I am a huge advocate of breastfeeding and have written several articles on the topic.  I thought I knew what I was in for as I welcomed my daughter into this world and began to breastfeed her.  All my friends with babies told me about the challenges they faced and I had read a ton on the subject so I figured I was well prepared for the fact that it was going to be hard at first.  What I quickly found out is that you can never really be prepared entirely for breastfeeding or how hard it is.  It is certainly important to do your research, talk to friends and family members with babies, and take a breastfeeding class, but at the end of the day remember you are new at this, the baby is new at this, and breastfeeding is challenging.

Having my husband there to support me and encourage me was a big help.  He had attended the breastfeeding class with me and we had talked about the fact that I would be breastfeeding the baby ahead of time so I think that really helped.  Without his encouragement I think I very likely may have given up.

The first feeding, right after the delivery, went really well.  She also fed fairly well during that first night, with only a few latching problems but I was told that is to be expected as she is still learning what to do.  The next morning a lactation consultant came in to meet with us and talked to us about latching and showed us a few techniques.  It was helpful definitely, but I still felt like I had no idea what I was doing, I was just winging it.  However, the baby seemed to continue to feed well, although I quickly found out that she is a lazy eater and likes to fall asleep a lot.  We made it through the day and night though without much trouble.  The next morning another lactation consultant came in to talk to us before we headed home.  She showed us a few different ways to hold the baby during feedings, how to get her to latch on well, and a few tricks to get her to stay awake (like striping her down to just her diaper and going skin-to-skin with her).  After this consultation I felt even better than I did the day before.

When I left the hospital a couple of days after my daughter was born I felt like I knew a little bit about what I was doing and that things were going well.  Things quickly deteriorated once we got home.  She fed OK for the first day we were home, however, our pediatrician was concerned that she wasn’t getting enough fluids (not many poopy or wet diapers) so he recommended that we supplement with formula until my milk “came in”.  I would breastfeed, then supplement with up to an ounce of formula, and pump what ever was left in my breast.  It seemed to work out well and she started wetting more diapers and taking more poops so we were all happy.

The next day was a nightmare though.  She woke up and decided that she would not take to the breast.  My milk had come in so I was beginning to get engorged.  We worked all day trying to get her to latch on with no success.  My breasts became more and more engorged and painful as the day progressed.  When she was still refusing the breast the next morning I decided to call the hospital lactation consultants to see if I could get in for a visit.  I talked to a very helpful lactation consultant who advised me that she didn’t think it was worth coming in, especially since I was so engorged, she thought we would be able to handle this just fine at home.  She suggested a few tricks for getting my breasts a little softer to see if the baby would take it.  She said to use a warm compress for about 5 minutes prior to the feeding, then pump a little bit to soften the nipple and areola so it was more inviting for the baby, and then after the feeding use a cold compress for 20 minutes to help relieve the pain.  I tried her little tricks and the baby latched on the first try.  Success, she was breastfeeding again.

The challenges didn’t end there, I’m not sure when they end actually!!  Breastfeeding continued to be hard for the a little while.  My baby continues to fall asleep a lot during feedings so I just have to work on keeping her awake and sucking.  She goes through bouts where she wants to eat every hour, and sometimes will nurse for over an hour at a time.  All of this is completely normal.  Our pediatrician has been very reassuring.  As long as the baby is putting on weight (which she is) and wetting/soiling enough diapers in a day then we can be assured that everything is fine.

A few things I have learned and a few pieces of advice I can share with you.  Babies go through growth spurts and will need to nurse more often or for longer.  The best thing you can do is to nurse on demand so that your milk supply will increase as necessary to meet the demand of your growing baby.  Don’t get frustrated (easier said than done I know), if you are frustrated or the baby is frustrated the feeding is not likely to go well.  If in doubt about something call your pediatrician or a lactation consultant, it always helps to know something is normal.  Remember that breastfeeding is a lot of work and is hard at first, but it will get easier and is the best thing you can do for your baby and yourself.  Stick with it, it does get easier.

We seem to have gotten ourselves into a good rhythm now.  The baby still falls asleep a lot but I’m able to get her to wake up pretty easily now.  Our feeding sessions are much more efficient and she is sleeping well at night (going about 3-4 hours between feedings).  I know that I will face more challenges as we continue to figure out this breastfeeding thing together, but I feel more prepared having made it through the first few rough patches.