1st time breastfeeding mum!!

Hi all, I'm 3 months pregnant and have been bombarded by lots of information regarding breastfeeding,it's a minefield with do's and don'ts. If anyone has breastfed what was your views on it?? Cheers

I loved breastfeeing my children though had huge problems with my first due to lack of support etc so gave up after a couple of weeks.

My next one I breastfed for 14 months, my 3rd and 4th both for 9 months.

I really loved the closeness I felt with them but it does have it downsides of sore boobs to start with, the constant feeding and other half not being able to help out.

Breastfeeding isnt for everybody and this really should be recognised by health professionals. However, I do feel that more support and encouragement should be given especially to first time mums who are so overwhelmed by emotions and unsure of what they are doing with a first baby.

I did find it a whole lot easier with my 2nd and subsequent babies cos I was much more relaxed about the whole thing.
x

I love breastfeeding! Millie is 10 months now and we are still going, ideally I want to feed till a year so she can go straight to cows milk. It can be really hard work, it's tough when you see other new mums leaving there LO's with family while they have a rest and you can't but in my opinion the benefits far out weigh the negatives. Try and make sure you have plenty of support because you probably will need it and be ready for the fact that for the first few weeks your baby will want to feed ALL the time (I didn't even get a bath in peace for about 6 weeks). Things settle down though and once you get it sorted it is much easier than bottle feeding, no sterilising, no waiting while you heat it up, no running out just when LO decides they are hungry . Most importantly, however you decide to feed don't let anyone make you feel bad about it, this is your baby and you know best so do what feels right for you. Kerry xx

I found breast feeding very hard. My LO was in SCBU and I had great support, help and advice whilst there but once we came home I had nothing. I ended up giving up a lot earlier than planned and still feel quite sad about it a year later. With the next one I hope to do better. I think it is something that everyone should try and see how you get on. It isn't for everyone but any breast milk your baby gets is excellent for them. I had to express in the begining for my daughter and only use to get a drop or 2 at first but they still gave this to her and she done so well in the unit that she was the first one home in our room. Good luck with whatever choice you make.x

My first daughter was 4 weeks early and unfortunately breast feeding never seemed to really click, she never managed to latch on properly. However she had expressed milk for 6 weeks and then i started to mix feed ebm and foruma til about 10 weeks. It was extrememly hard work and i was soooo determined to make breast feeding work second time. Thankfully it did and i b/f my second daughter til she was about 14m and it was great. So practiacal and easy after those first few weeks and such a special thing to do for you little one.

Everyone knows the helath benefits to mother and baby so there is no point mentioning all them. I'd just say you need to be stick it out as the first few weeks are usually hard, and your nipples do get sore, mine did bleed and were very painful...perhaps stock up on lansinoh cream its about £10 but worth every penny! BUT it does only last a couple of weeks, its hard to believe when you start that it can every be easy/pain free but it does get there quickly BUt also don't beat yourself up about it if despite all your efforts its not working, a little is better than none and a happy mummy is important too

GoodLuck

I didn't BF charlotte, she was formula fed. I didn't feel comfortable in doing it so decided against it.

I wanted to BF George though, but due to complications during his birth his first feed was formula via tube. I tried desperately to BF but he wouldn't latch on properly so expressed breast milk and supplemented it with formula I managed this for about 3 weeks. I had no support with BF though. I had every mw in the hospital shoving my boobs in George's mouth but as soon as I left there was noone to help.

I wish I had looked into support groups before I had him so I could call on them to help me but I just assumed I would find it easy enough.

Don't be put off though by how I found it! It's cheaper and easier than preparing formula feeds not to mention the health pros for baby and you!

Good luck hun x

my advice would be try it & if you can stick with it for at least 8/9 weeks (its very hard in the beginning & feeding the baby is all consuming as they feed little and very very often (when Breastfed). If you can stick with it for 2 months, it will become easier & will be 2nd nature. It does hurt to start with (sore nipples, pain latching on etc), so don't be put off by this. Ask your HV/MW for help & if possible go to a local support group. Express if you can & give via bottle (from 6 weeks onwards) to give your nipples a chance to recover & this will also make the transition from breast to bottle easier (if you take that route of course).
BF is not for everyone & some people do dry up coz of not resting enough or not taking on enough fluids etc. Best of luck if you do decide to give it a go, its well worth it & it defo best for baby.xx

No one ever really mentions this but finding something to wear used to be my nightmare.
I really didn't want to be one of those 'earth mothers' who bare their breasts as soon as their baby cries no matter who's around (and we have to be sensitive to the fact that people are embarrassed - whether they should be or not is a whole other discussion).

Anyway I found front-opening bras meant that you had to have everything on show, so I started wearing a normal bra with a jumper or t-shirt, then by cuddling my baby I could simply lift my jumper up, pull my bra up a little and feed quite discreetly wherever I was.

It's also much warmer!!