Beginner Breastfeeding Boo-Boos
- shimglow
- Apr 1, 2017
- 3 min read
For some moms, breastfeeding happens naturally and painlessly from the moment they first hold their baby in their arms. I was not one of those moms.
Although Lil’ Cub nurses like a champion now, we had a really rough start. According to the lactation nurse, Lil’ Cub’s mouth was too small for my nipple, so he couldn’t latch deeply for the first three weeks. Also, my postpartum hemorrhage meant that I had lost too much blood to be producing milk consistently. The first few weeks of breastfeeding consisted of hard rock-like lumps from engorgement, cracked, bleeding nipples from improper latching, milk leaking all over the place, and lots of wailing on the part of Lil’ Cub.
If I had to advise anyone with the same problems, here’s what I’d say:
1) Be patient, persistent, and consistent. Every time Lil’ Cub was hungry, I would offer him the breast before trying other feeding methods. Although he was largely unsuccessful at first, he had plenty of opportunities to practice. As his mouth grew bigger and he grew more confident in nursing, he started to get the hang of it.
2) Keep the baby calm. After the first failed nursing sessions, Lil’ Cub started associating nursing with negative experiences; whenever I put him in a breastfeeding position, he would scream even before I tried feeding him. To reset his expectations, I calmed him down by rocking and singing to him and allowed him to initiate the nursing process. I also made sure I was calm because my distress seemed to make him anxious. I was more successful when I tried before he got super tired and hungry.
3) Don’t be afraid to use other feeding methods if necessary. While I always tried breastfeeding first, I sometimes ended up using a bottle or SNS feeder because keeping him fed was the most important! The hospital nurses said this would interfere with him learning to breastfeed, but once Lil’ Cub learned to latch properly, he definitely started preferring the breast, so much that he ended up refusing everything else!
4) Pump every time you supplement with formula. This tells your body to make more milk for your baby and increases your supply.
5) Nurse him as much as he wants. In the first month, I was often glued to the couch because Lil’ Cub would feed pretty much every hour, but these "marathon feeds" effectively increased my milk supply. In six weeks, he went from drinking 1.5 oz/meal to 6 oz/meal; my boobs would not have been able to catch up if he hadn’t kept nursing to tell them to keep producing.
6) Take care of your body. Beginner’s pain is temporary but intense. I remember feeling like my nipples had been grazed by a cheese grater. I got through those weeks thanks to Fig and Moss’ Bosom Butter, Medela’s Nipple Cream, and Medela’s Gel Soothers.
7) Seek help and educate yourself. Although I had taken meticulous notes at my breastfeeding class, it took a session with the lactation nurse to learn how to “stuff my nipple into his mouth like a sandwich” (her words) in order to get a deep latch. Here are some of the resources I found most useful in those early days:
* Breastfeeding support websites such as KellyMom and La Leche League
* JOC Lactation Consultants, a Chicago-based breastfeeding consultation service
Breastfeeding isn’t always easy, but for me, those tough first weeks were worth it!
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