When Will This Stop Hurting??!! The Art of Breastfeeding!

Ahhh, yes, the natural way to feed your baby.  We have maternal instincts, so it will be easy, right?  For some, maybe, for others (like me), not so much!  It took several weeks of tears and persistence until we got it right.  8 weeks to be exact!  For Kyle it was easy, for me, it might have been harder than dealing with the c-section recovery!  (I'm not kidding!)

Kyle latched on right away at his first opportunity after birth.  He nursed for 45 minutes the first time!  Hungry little guy!  He was getting what he needed about every one to two hours.  That made for a very sore and very tired mommy!!!

In my experience there was nothing natural about breastfeeding.  I would consider it a learned art!  LOL   During our stay in the hospital I had lactation specialists coming in to watch me nurse Kyle to see how we could make it so that I wasn't hurting so much.  Every time someone came to watch us they would say, "Beth, you are doing everything perfect, Kyle looks great!  What's the problem?"  What's the problem???  My nipples are sore, cracked, and bloody!  That's the problem!  I wanted pain free nursing sessions, and I was determined to get them!

I had Kyle propped up on a Boppy pillow (which was a life saver during our nursing sessions for the months to come, by the way).  I had to hold his head just right, and make sure everything was in just the right place every single time.  This is hard to do when you are barely awake at 1:00 in the morning!  And ladies, your husbands can be there by your side, but this will not help you or take the pain away!  Do you know how many times I wished Josh could nurse for me!??  LOL  My husband sat with me and watched while tears were streaming down my face......every time.


After leaving the hospital we still did not have pain free nursing.  I was going to the lactation specialist at the hospital a couple times a week, trying to come to some resolution.  Every time, they told me that Kyle and I looked great, and there was nothing they could "correct" to make it easier.  Meanwhile, every nursing session ended with tears streaming down my face and my words to my husband were, "Josh, I can't imagine doing this one more time!  This hurts so bad!"  But the next time Kyle wanted to eat (usually about an hour later), there I was with tears in my eyes, but my baby was getting his precious breast milk.

Josh and I took a breastfeeding class at the hospital before Kyle was born.  So, we learned the importance of breastfeeding and breast milk.  Not only is it a huge bonding experience for the mommy and baby, but it is super healthy for the baby long term.  Breast milk passes on important antibodies to the baby.  When I got a cold and Kyle was 1 month old, I thought maybe I shouldn't breastfeed because I didn't want to get him sick.  So, I called my OBGYN's office to find out what I should do.  I found out that the opposite is actually true!  It's super important to nurse when you are sick, because the baby gets anti bodies from the milk that will help them stay healthy and not get sick!  Every mommy makes milk that is made with all of the specific nutrients that that baby needs.  It is really amazing when you think about it!  As the baby gets older, the milk changes to fit the new nutritional needs of the baby. 

Who knew I was going to have amazing new powers when I became a mom?  My Kyle gained about 2 oz. a day for the first 2 or 3 months, on breast milk alone.  The doctor was amazed at his growth every time we took him for a well check.  We always called my milk, "magic mommy milk."  Here's our healthy (and slightly chunky - but tall) 2 month old baby at Sea World, San Diego.

So, knowing how important this magic mommy milk was for my little baby's nutrition, I was determined to breast feed, no matter what it took.  I ended up with mastitis within the first couple weeks of being home.  (Mastitis is when your nipple gets infected and the milk ducts get clogged.)  So, not only was I full of milk, I couldn't get any out!  This was VERY painful for me, and very frustrating for Kyle because he was having to work really hard and wasn't getting very much milk at all.  I kept alternating heat and cold, and massaging, and pumping, to try to get things moving along.  Not only that, but I had to take an antibiotic as well for the infection.  What an ordeal!  All of this on top of the c-section.  Lucky me!  I think it took me about a week or so to get over this.  

At about 6 weeks the pain during nursing started to subside, and by 8 weeks, we were having pain free nursing!  Hurray!

Don't give up mommies!  Keep at it, and you will get through the tears and the pain, I promise!  It just takes a little determination and persistence!  :)

Kyle nursed exclusively (no formula) for 13 months.  He never took to a bottle (not even with pumped breast milk).  When he turned a year old we started introducing milk in a sippy cup.  And at 13 months I stopped nursing because I wasn't really producing enough milk for him anymore.

At about 13 months we started giving him goats milk instead of cow's milk, but I'll save that for another entry!  No, he's not allergic, and no, he's not lactose intolerant either.  :)  Stay tuned for the post on Goat's Milk vs. Cow's Milk!