Breastfeeding

Lather. Rinse. Repeat. LOL!

Breastfeeding / By

Early Morning Adventure

Two mornings ago, around 4:30, I was putting my son back to sleep after a feeding. He fell asleep quickly, and I laid him in his crib. I then proceeded to get a drink of water and use the bathroom. After washing my hands, I was suddenly very aware of how dry they were.

By the dim light of the small night light we keep in the bathroom, I saw a large bottle of lotion and quickly pumped a generous amount onto my hands. I worked it over my fingers and hands, then deciding what I was doing was a good thing, I continued up my arms and past my elbows.

As I stood there in those few seconds, moisturizing, I felt like I was doing a good thing for myself, and then the moment came when I recognized the scent of what I was lathering onto my arms and hands.

That’s Not Lotion

What You Need to Know about Breastfeeding with a Tongue Tie or Lip Tie

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My Experience with Lip and Tongue Ties

My son had trouble from the beginning latching on to breastfeed. When my milk came in three days after he was born, he was really struggling because my breasts were so full. (That can be difficult for any newborn even without ties).

I had a lactation consultant out and she watched us through the feeding and gave us some tips and gave us an A+. I guess because I had studied so much, I must have been compensating for any issues that were happening, because the outward perception was we were doing great.

By day five, I knew we were having a problem

7 Basic Breastfeeding Tips

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You’re Not Alone

I’ve mentioned previously, that my breastfeeding journey with my son was atypical to say the least. For some mother and baby pairs, it truly is the easiest thing in the world. Whereas for others, it’s one monster short of a nightmare. You are not alone. Over 90% of mothers report having breastfeeding struggles in those early months.

So here are the breastfeeding basics, as well as some things I learned on my more difficult road. Again, I will emphasize, the struggle was totally worth the ultimate goal of exclusively breastfeeding, so I hope this will encourage new Mamas to stick with it!

15 Amazing Benefits of Breastfeeding

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Note: In this article, many of the hyperlinks will take you to articles that support my research about breastfeeding. Happy reading!
Making Breastfeeding a Reality

Before the birth of my son, it was always my desire to exclusively breastfeed my baby. It never really occurred to me to do it any other way. As it turns out, the more I read and researched, the more pleased I became about this decision. If you have read about my breastfeeding journey with my son, you know that in the beginning I wasn’t able to make exclusive breastfeeding a reality. However, before my son was three months old, he was exclusively breastfeeding.

Fed is Best

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I was recently sent an article regarding a woman whose baby was struggling to nurse and basically starving because the baby could not physically remove milk from the breast. After much trial, the mother chose to formula feed. The article’s point? Fed is Best.

I would like to reiterate this point: Fed is Best. (And no I don’t mean the Federal government. I mean that a fed and full child is best. Yes, my mommy brain went there and was confused by the article until my smart brain kicked in.)

This article hit home for me because my son also struggled to nurse and for the first 4 weeks, before we put him on high-calorie formula, he was in fact, a failure to thrive baby.

6 Tips and Tricks for Efficient Pumping

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6 Tips and Tricks for Efficient Pumping

Your baby finally fell asleep! You want to pump and you only have 15 minutes because, let’s face it, you need a nap too. How can you get the best “bang for your buck” so to speak when it comes to pumping?

Keep reading for 6 tips on how to pump most efficiently.

Oops, I just Pumped and My Baby is Hungry.

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Don’t sweat it!

Remember, our bodies are designed to be amazing! God thought of everything and our bodies respond to the needs of our babies.

The concept of “emptying the breast” can be a bit misleading, but have no fear, our breasts were designed for the purpose of feeding our children. And this is still true even after pumping.

The breast is never truly emptied. Think instead of the milk being extracted from the breast as a supply and demand issue. It’s true that milk production is constant. When the breast is less full, the production speed picks up, and as the breast gets fuller, production slows.

Imagine a factory is making and selling a widget. While the widget is in demand, the factory is working quickly to satisfy its customers. If the demand for the widget decreases, so does the speed of production, and the excess stored.

Your baby will also begin to eat closer together as it gets later in the day. There’s a reason for this too. The fat content of your milk is higher which aids your baby in being able to sleep a longer stretch.

Prayer, Perseverance, and the Path to 100% Breast Milk

Breastfeeding / By

As I finished a much needed shower, and exited the bathroom, my husband thrust our upset son into my arms for me to nurse him. He was screaming and crying! He was too upset to eat and it was clear this was exactly what he needed to do. All the books and articles and care providers said newborns needed to eat every two hours, but he didn’t keep to this at all. He was showing all the signs of hunger but wouldn’t nurse. He was frustrated, as was I because he wouldn’t nurse. To put it bluntly, we were a hot mess!

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