breastfeeding...

for something that is so natural, breastfeeding is quite tricky and complicated to figure out.  we have struggled a bit with latching and bowie just likes to nurse for the comfort instead of feeding, which leads to a baby that is hungry all the time.  feeding every 2 hours around the clock is also exhausting and it is hard to be the only one to provide nutrition for her.  luckily we have worked with some amazing lactation consultants and i recently started going to a la leche meeting to work through some of these issues.  some days it feels like we are making progress while other days it feels like one step forward and two steps back. 

there is so much conflicting information in regards to the do's and don'ts of breastfeeding, but i have learned that there is no right or wrong way, just what works for your baby and your family.  i am determined to give breastfeeding my best shot and so far we are on that path.  i hear it gets easier at the 6-8 week mark, so i know that we are getting close, and i hope that it in the near future it will be come second nature for the both of us.  the good news is that bowie is putting on weight as expected and i am committed to making this work for the both of us.

i won't lie...night time is hard and always unpredictable.  and rough nights lead to rough days.  i try my best to let jarad sleep so he can be rested for work the next day, but some nights call for back up!  some nights i am up every hour or so and feeding for 45 minutes or more.  again, i feel like bowie is comforting herself and not eating.  which leads her to be unable to sleep and hungry and wanting to feed again and again.  after discussing this with some ladies from my new playgroup they asked if i bottle fed her?  well, i don't and have read it can lead to nipple confusion.  but we also give her a pacifier which to many lactation consultants is a big no no.  but i didn't want to bottle feed her formula, so this meant i would have to start pumping again.  i stopped pumping right when she was 2 weeks old and went through a growth spurt.  it was unrealistic for me to pump and feed her as often as she was eating.  and if you are able to it is recommended that you wait to pump until 6-8 weeks when your milk is established.  so i was relieved to take that off my plate at the time, but now i have reintroduced the pumping to be able to monitor how much she eats at night and bottle feed it to her. 

so we did an experiment.  one night about a week ago, i pumped at night and in about 20 minutes i got 4 ounces.  this is right on target for what i should be producing at a feeding for her age.  so jarad fed it to her in a bottle at bed time, around 10pm and she slept solidly until 2am!!!  OMG this was amazing, this is the longest stretch of sleep i have had since she has been born.  then at 2am i woke up and breastfed her and again she slept solidly until 5:30ish, when jarad gets up for work.  i quickly realized that the bottle at night could be a game changer.  so back to pumping for me!  but it is not easy.  my goal is to build a milk stash (even if not a large one) to have in the freezer so we can have night time feedings on hand.  and of course it would be nice to have extra so others can feed her.  your milk is a supply and demand kinda thing and i need to trick my body into increasing this.  so i am doing all that i can so that i can build up my milk supply.  i have done a lot of reading and i have tried many things.  i am still figuring it out, but what i have noticed that any of these things individually didn't do much for me, but when using them all together i started to see a difference.  so what am i talking about?  check out the picture below to see all the new things i am incorporating into my diet or routine to kick up my milk production into high gear...

1- lactation cookies.  my friends sent me a big box of them when she was born and they are tasty!  they have some key ingredients that are supposed to help with milk supply; oats, flax seed, brewers yeast.  as soon as i am done with these, i am going to try to make my own.  eating oatmeal is another way to get the same benefits.

2- mothers milk tea.  a licorice flavored tea that is good for supply.  you are supposed to drink it three times a day.  not to mention that this means i am drinking a lot of fluids, which is also good for supply!

3- brewers yeast!  i take about 12-16 tablets a day.  this is the same theory that having a beer is good for your supply.  well i don't like beer, but i can swallow some pills, so i take a lot of these daily!

4- fenugreek.  another herbal supplement that is good for supply.  i take 6 tablets a day.

5- the womanly art of breastfeeding book!  this was sent to me as a gift and it has so much great information!  i am reading it as we go and it is a great resource.

6 - pumping!  well as i said it is all about supply and demand so i have to get my body to think that bowie needs more food, so pumping after feedings is recommended to trick the body into thinking the baby still wants more food.  and by pumping i am able to get those bottles ready for night time feedings and hopefully start to be able to freeze some of it.

for now the night times are a bit easier since i am only waking up once to feed, although often times she is restless after that 2am feeding and can keep me up the rest of the night.  but when that happens i take her downstairs (so jarad can sleep)  and we lay on the couch and get some good cuddle time.  we both sleep amazingly when i have her on my chest.  i am confident that this will get easier and until then i will keep trying new things and techniques to make us all more comfortable.