Breastfeeding Part 3 (Chastity's experience)

Fun thing about Facebook is talking to people you haven't talked to in 10 years.  One such person for me was Chastity.  We went to Hallsville High School together and haven't spoken since but with the beauty of Facebook she messaged me when I had my baby.  A year before me she had a baby boy prematurely and had to learn a lot about pumping.  She gave me all sorts of tips and while I rarely pump, I know many of my friends will need to so I want to share her wisdom.  After all, its my friends I'm writing this blog for.  It's my way of passively giving unsolicited advice when they have their babies. ;)

So with Chastity's permission I'm going to basically copy and paste our Facebook conversation... minus the parts about if we are going to our 10 year reunion or not, and added a few bolds so if you want to skip to some good stuff.

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  9 August 201
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  11 August 2011

  Chastity 

  • We're doing great! It takes time to adjust to having a baby but so worth it!
    How is nursing working out for yall? My son was premature and I wasn't able to nurse. I exclusively pumped for just over 7 months with a supply of 50+ ounces a day. I was able to fill a 5.0 cu ft deep freezer and have enough breast milk to get him through his first birthday! I can't be much help nursing but if you pump at all, I might be able to help if you have and questions 
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  11 August 2011

  Elizabeth A Guilbeau

  • Wow that's a lot of milk! That's great that you were able to do that- after all "breast is best!". Nursing is going okay for us. She came out ready to nurse so I was pretty luck there. Since I've gotten more tired recently it's been more difficult to stay on a good routine though.
    
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  11 August 2011

  Elizabeth A Guilbeau

  • Oh and btw, what kind of pump did u use? Mine is already starting to act up- I might need a new/different kind soon.
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  11 August 2011

  Chastity

  • Because my son came early (it was expected but still a surprise if that makes sense) I hadn't bought a pump yet. The hospital set me up there with a Medela symphony that seemed to work well. When I had to leave the hospital, they set me up with a rental because my insurance paid for it. It was a Lactina something. Older model but it worked for me. I rented it from Good Shepherd [hospital] but for some reason they stopped doing that so I had to buy one. I strongly recommend buying the medela freestyle. I only used mine a couple weeks but it was so nice. You can walk around and fold laundry, do dishes, even go to the bathroom! I can't tell you how many times I sat down to pump only to have to stop to go pee lol. 
    
    
    No matter what, if you pump you HAVE to make a hands free bra. You can buy them but they are $30-$35 each most places. I can not tell you how much easier and less stressful this bra will make pumping. I think I ended up making 5 or so to make sure I always had one. Also you have to make sure your shield size is correct. It can determine your milk supply and cause clogged duct and mastitis if your shield is too small. Don't be surprised if after awhile it seems your normal size is too small. I had to buy a bigger size after pumping awhile. Staying on a schedule, nursing or pumping, is extremely important. 
    
    
    I pumped around the clock every 3-4 hours for 7 months! I was exhausted! They say it takes about 12 weeks for your supply to be more stable, I say at least 16 weeks. Are you having any problems with your supply? There are lots of things you can do and take to up it. I took fenugreek for a few days to try to get my milk to come in faster but didn't take anything after that. Also how is she on your milk? Matthew had a lot of gas issues but I think it was due more to him being premature and still adjusting.
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  12 August 2011

  Elizabeth A Guilbeau

  • Actually she has TERRIBLE gas! It is the only thing she is fussy about. It makes me sad because I dont know what to do to sooth her when she is working out a toot... Though when she does finally get it out it is soooo funny! How does such a big noise come out of such a little bottom?
    So I have been a little worried about my supply. The midwife said I shouldn't worry cause I am making exactly how much she needs- problem with that is that I have none stored up for situations when it's awkward to pull out the boob. I've never heard of what you are suggesting, but I might give it a try. I welcome any other suggestions too.
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  14 August 2011

  Chastity 

  • Sorry it has taken me so long! Try taking acidophilus. It will go through your milk to her and it should help. I'm not sure how long it will take because I was able to pump so much milk I was always ahead of him. You should ask your peditrician about it though because it can be given to babies. I think Matthew was too small at first and that's why ours asked me to take it. I was told that the chances of it being something I was eating were pretty slim but I seemed to notice when I ate green veggies especially broccoli that he seemed more gassy. 
    
