Are you guys done with my breastfeeding series yet? As you know by now, breastfeeding my son was not a successful endeavor. In the year since we stopped, I’ve learned so much about what might have helped or I could have done or tried differently to improve the situation. So if I could start over here is my list of what I would have tried differently:
1. Started using lanolin immediately. Because I have a wool sensitivity I was terrified of trying lanolin for fear of breaking out in hives in an already tender location. It took 2 weeks before I broke down in the middle of the night and had the clarity of mind to try a test swatch on my inner wrist. If only I had thought of that sooner, I would have saved myself so much pain. 2. Used a supplemental nursing system before offering a bottle. I only recently learned about a SNS but I think this would have been a total game changer. Our son genuinely had issues latching (even with bottles) so a tube system would have been fantastic and this one is designed to help stimulate milk production and encourage future latching at the same time.
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My mother has always been militant about breastfeeding. She raised me to believe that there was no excuse for a woman not to breastfeed her baby until at least teeth. So I always knew I was going to exclusively breastfeed and would silently judge women who didn't.
![]() As a birth worker, it is my mission to work my way through every pregnancy, birth, and early motherhood documentary I can. So when I saw Breastmilk available on Netflix it was a must see. I have to say the film did not disappoint and helped me work through many of my own personal views and emotions towards breastfeeding. You are in a busy but quiet restaurant It's 105° outside because it's June in Texas Try as they might the air conditioners just can't quite keep up You try to maintain some level of modesty by wearing a poncho style cover Your child is screaming under it Sweat is pooling in your cleavage and on your sons brow He thrashes his head back and forth Pulling the nipple shield he refuses to eat without with him You struggle to get everything back in place although it's difficult with the cover and the heat His crying intensifies because of the hunger You feel heads turning your way Hear whispers pointed in your direction You try to stay calm to help soothe him and get a successful latch It's not working Finally you ask your companion to mix up the emergency bottle you have in the emergency diaper bag The second that bottle nipple his your child's lips his crying stops and he peacefully eats This is our new daily norm albeit not always in public. From the beginning breastfeeding has been a struggle for us. I have sat down to write about it so many times but each time I'm ready to post, our situation has changed and my words are outdated.
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