"Welcome to the Milk Mama Diaries Carnival (February). For this month, we focus on back to basics. Participants will share advices - either the best breastfeeding advice they received OR/AND the best breastfeeding advice they can give to new moms. Please scroll down to the end of the post to see the list of carnival entries."
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I knew I was going to breastfeed my kids. I thought breastfeeding is as simple as offering your breast to your baby when they're hungry. I thought wrong. I soon found out that it's a skill developed by both the mother and the baby. It's just unfortunate that I learned that the hard way with my firstborn. The wrong latch and the pain made me quit at 1 month. Back then, formula feeding seemed like the best solution.
Second Time Around
Fast forward to a few years later, I got pregnant with my son and breastfeeding was at the top of my list. The pain must have missed me because it was still there when I started nursing. I keep reminding myself that I am more determined this time.
My son being the first grandson (our families have been having granddaughters for years) put so much pressure on me. I heard a lot of comments such as "I dont have enough milk." and that I am "starving" my son. I'm sure the lolo's and lola's mean well but as early as one month, my son is already mix feeding. His crying was interpreted always as being hungry. I thought this could not be happening again.
Reaching out to my colleagues who have been successful with breastfeeding was probably one of the best decision that I made. One of them told me "You're the mother. You know what's best for your child. Just listen to your instincts. And don't stop breastfeeding." Come to think of it, this advise did make sense.
My stubbornness and persistence must have worked. I refused to feed him formula milk and offered him my breast instead. I eventually figured out what his cries meant - and I became more confident about my ability to supply the milk that he needed. Month after month his intake of breastmilk increased as the formula milk became almost like a history. And when they say I'm not producing enough milk, I help myself with galactagogues and try not to mind the comments.
To the New Moms
Every breastfeeding journey is different. You will find a lot of people challenging you simply because you can't see the amount of milk that your baby is consuming. The best preparation that you could ever do is by arming yourself with the right information. You are the best person to filter out which ones are facts and which are fiction.
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| The smile that greets me when I wake up in time for his morning milk. |
Having gone through the experience has made me become the advocate that I am now. The journey was challenging but definitely the most rewarding. To date, my son is 19 months old and is still not showing any signs of weaning off my breasts. Pretty soon I know he'll grow out of this but I know I can always look back and say "I'm so glad I didn't give up."
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Please check out the other carnival participants
