Hey guys! I'm a lactation consultant student. Realized one of the biggest things lacking when doing my hours was prenatal education about breastfeeding, so I thought I would make a quick post about some basics.

First off I want to say, I will be talking about some of the benefits of breastfeeding. This means no offence to parents who choose to formula feed since every scenario is difference. I was totally formula and bottle fed! I do have one piece of advice, which is to pair it with probiotics to help create a healthy gut environment.

For women who are struggling between debating on the two, breastmilk does naturally help gut flora, keeps the baby's immune system as high as possible, contains natural iron that the baby absorbs easily (as opposed to formula), is free, is perfectly balanced to the baby, and actually adapts depending on the baby's needs from input from the baby's saliva (crazy, but true!).

Breast milk also naturally coats the intestinal wall to prevent unwanted things from entering your baby's bloodstream. One bottle of formula disrupts this for 6 weeks, along with the baby's PH level. The best example of this, is that in countries where other options are unavailable, if a women is HIV positive and exclusively breastfeeds, this coating helps prevents the baby from contracting HIV compare to women who used formula and breastfed.

So if you are having issues, it's better to pump and use a bottle than supplement with formula, or use donor breastmilk. If those aren't options, don't feel guilty because a fed baby is always what is best.

OK onto some more Breastfeeding info.

The two biggest problems I have noticed when seeing parents who have a baby that is not gaining weight, is difficulty recognizing hunger cues, and having expectations on sleeping and feeding cycles.

Early hunger cues are the best time to feed the baby! I'm going to post a photo of some for the visual. They will usually move their head from side to side known as a rooting reflex. Open and close their mouths. Mid cues, they will start to put their hands in their mouth. By the time they're crying they are really hungry and may have trouble latching. Every baby is unique, and it's truly best to get to know your baby and learn what works for them.

For expectations, some new parents expect to feed the baby and the baby will sleep. They spend 2 hours trying to get the baby to sleep, and by then the baby is crying and hungry again. So that just brings it back to ques and knowing that sometimes after a feed babies will be awake and may want to feed again before a sleep. If a baby is sleeping too much, feel the baby's mouth. If it's dry the baby might be needing more food. Sadly I do see this happen often, not from lack of caring parents by any means, just from not understanding when the baby is hungry. Then parents have to go on this horrible routine of waking the baby up to force feed every couple hours. It's tough and I've had a few close friends experience this. When in doubt always try feeding the baby. This may happen for other reasons such as low milk supply. Also good to check with a doc if you feel like this might be happening. If your baby is sleeping a lot but gaining weight with a nice wet mouth, then you're doing great and your baby just likes to sleep,

And one more thing haha, in the first hour of birth skin to skin is huge in establishing a breastfeeding relationship. If you place the baby just below your nipple, they may even latch themselves, but will likely reach to your nipple, grab it, then put their mouth in having a taste. This is great! It's like taking tiny bites of food and smelling it before eating. Develops appetite and helps establish a connection. This is opposed to taking your breast and shoving it in the babies mouth (I work as a doula too and this often happens in hospitals). It would be like having a meal shoved right in your face lol which can be jarring. Definitely try to allow the time for the baby to explore the nipple. It is good for the baby to latch within the hour, so after some exploration assistance can be helpful :).

Breastfeeding burns a lot of calories. Invest in one handed snacks. Understand it is work, and help your partner understand it physically and emotionally requires a lot of effort and how to support you.

Every breastfeeding relationship is unique. It takes time to establish a flow and partnership. Allow that time. Don't stress about the house, or getting things done. Sitting in a chair feeding your baby is the single most important thing you can be doing.

If the connection seems off try spending a full 24 hours in bed skin to skin with your baby. Breastfeed whenever the baby wants to. Even try to have food brought to you.

If your nipple or breast hurts, it can indicate something is off. It is normal for it to feel a bit uncomfortable or light pain getting used to it, but checking the latch is key, since it can develop into sore cracked nipples. Try to see someone for a hand sooner than later. It sucks to have damaged nipples and breastfeed through. Usually this is caused by an off latch OR rarely a baby might have a tongue tie. If there is redness with the pain see a doc asap as mastitis is a serious condition and develops from an infection in the breast. Here is how to see a good latch.

Here are some common breastfeeding positions.

If there are further difficulties, lactation consultants are a great resource.

Crazy how many subtleties there are to learn. Often baby will latch and have no trouble whatsoever, so this is more just some basics to refer to!

If anyone has any Q's feel free to ask :)

And I just want to add again, nothing against formula feeding. There is totally a time and place, as well as just personal reasons a parent may choose to do this. This is purely info for moms choosing to breastfeed and I applaud all mothers who focus on feeding their baby. Phew that was a lot to type! Hope you ladies enjoy and feel educated.