    
    Also someone at my baby shower gave us a "frosty bear". It's basically just a cold/hot gel filled pack. We would microwave it a few seconds then wrap it in a towel and put it on his belly. It would help almost immediately. Sometimes it fixed it and sometimes it didnt last long but in the least it gave us all a break. 
    
    
    As for your supply, you can take fenugreek. It's suppose to be natural. I can't say really how much of a difference it makes because I didnt take much but I've read a lot of good things. There is also mother's milk or tea. 
    
    
    You have to massage. I'm not sure why it makes such a difference but it helps to stimulate your milk production. If you massage for a minute or two before you pump or nurse it will help you have a let down a little quicker too. If you ever feel any knots or have sore spots make sure to massage a little extra there while nursing or pumping because it is probably a clogged duct and that helps to loosen it. I personally pumped both sides everytime. I feel like this made a big difference in how much I produced. I know some are saying now to nurse one side the full feeding and switch sides the next. I recommend getting a cheap nursing bra with the pull down flaps. This way you can nurse on one side and use the other side to pump hands free. 
    
    
    Using a hands free bra is the biggest suggestion I can give anyone wanting to pump. All you need is a cheap bra ( I bought the 3 for $10 sports bras at walmart) and make slits in them. Put it on and mark about where your nipples hit in the cup with a sharpie. Cut where the slit is but make sure you start with a pretty small hole. Your going to slide the neck of the shield through the hole but your going to want to make sure it fits tight so it stays in place. Just hook your pump up like normal and you should be able to pump without holding the shields in place. If that doesn't make sense let me know lol. This makes it so much easier to massage wtihout spilling milk. Do you plan on trying to pump enough to freeze or just to keep a couple in the fridge just incase?
    
    When I found out I was pregnant, I signed up with babycenter.com. In their community section, I found a message board for exclusive pumpers. That's where I found most of my help and tips. They have other boards too for pretty much everything. You may try reading some through the boards on there if you don't already.
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  27 August 2011

  Elizabeth A Guilbeau

  • Hey Chasitity!
    So I'm sitting here pumping away, and I remembered that I never thanked you for all your advice! I've taken a lot of what you said and applied it.  I haven't made a bra yet, but I love that idea! A few months ago I found one on sale and I keep using it, but if I need another one I'm going to use your idea.
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  30 August 2011

  Chastity 

  • Your so welcome! I don't think I mentioned it earlier, but of you plan to freeze any of your milk be sure to defrost it in a ziploc bag. The milk bags you buy to freeze it in are awful about leaking! I stopped pumping the beginning of April and Matthew just had his last bag of breast milk Friday. He will be 1 September 13th. When I stopped pumping I calculated him cutting back on his milk around 9 months only to find out that because he was premature he wouldn't cut back until right at a year old. I also lost a good bit of milk with the bags leaking, especially when the milk bag leaks as well as the ziploc bag. I'm a little sad he didn't get a complete year of breast milk because I thought I was freezing enough to get us just past that. I can't complain though. I got about 2 1/2 weeks less than a year of free milk if you don't count all the time and work that goes into it  If you have any questions or just want to talk, let me know! I'll be as much help as I can.
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Breastfeeding part 1 (Truth behind breastfeeding Myths)

Okay, breastfeeding is unfortunately a sensitive subject in this culture.  It is possible that living in a country founded on capitalism might have a bit to do with it.  Without getting political, I would like you to consider this...  Who is going to make any money on a product that you can make by yourself and only you can make yourself?  You won't see so many advertisements for it, and you won't have pharmaceutical sales reps pushing it in doctors' offices.  On the contrary, they are going to be pushing for something that they can profit from even if it is an inferior product.

Why would people buy something that isn't as good as something they could get for free?  Because they are told that their bodies are lemons... their bodies are not good enough to make this awesome product.  But how often is it true really?  According to research, only 1-3% of women truly cannot breastfeed.  Yet, this is not what you would think with the sales of formula being so high. It breaks my heart when I hear a women say she wasn't able to breastfeed her child... especially when I know how much she wanted to.  From what I've personally heard from women who have said this, every single one of them, had extremely terrible advice given to them or doctors and nurses who simply didn't give them the time, encouragement and support they needed.

