Breastfeeding Sucks

It really doesn't, but I hope you catch the pun.

The Caterpillar is now eight days old and I think I'm finally exiting the Oh-My-God-This-Is-The-Hardest-Week-Of-My-Life stage of newbornhood. I've heard the first two weeks are the most rough, and can only assume (and hope) week 2 is less rough than week 1.

So, before mommybrain kicks in (which it better, if I'm ever to do this again), I thought I'd share a little about my breastfeeding experience, because apparently it's not something moms like to warn other new moms about... Or relive, however you want to look at it.

First things first: breastfeeding hurts. I don't care what is "supposed to" happen when you get a good latch, there's a baby yoinkin' on your nipple in desperate search for sustenance and I'm not sure how that's supposed to feel non-hurty. To be fair, after eight days of near constant yoinkage, it's truly NOT hurting me anymore, but that's probably due to a combination of practice and a little toughening up. I just don't like how the most common and abundant breastfeeding advice given to new mommies is "if it hurts, it's wrong". It should go a little more like: "this is GOING to hurt for the first few days. But you are GOING to get through it. This WON'T hurt forever."

Second thing: Breastmilk does not necessarily flow freely like you imagine it would in the Promised Land of Motherhood. For the first little bit, it's more like... honey. Honey that's been sitting on the shelf crystalizing for 9 months. This also does not last, milk does come in, but colostrum is your starting place and it's a little harder to get it moving than you can imagine. My post-partum experience included a major hemmorage, surgery, a blood transfusion and an infection, so it took me a little longer to have my milk come in. I've heard this delayed milk experience is also common for C-Section babies and others who have had interventions during or shortly after birth. This is something I wish I knew a little earlier on.

And finally: there are eight tricks to breastfeeding successfully, and it's helpful to start using them on day one. My midwife did show me them pre-baby but when the time came I forgot them all. These tricks are...

1. Relax. Loosen up your shoulders, and take a deep breath.
2. Get skin to skin. Nekked mama, nekked baby. Skin to skin contact with baby promotes milk production and bonding. It isn't a necessary step for always, but is extremely helpful in the first week at least.
3. Get belly to belly. Baby's tummy should lay flat against mama's tummy, and not sideways like you see in the movies.
4. Put baby's nose to mama's nipple. That way, when baby goes to suck, she's elongating her neck upwards and reaching for the nipple rather than facing it with her mouth.
5. Cup fingers around mama's areola to make a boobie sandwich.
6. Move the baby toward the boobie... And not the boobie toward the baby.
7. Watch for a biiiig mouth, use the wrist from the hand holding the baby's head and apply pressure between her shoulderblades to direct her head onto the breast.
8. Curl your toes and count to ten.

Well, those are the three things I learned about breastfeeding in the last week. Please let me be clear about the fact that I love breastfeeding. It's so rewarding to know I can provide lifelong benefits for my baby and give her something nobody else can. I feel so bonded and close to my lovely girl and it's amazing to be learning this together, communicating with each other and working through this challenge as a mommy-babyteam.

(As a side note, I also gained a stronger appreciation for moms who choose to orneed to formula feed. Although it's not the route we're taking, I get it. Sometimes the challenges associated with breastfeeding just can't be overcome, and that's not a sign of weakness or lack of love. Here's a link to a great blog post about the up-sides of formula feeding for moms who make that choice & another great post about some other challenges associated with breastfeeding.)

Hopefully those notes can come in handy for someone!