjust it to your comfort with the adjustable straps and when the baby begins to cry for that yummy milk, you can pop that breast right in their mouth, and voila, you are now a pro at breastfeeding in public!
With breastfeeding for me came the topic of “use of alcohol”. Can I breastfeed and drink alcohol? How much alcohol is safe to drink while breastfeeding? Will consuming alcohol while breastfeeding affect my baby’s health and development? All questions I asked myself.. and Google, while on my journey through breastfeeding. Pre-pregnancy, I would occasionally enjoy a glass of wine or a beer now and then and I was sad that I would have to give it up during pregnancy and after, with my decision to breastfeed. According to Medical News Today, No consumption of alcohol is the safest route to go BUT, moderate consumption of alcohol or one drink a day is considered also safe for moms who are breastfeeding. They also mention facts about the pump and dump method and information about how long alcohol stays present in your milk after you drink it. I do love a crisp angry orchard on a warm fall day but me being a perfectionist and not wanting to chance it, I decided it could wait.
Overall I enjoyed breastfeeding a lot! I have found myself to be the best multi-tasker while I’m nursing. I learned to successfully fold clothes, read books, do my makeup and write this blog. One final thought I will leave you with, whether you are a first-time mom or a mom of eight is, that having the right support whether from family, friends, or even a lactation specialist, is going to be the most important aspect of your breastfeeding journey. You are going to need someone in your corner to cheer you on. Breastfeeding can get very overwhelming with your tiny human being with lungs of steel screaming for milk. It is ok to admit that sometimes you won’t want to do it. I sometimes would catch myself saying “hungry already? but I just fed you!” Those two hours fly by like seconds. It is important to lean on your people when you need a second to breathe. For me saying a quiet prayer right before I nurse, mostly on the lines of ” Lord please help my baby go back to sleep after she eats so I can take a shower” would be all I needed to hop right to it. Everyone needs help and it is ok to admit when you need it. We are supermoms and superheroes almost always have sidekicks to help them save the day!
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