Don't know if you're capable of breastfeeding? Here are a dozen things I discovered about breastfeeding during my days of boobie feeding my babies. I hope it convinces you to try, because every breastfeed matters. This post is part of a National Breastfeeding Week BlogMarch by the Irish Parenting Bloggers group.
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1. You will feel self-conscious at first and feel that everyone
is watching you and might get a glimpse of your nipple or judge you, but you have
to learn to rise above that. This is difficult in a society that has historically
bottle-fed and sees this as the norm.
2. You might feel embarrassed that your baby is feeding all the
time. Please don’t, they’re doing so much growing that they need to take in
loads of milk to grow their tiny brains and bodies.
3. You might question whether you can do this, but once you get
into a regular rhythm it becomes so normal that you don’t realise you’re doing
it after a while.
4. Your body will change – your boobs will get bigger when full
of milk (and sometimes sore and leaky if baby has missed a feed) and your
nipples will hurt (and possibly crack) at first but soon go away with a little
TLC. Keep repeating the mantra: "This soon will pass".
5. You will want to have time off from the baby, who seems to
need you incessantly, so why not? You can express some milk for someone to give
in a bottle to give you a few hours away making peace with your soul.
6. You will pine for your baby when you’re not with her/him – and should
you hear another baby cry during this time, your boobs will start to leak! The
best trick to stop you entering the wet Tshirt competition is by pressing your
nipple in (you can do this discreetly if necessary) to stop the flow.
7. You’ll be amazed by how little people notice when you become
skilled at feeding you baby. Unless of course, you advertise the fact you’re
feeding with a blatent nipple hat like this:
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| Boobie Beanie |
8. You’ll find ways of giving you and the baby privacy when you
need to: a changing room in a shop was a particular favourite of mine, because I
could feed sitting down and enjoy a quiet private moment in a bubble with my
baby, then put baby into pram and start trying on clothes. Doubleplusgood.
9. You can find ways of breastfeeding on the move – I used to
walk down the street with my baby in a carrier feeding away while we were shopping or
chasing after my other kids.
10. The irony is some people say breastfeeding means a bad night’s
sleep, but if you get a co-sleeper and have baby within arm’s reach, you pull
baby to you as soon as they cry and feed half asleep, both falling back into
slumber and cuddling up in a symphony of dancing through the night, feeding and
dreaming. Believe me you get used to this and it’s the only way to get a night’s
sleep in the early days.
11. You’ll meet other like-minded mums who quickly become
friends as you journey through breastfeeding together.
12. You’ll soon discover you CAN do it – and be very proud of yourself
for giving your baby an amazing healthy start in life. Go mummy, you rock!
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