In the first few weeks, lansinoh cream was a miracle cream. It's a pure lanolin cream to help with cracked / bleeding nipples, and it really does make a difference. It is a little expensive, but the other creams are a waste of money in my opinion! Don't be mean with it either - it is your friend! After a few weeks you probably won't need it, so use it after each feed.
It also really helps to have a lot of "top off" / naked time in the beginning, to try and get some air. Obviously you will have lots of visitors in the first few weeks, so maybe don't walk around naked all the time (unless that's your kind of thing!) but whenever you get chance. Breastmilk is also a wonderful thing, with tons of healing qualities, so a little expressed milk will do wonders to help heal painful nipples.
In the beginning, I think something that really helped was having realistic expectations. This counts for both you and your partner! I'd explained to Mitchell what would happen, and that she would be feeding a lot over the first few weeks, and what I expected / wanted him to do. A supportive partner is a must for successful breastfeeding, and if they don't understand what's happening how can they be supportive?
Mitch's jobs for the first few weeks involved making me food and drink (winner!), tidying up, and nappy changes. This meant that I could get little naps where possible, stayed hydrated (very important), and occasionally even shower. Mitch has added that it helps to be very specific with what you want doing - e.g. could you clean the bathroom please. I found this really difficult as I hate asking for help and was trying to do everything myself for the first week. It took a massive breakdown in tired tears to realise I wasn't wonder woman and I needed help! We're still working on me delegating, as I do like to be a super hero :P
Along with having a supportive partner, make sure your family and friends know what you want to do. I know in the first few weeks that I was really sensitive about bf, and negative comments would have really hurt me.
Even though I'd done tons of research and spoken to people, I still had a slightly unrealistic idea of what to do / what would happen. I cannot stress enough times - it is painful and you will feed ALL THE TIME. But it gets better. Promise.
Invest in some decent nursing bras - I thought 2 would be enough, but didn't factor in baby sick / milk leakage! I have 4, which seems to do me fine. Mothercare ones are also quite pretty and have some nice patterns, which saves you feeling super gross.
You can purchase specific nursing tops, but I found their to be a limited selection and they were quite expensive. I'm quite happy with tops I can pull down - but I have wrecked the neck on a few tops because of this. At the moment I find a vest top and cardigan / boy shirt works best for discreet boob access.
It all depends on how discreet you want to be I guess - I don't mind showing a bit of boob but would be embarrassed showing my entire tummy, so would never dream of lifting a top up! Wear something you feel comfortable in, and maybe practice feeding discretely till you get than hang of it.
Not that you should have to be discreet - just may make you feel a little more comfortable at the beginning. I'm not putting any nursing covers or anything on this list, as I've found that every time I try and cover up when feeding, it only makes it more obvious what I'm doing! I've found that if you seem to just get on with it, no-one really notices and everyone is happy. When baby is latched on there is literally nothing to see anyway.
One recommendation from a friend was pillows. I'd bought a Widgey nursing pillow but I hate it - I can never get the latch write using it! But, 2 cheap Tesco pillows have been a lifesaver - I can prop baby up on them any way I need to and take some of the pressure off my arms, because babies are heavy! The first few weeks Alice was here my wrists just ached so much from supporting her head all the time.
This week I've just discovered Lilypadz reusable breast pads, and I must say I'm really impressed. They're about £14 but I'd definitely recommend them so far.
Finally, don't feel guilty whatever happens. Breast is undoubtedly best, but what is most important is a happy baby and a happy mummy :). Do what feels right for you - you're in control and you make the decisions.
No comments:
Post a Comment