I'm so proud 😭 *kinda long*

My lactation journey has been very crazy. I started off leaking at 18 weeks pregnant and had to wear nursing pads 24/7 from then on or I'd douse my clothes. I had my son at 38+2 and was very engorged. He was a little thing and wasn't very good at latching. He would fall asleep at the boob no matter what I did or would just cry. Those were stressful times, I would generally be covered in milk and crying, as would he. After hearing my sweet newborn's tummy growling so loudly, I gave in and got some formula from a nurse. I would still squeeze colostrum into his mouth as much as he'd let me but he really did prefer the bottle.

Once we got home, I was determined to pump. Things went great until about 5 weeks pp when I developed mastitis. I had to pump and dump for so long and it took a toll on my supply. I went from an easy 4 ounces every morning to mere drops. I got determined to try again and ordered some Freemie Cups and Legendairy Milk supplements. I'm 11 weeks post partum now and gaining my supply back! Last week I was getting maybe 3 ounces a day and now I'm at about 4 💪

I've been able to give him one bottle of breastmilk a day for the last 4 or 5 days and I'm literally beaming with pride. My next goal is 2 bottles a day which I feel confident in achieving! I've also made a plan to store .5 ounces a day away for a freezer stash. I supplement with Hipp UK formula and I just feel very proud that my baby is getting the best that I can give him. I love him so very much and my lactation journey is one that I will continue as long as it is healthy for me mentally to do so.

I pump about 4 times a day (9 am, 12 pm, 2 pm , 5 pm and sometimes 6 pm) for about an hour to an hour and a half. My letdown is very slow so I have to pump longer. I don't pump at night because I need to sleep, otherwise I can't function as I'm up often at night with him. I try to power pump at least once a day :)

Not gonna lie, my nipples feel like they're falling off sometimes but I'm just so happy to be doing my best for my baby. He's my sunrise and my sunset.