I myself was a formula bottle-fed baby.  I grew up to be a strong healthy women, who was even healthy enough to grow up and be a breastfeeder.  So I know that formula doesn't equal a terrible start to your baby. But if you truly desire to breastfeed you baby because you want to have that unique bond with your baby, or save serious money so you can spend that money on buying adorable baby clothes (because your breastfed baby is going to grow fast!) give breast your best!

Below is some information from Colorado State University about breastfeeding written to child care providers.  Another good source is La Leche League.

Truth Behind Breastfeeding Myths – Guidelines for Child Care Providers
Like many things in this world, there are truths and myths about breastfeeding. Many of the myths about breastfeeding keep women from breastfeeding their infants. Breastfeeding is the recommended method of infant feeding. Listed below are the truths about some common breastfeeding myths. This information can help you help parents know the facts.

I know that I can’t breastfeed!
According to many researchers, only 1-3% of women truly cannot breastfeed. Some reasons why a mother cannot breastfeed include a temporary illness or breast surgery which has damaged the milk ducts. Some mothers feel they cannot breastfeed because they did not breastfeed their other children. Often times increasing a mother’s knowledge on breastfeeding and giving her the proper support and encouragement will help her try breastfeeding her infant.

I am not producing enough milk!
Many mothers choose to quit breastfeeding because they feel they are not producing enough milk. For the first 2-3 days, mothers produce a small amount of colostrum, which is rich in protein, vitamins and immune-helping agents. Because it is produced in small amounts, many mothers think this is not enough for their infants, but it is! It is all that an infant needs for the first few days of life. Also, parents of breastfeeding infants often are concerned with the weight loss that occurs with newborn breastfed infants. If a parent is concerned about the amount of weight loss their infant is having, it would be important for you to tell them to talk to their health professional and/or a lactation consultant.

My breasts will look funny and sag if I breastfeed!
This is not true at all! Genetics control whether or not a woman’s breasts will sag and this often can occur with pregnancy, but not breastfeeding.

If I go back to work, I can’t breastfeed!
Working and breastfeeding can take a little extra planning! Many companies are supportive of breastfeeding especially if they know the benefits that breastfeeding can provide. These benefits include a healthier infant which will lead to his/her mother and father having to take less time off of work! It is good to purchase or rent a breast pump from local hospitals and health departments, including WIC (Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children) so the mother can pump her breastmilk. Also, it is important for the working breastfeeding mother to have support from you, her child care provider.

I don’t have a good supply of milk because I am stressed and tired!
The most common causes of low milk supply are poor latch-on of the infant to the breast, poor positioning of the infant to the breast and not feeding the infant enough throughout the day. If a mother is feeling stressed or tired, it is important for her to find help among a supportive family member, friend, health professional or child care provider to help her decrease the amount of stress in her life if possible.

I don’t drink milk, so how can I make milk?
There is no mammal in this world that drinks milk to make milk for their infants. A mother does not have to drink milk to make milk.

If I breastfeed my baby, he/she will be spoiled later on in life!
Holding an infant while he/she is feeding is very important to reduce the infant’s chance of choking and ear infections. It is noted in research that infants who are held and cry less throughout the day appear to feel more safe and secure in their relationships with others as they get older.

If I breastfeed my baby, my mother or my baby’s father will not be able to bond with the infant!
Feeding is not the only way that other family members and friends can bond with the baby. Burping, diapering, bathing, rocking, holding, cuddling and playing with the infant are all things that are important for an infant’s growth, development and bonding with others. If a family member really wants to feed the baby breastmilk, it can be given in a bottle.

If I breastfeed my infant with on-demand feedings, my baby’s father and I will never have any alone time together!
Becoming a parent can change your lives forever – but this can be a positive thing! Whether a mother breastfeeds or formula feeds her baby, a newborn requires much attention for the first few weeks of life. It is important to know that a newborn infant’s needs will decrease over time. This is also a great time to work on developing your parenting skills together as a team.