I would like to talk to you about breastfeeding.
Of course, you don't have to listen...(or read, as the case may be.) I don't mind.
Before Cate was born, I was almost postive I would hate BFing (ha ha...that looks weird) and would not be able to do it. I was prepared for that. I was fully prepared, mentally at least, to feed her formula and go right on with my life.
I was not prepared for how much I would love feeding her.
Nor was I prepared for how much it hurt, in the beginning. By day 2 of Cate's life, my nip.ples were cracked and bleeding. I finally managed to ask the nurse about it, and got some lanolin and some awesome gel pads, which helped a lot. But it still hurt so much that by the time we were home on Monday, I had decided to stop altogether. She had one full day of nothing but formula.
Tuesday, my milk came in. So I completely reversed Monday's decision and decided to try pumping and BFing. Jeff and I went and spent an obscene amount of money on a breat pump (well worth it, BTW). I pumped for a few days, until I felt healed enough to try and nurse Cate again, and gave her formula when it wasn't enough.
Now, here's my issue, and I'm hoping someone can help me with it. I started to BF Cate and then pump when she was done after about a week of just pumping. And I got a clogged and infected milk duct. I let off the BFing b/c of the pain and just pumped until it felt better. Once it did, I started BFing again and pumping after, and again, I got a clogged and infected milk duct.
I don't know why this happens. Much to my surprise, I want to breastfeed my daughter. But I do not want to go through that kind of pain every 3 or 4 days. Right now, I pump and she gets bottles. It works well for me and Jeff, since he can feed her at night while I pump. And it will help when I go back to work. But I want to be able to breastfeed her too. Unfortunately, I'm just too scared.
Does anyone have any suggestions??
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I can't help you on breastfeeding advice, but just wanted to stop by and let you know that I'm thinking about you a lot! I know you and Jeff are so happy with Cate!
ReplyDeleteDitto on the lactation consultant. I had a 20 min phone convo with one when we had a few issues, and it made me feel *so* much better. You can call the hospital to speak to one, generally for free.
ReplyDeleteI also had no idea how much I'd love BFing, so I wish you good luck!
Hey Girl,
ReplyDeleteI'm a week late, so maybe you have it all figured out now. My mom is a lactation consultant and would jump over to moon to help someone who has been such a support and inspiration to me. Let me know if you would like her to call you, okay. and I'll email you her phone number and tell her that you might be calling.
Otherwise, you should be able to find a local LC or a La Leache League group. and Your insurance might even pay for it too. My insurance even pays for a breast-pump under durable medical equipment. maybe you could get a reimbursement for your pump?
Were you serious about sending me your maternity tops? I am totally interested. So very totally interested. Let me know and we can work out the details.
love to you and Jeff and baby cate!