With the birth of my son came breastfeeding woes and joys. I had access to a lactation consultant from the hospital, and no friends or family with experience to give advice.
The first 2 weeks, were HELL. It hurt, you're tired, you're emotional, you're hormonal, you're hormonal, you're hormonal.
I can't stress the hormonal hell enough. I love to be in some sort of control of me, and never in my life have I had less control as when I was recovering from labor and delivery. In a sense it is like recovering from surgery. Especially if your large headed child leaves a gaping hole, TMI probably. While recovering from this surgery though you get no sleep, have to entertain visitors, and act like your vagina hasn't been ripped from one end to the other every time you get up or down, move, sneeze, or laugh. Your uncle and father-in-law are the last people you want to see when you have stitches in your nether regions.
The breast feeding started out, horribly. He didn't want to latch, my milk decided to take its time coming in, and I was hormonal. I tried and tried and tried. The lactation consultant insulted the type and brand of pump I had chosen, which in my state was a personal attack. She said if I was serious I needed a better pump. Turned out to be true, very true, but still.
My son was Jaundiced, so I was told to supplement since he wouldn't latch. If you want to breast feed do not do this. Some kids are fine to do this, but we never really recovered from supplementing. Turns out also that if they aren't extremely jaundice you don't need to. Says the pediatrician 2 weeks later. In the hospital we found out, through no help of the postpartum nurses, that my little man was lactose intolerant. The formula they were giving him was causing him to vomit everything back up.
My partially inverted nipples cracked and bled from improper latch, but I was determined to keep going. I even fed him through it which resulted once in bloody projectile vomit, a freaked new hormonal mommy, and my husband calming down the both of us. My entire 6 weeks at home with my little man,I never touched the pump one time to use it. This resulted in hugely engorged breasts on several occasions, the worst being when the milk decided it was time to stop messing with me. This also resulted in having no stash stockpiled for use when I was away. More formula was used. I worked in a very busy Neurology and Rheumatology office, and I never pumped on time. That may have been strike 3 or 4, it was over at 4 1/2 months.
If I had used the Lactation Consultant, I would have been told to drink more water, make sure I pump every 3 hours, and that it was fine to feel like I was doing a bad job because EVERYONE feels like that. I can't tell you how many times in the first 2 weeks, or the first night alone with he and I, that I cried and said he hates me. Your baby doesn't hate you. He barely knows you at this point. And maybe 20years from now he will not like you very much, but a 2 week old baby does not hate you.
The decision to stop nursing him, at 4 1/2 months, was one of the hardest things I have ever had to decide. I wanted so badly to go to one year. I felt like I failed him and myself. I felt stress from everywhere. When I had finally decided to stop, my relationship with my little prince improved so much.
This is in no way anti-breastfeeding, I love breast feeding if you can you should do it.
That being said, formula will not kill your baby, or your womanhood.
The first 2 weeks, were HELL. It hurt, you're tired, you're emotional, you're hormonal, you're hormonal, you're hormonal.
I can't stress the hormonal hell enough. I love to be in some sort of control of me, and never in my life have I had less control as when I was recovering from labor and delivery. In a sense it is like recovering from surgery. Especially if your large headed child leaves a gaping hole, TMI probably. While recovering from this surgery though you get no sleep, have to entertain visitors, and act like your vagina hasn't been ripped from one end to the other every time you get up or down, move, sneeze, or laugh. Your uncle and father-in-law are the last people you want to see when you have stitches in your nether regions.
The breast feeding started out, horribly. He didn't want to latch, my milk decided to take its time coming in, and I was hormonal. I tried and tried and tried. The lactation consultant insulted the type and brand of pump I had chosen, which in my state was a personal attack. She said if I was serious I needed a better pump. Turned out to be true, very true, but still.
My son was Jaundiced, so I was told to supplement since he wouldn't latch. If you want to breast feed do not do this. Some kids are fine to do this, but we never really recovered from supplementing. Turns out also that if they aren't extremely jaundice you don't need to. Says the pediatrician 2 weeks later. In the hospital we found out, through no help of the postpartum nurses, that my little man was lactose intolerant. The formula they were giving him was causing him to vomit everything back up.
My partially inverted nipples cracked and bled from improper latch, but I was determined to keep going. I even fed him through it which resulted once in bloody projectile vomit, a freaked new hormonal mommy, and my husband calming down the both of us. My entire 6 weeks at home with my little man,I never touched the pump one time to use it. This resulted in hugely engorged breasts on several occasions, the worst being when the milk decided it was time to stop messing with me. This also resulted in having no stash stockpiled for use when I was away. More formula was used. I worked in a very busy Neurology and Rheumatology office, and I never pumped on time. That may have been strike 3 or 4, it was over at 4 1/2 months.
If I had used the Lactation Consultant, I would have been told to drink more water, make sure I pump every 3 hours, and that it was fine to feel like I was doing a bad job because EVERYONE feels like that. I can't tell you how many times in the first 2 weeks, or the first night alone with he and I, that I cried and said he hates me. Your baby doesn't hate you. He barely knows you at this point. And maybe 20years from now he will not like you very much, but a 2 week old baby does not hate you.
The decision to stop nursing him, at 4 1/2 months, was one of the hardest things I have ever had to decide. I wanted so badly to go to one year. I felt like I failed him and myself. I felt stress from everywhere. When I had finally decided to stop, my relationship with my little prince improved so much.
This is in no way anti-breastfeeding, I love breast feeding if you can you should do it.
That being said, formula will not kill your baby, or your womanhood.
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