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Breastfeeding Your Baby Written by: Nancy Wurtzel |
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After coming out of your womb, your baby’s next move would be to announce his hunger and demand for instant attention. Here comes your chance to put to actual application all the theories you’ve learned during your child birth classes and tips from friends and family.
There are many positions that you can use when you are breastfeeding your baby and switching positions from time to time helps you in more ways than you know. Using different positions can help prevent sore muscles and make you comfortable when nursing your baby.
The most common and popular position in breastfeeding your baby is the cradle hold. This is the position where your baby lies across your body with his head in the crook of your arm. You should support his body with your right or left forearm and hand, depending upon which side the baby will be nursing on. The next thing to do is to cup your breast with your other arm and bring the baby’s body close to your nipple. If you are breastfeeding your baby on your left breast, switch position later and let him breastfeed on your right breast. This will prevent milk from clogging up on your breasts.
The football or clutch hold is another breastfeeding position. Here, your baby is tucked under your armpit on your side and the baby rests his body on a pillow. You should hold the baby’s head with your hand on the side he is nursing on and you can switch to the other side later.
The football or clutch hold provides you more control and you can easily guide your baby’s mouth to your nipple. This is an ideal position especially if you are recovering from a cesarean operation.
The reclining position is the most comfortable for breastfeeding your baby. Here, you can lie on your side on the bed and your baby lies alongside with you. This position is most ideal when you are about to sleep.
Teaching your baby to latch on to your nipple for breastfeeding is a very tricky part of nursing, and this could be painful and uncomfortable at the start. In the proper way of breastfeeding, your baby’s mouth should cover the part of the underside of your nipple. If your baby is not interested in latching on, you can try the trick of stroking his chin or cheek to encourage the rooting reflex of your baby. If you are a first time mother, this makes learning the techniques doubly difficult but with proper guidance and practice, you and your baby will learn the tricks of breastfeeding.
Breastfeeding during the first few weeks after you gave birth to your baby, breastfeeding is as frequent as 8-12 times a day because you will be nursing your baby on demand. This is no cause to worry that you will run of milk because your milk supply is dependent upon how much you nurse. This means that the more you breastfeed your baby, the more milk your breasts will produce. An average breastfeeding session could last from 12-15 minutes on each breast.
When you are breastfeeding your baby, you need to eat a healthy, well balanced diet because again, you are eating for two people. You must continue to take your vitamins and other food supplements. Like when you are still pregnant, you should limit your intake of caffeine but stay away from alcohol because alcohol finds its way into breast milk. You would not want to feed your baby with alcohol, wouldn’t you? When it comes to taking medicines while you are breastfeeding, it is important that you consult your doctor regardless of whether the medicine is prescribed or over the counter.
Breastfeeding does not come automatically for you and your baby, especially if you are a first time mother. You have to learn the art but although you learn all the techniques, minor problems will still arise.
One breastfeeding problem is the pain of engorgement which happens when your breasts get so full of milk. If you are unable to nurse your baby immediately, you might feel feverish. A shower or cool compress can help you.
Thrush, which is a fungal infection, is another problem in breastfeeding which you may encounter. This is often a complicated problem to get rid of because you and your baby will often pass it back and forth.
When your nipples get sore or irritated, do not use soaps of creams to treat it while you are still breastfeeding your baby. Doing so presents the risk of mastitis which is an infection of the milk ducts. Once you develop mastitis, your breasts would get swollen, hard, hot to the touch and painful. This can be treated with moist heat and antibiotics.
If you still find breastfeeding your baby difficult despite all these tips, you can seek medical advice from your doctor. You can also find help by browsing through the internet or going to a lactation consultant in your community. Whatever position you use in breastfeeding your baby, it should be a pleasant experience since it is one of the best gifts you can offer. |
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