Boobdudes.info | Breastfeeding Support

“Hi my name is Jackie and my son, George, is approaching 18 months. I knew I wanted to breastfeed even before I became pregnant but when it happened I was full of apprehension. Would I be able to do it? The more I heard about it the more it seemed to me that only a lucky few managed it with no problems. My sister-in-law had recently given birth to my niece and was heart-broken to have had to give up breastfeeding after a couple of weeks because she was in a lot of pain, and I had heard a lot of stories about mums not producing enough milk. I think I just assumed that we would have problems and I just hoped that we would be able to get through whatever came along.

So what a revelation it was to me when George took to it like a duck to water! After a difficult 30 hour labour, my planned home birth ended up a last minute emergency dash to the hospital, but shortly afterwards all that melted away as George latched on like an old pro and fed happily for almost an hour. That set the scene really for the next few months. Now I’ll take my rose-tinted spectacles off for a minute… Yes it was really tiring and at times I thought the boy would NEVER sleep through the night (he did, but it took 14 months!) and I often felt jealous of bottle feeding mums whose babies seemed to have cracked it after just a couple of months. But to see my happy, healthy baby thriving on my milk, and obviously loving it, it’s just the best feeling in the world. Also in the early days I had excruciating back pain for a while but this eased as I discovered the joys of feeding whilst lying down. Oh, and a couple of biting episodes (ouch!) and the comments from well-meaning others (time to give him a bottle now he’s got teeth, etc) but this was also short-lived.

I was very lucky because I got lots of support with breastfeeding, particularly when George was small. A friend of mine had recently become a Breast Mate so there was always someone I could call on to talk through any questions I had. I remember worrying a lot about whether George was getting enough precious hind milk and how long he should spend on each breast. Through talking to other mums at various groups my mind was put at rest that as long as he was gaining weight then everything was fine. I used the La Leche League helpline once or twice and received fantastic support, and I also found the midwives in the hospital were brilliant, sitting with me for the first few feeds so that by the time we went home I was feeling pretty confident.

I always said I would stop at 6 months (can’t remember why now…) well, 6 months came and went and I couldn’t think of any good reasons to stop. A year later we are still going strong and I won’t stop till he’s good and ready.

It’s because I found breastfeeding such a joy that I decided to train as a Breast Mate. I hope that I can inspire new mums and mums to be to embark on this fantastic journey, mums who might otherwise be put off by the thoughts of what might go wrong. It may be hard work to begin with, but the outstanding thing for me is how rewarding and how easy it has been!

So if any mums to be out there are feeling daunted by the prospect of breastfeeding, just go for it! Like me, you could well be pleasantly surprised.”

by Jackie