Preparing for breastfeeding

Articles, Birth preferences, Breastfeeding

April 1, 2014 / by BirthToBaby / 0

You’ll have heard stories about how hard breastfeeding is, shredded nipples and non latching babies – and yet, at the same time, some will say it’s the most natural thing in the world and babies can crawl to the breast and help themselves. While having a straightforward breastfeeding experience can never be guaranteed, the more you prepare, the more natural it is likely to be. Here are some tips on how to prepare for breastfeeding – toughening up your nipples is not one of them!

1. Do your homework

Learn about breastfeeding. Know how it works and what to expect in the early days. Invest in a copy of a good breastfeeding book such as Ina May’s Guide to Breastfeeding, or the La Leche League’s Womanly Art of Breastfeeding. Don’t be put off by the dud name and cover of the latter – this is an invaluable resource to have to hand and is organised by the age of the baby so you don’t have to read it all before baby arrives!

There are many fantastic online resources such as kellymom.com and Dr. Jack Newman’s site, where you can watch videos that show how babies latch and how you know if baby is drinking from the breast. Another excellent online resource is this series of promotional and information videos from New Zealand. The Irish site breastfeeding.ie is a useful local resource.

You could attend a breastfeeding class with a Lactation Consultant prior to your baby’s birth, which will give you added confidence. And don’t forget your GentleBirth mp3 for Confident Breastfeeding – I credit it as having a huge influence on the ease of my breastfeeding relationship with my first baby.

2. Create your village

Have you heard the saying ‘It takes a village to raise a child’? Breastfeeding is instinctual, but women have traditionally had help and support with breastfeeding from their mothers, sisters, neighbours and birth attendants. However, in Ireland, where little more than 1 in 2 women initiate breastfeeding, that help and support is something we often have to seek out for ourselves. Surrounding yourself with those who are positive and supportive about breastfeeding may involve a little work on your part.

Take note of which friends and family members may be good sources of breastfeeding information when you’ve had your baby.

Get along to a breastfeeding support meeting while you are pregnant, perhaps at the start of your maternity leave. Pregnant women are always welcome and it’s much easier to motivate yourself to get along to a meeting post partum if you already know some of the people there. The groups are fantastic, not only if you have problems, but also for combating some of the unhelpful breastfeeding advice you can get from well-meaning family members – often from those who haven’t breastfed! It’s a great way to connect with other mothers living near you. You can find a list of support groups in your area on breastfeeding.ie.

Put the number of a local Cuidiu breastfeeding counsellor or a La Leche League leader in your phone, so you can call if there are any problems.

If you are involved in online forums and Facebook groups, join one where there are experienced breastfeeding mums who can offer guidance and support and normalise the breastfeeding experience for you.

3. Get your partner on board

A supportive partner has a positive influence on breastfeeding success. If you’re attending a breastfeeding class, do so as a couple.

Make sure your partner knows how time-consuming breastfeeding a newborn might be. Discuss what your expectations are around housework, particularly during the time he takes off after the baby is born. If possible, he should be doing the cooking, cleaning, laundry and nappy changing while you focus on getting feeding well-established and sleeping when you can. It’s a team effort!

If your partner is not able to take time off after the birth, then call in favours from other family members. You could also consider hiring a postnatal doula who could help you with breastfeeding, as well as household chores.

4. Write birth preferences that support getting off to a good start

Babies who get skin-to-skin contact with their mothers for the first hour after birth are more likely to successfully latch without any help. The vast majority of babies can have skin-to-skin with their mother directly after the birth – weighing and other hospital procedures can be postponed until later. Writing birth preferences around this to give to your caregiver can ensure that you get this time together.

Even if you have had a c-section, you should still be able to have this skin-to-skin contact, so discuss this with your caregiver antenatally and write c-section birth preferences.

We know that birth interventions affect breastfeeding so preparing for as undisturbed a birth as possible, by using the GentleBirth programme, will give you the best chance of getting breastfeeding off to a good start.

5. Plan on being laidback

Laidback breastfeeding or the biological nurturing position, as it is also called, allows you both to lie back and get comfortable and stimulates baby’s natural feeding reflexes. It often means that baby self-latches, making for a better and more comfortable latch. The use of a reclined or semi-reclined position means that you get to rest as much as possible, too!

5. Remember what you’ve learned!

You’ve gone to the breastfeeding class, read all the books, watched the videos..but now you have a newborn who hasn’t fed yet, you had a long labour and haven’t slept for a couple of nights and you’re wondering if your baby is hungry…what did the book say about that again?

Remember that….
…a newborn’s stomach is tiny and can only hold 5 – 7 ml of colostrum on the first day of life.

..if there is a need to supplement your baby, the first choice should not be formula, but your own expressed colostrum, fed from either a syringe, spoon or cup, rather than a bottle, so as not to confuse the baby’s suck pattern. The Lactation Consultant in the hospital or your midwife can show you how.
..if in doubt, contact your Cuidiu breastfeeding counsellor or LLL Leader for support.

6. Expect success!

Use your Breastfeeding Confidence mp3, which is part of the GentleBirth Complete Box Set, to boost your confidence during pregnancy. Motivation is increased if we expect success, meaning that we put more work into preparation if we think it will be rewarded – which, in turn, increases our chances of success!

7. Get your box sets and munchies organised

Breastfeeding every couple of hours is of course demanding – but it also gives you a free pass to sit on the couch watching box sets and eating biscuits all day – while burning calories. What’s not to like?!