Successful breastfeeding tips ???

Question

First off Happy New Year !!!! 
I really want to breastfeed my baby. But I've heard so many stories about women who try for a while then give up becuz of the pain or just becuz it's so much easier to bottle feed. I'm definitely going to try but I can't help but get discouraged when all the women around me have quit. Are there any successful breastfeeders out there ? Any tips ? Thanks

Answer

Happy new year! I've been Breastfeeding my daughter for 8 months now with no issues. The first few weeks are definitely extremely hard. It's time consuming and painful, but once you make it past that it becomes really easy. Definitely get some nipple cream, I use Lanolin. My nipples were bleeding and cracked so even with a perfect latch it was hurting like hell the first 3 weeks. You're gonna leak like crazy, so you'll need good nursing pads. Nurse your baby at least every 2 hours for the first 48 hours, it'll help your milk to come in. Don't worry if your milk doesn't come in on the 3. Day, it takes longer for some. Your baby will still get colostrum. Try out different nursing positions, ask the lactation consultant in the hospital to stop by and help with that. It's gonna be very overwhelming the first month because your baby is gonna nurse for hours at a time and every couple of hours. That'll get a lot better after a few weeks and as long as your baby is producing enough wet diapers and is gaining weight don't worry if your child is getting enough milk because they always want to be latched. They love the closeness and comfort nurse, it'll be a while till you can tell the difference between eating and comfort sucking. Also when your milk finally comes in you're gonna feel like your boobs are gonna explode and it's gonna be very uncomfortable till they are empty. Your milk supply will adjust itself automatically after a few days, in the beginning it might take a little longer. I hope that helps. Good luck!

Answer

I went 10 mons with my daughter and only stopped because I got preg with my son and my milk dried up completely while pregnant. With my son I went 22 months.  It is hard at first. I had to go to a lactation specialist with my daughter bc she wasn't latching correctly. Once we got the latch down, it got much easier. And after the first few months it becomes second nature for both you and baby. And being engorged stops because it's all based off of supply and demand at that point. With my son, I knew how to make sure he was latching correctly and we got thru it mostly pain free.  It's definitely possibly to go long, you just have to work for it sometimes. Once you get past the pain and incorrect latching, it becomes much, much easier. Good luck mama and try not to let others stories get you down :)

Answer

I breastfed my daughter for a year and plan to do the same for my second due in May. It was harder than I expected at first. The biggest mistake I made was not seeking help sooner. About two weeks in I saw a lactation specialist and that saved me. I now tell friends to plan on it even if things seem great. They are so helpful. Some insurances Pay for it or you can look up your local La Leche League for free group meetings. My doc also prescribed me APNO for cracked bleeding nipples and it was miracle cream. Lanolin felt too sticky to me and hurt but Earth Baby Angel Mama nipple butter was awesome as was plain old coconut oil. The nipple butter seems expensive but I think I only used one jar the whole time. Around 6 or 7 months baby consolidated feeding a and it got so easy that the last 6 months were no biggie. And it was nice quality time. Definitely read up on Kelly Mom website - it's everything you need to know.

Answer

It was so hard at first you have to be dedicated to doing it. What I did was one day at a time! Tell your self just one more week if you feel like giving up by the end of that week it's easier. I used lots of nipple cream also, so I'd get some of that it helps! I'm going to try to go longer with my new baby. I went 3 months with my first and started birth control and lost my supply. 😞I was so upset I didn't know there were ways to fix it at the time.

Successful breastfeeding tips ???

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