I have to admit breastfeeding at the beginning is indeed the toughest thing to do right after the delivery of a baby. After delivery of a new born baby, our body is going through a major restructuring of hormonal changes and this experience could be overwhelming for some mom. Some of us may experience "Baby Blues" or Post Delivery Depression. I remember that that time was quite difficult for me as our mood swing due anxiety and lots of things to worry about.
Here are a couple of things to take note to be successful in breastfeeding a newborn:-
#1) First Feeding is very important. The colostrum has high concentrations of nutrients and antibodies. IT is also high in carbohydrates, high in protein, high in antibody and low in fat (as human newborns may find it difficult to digest). Newborns have very small digestive systems, and colostrum delivers its nutrients in very concentrated low-volume form. It has mild laxative effect, encouraging the passing of the baby's first stool,which s call meconium. This clears excess bilirubin, a waste product of dead red blood cells which is produced in large quantities at birth due to blood volume reduction, from the infant's body and helps prevent jaundice.(This part is taken from Wikipedia, I did not write this :P)
#2) Supply & Demand. The economic theory of supply and demand is the only concept that you will need to remember while breastfeeding. The more you feed or express, the more the brain will be programmed to simulated the breast milk (BM) production. It is perfectly normal if your baby request for milk every 2-3 hours. My baby was a small eater during the confinement period and she only consume around 3 oz every 3 hours. This allows me to actually have extra time to express the remain ding using a breast pump. There are 2 reason for that, firstly to simulate more demand so that the production can increase and secondly, to stock some supply of BM if your baby suddenly go through a growth sprout. I remember that the baby will usually go through a growth sprout in the 3, 6, 9 and 12 months. But each baby is definitely unique.
#3) Buy a good breast pump. I have purchased a single Medela Electric for ~RM 350 and have used that during the confinement month. After that, I realize that it is not efficient to express the milk fast enough during the working hours. So after the confinement month, I went out to purchase a double Medala Electric Pump which cost RM 598. The initial investment may be a bit shocking to me as well but I can guarantee you that it is all worth it. For a formula fed baby, the amount of money parents need to pay for the milk powder supply ranges from RM 150 to RM 200 per month and it gets more when the baby is growing due to the increase intake. The initial investment of the breast pump is nothing compared to that. Some moms prefer to use the single pump from Avent which has been said to have very good vacuum. But the disatvante of the single pump is it will take longer for each pumping session. Having to work in a hectic organization, expressing 2 times in office is very time consuming. So I finally resort to using the double Medela electric pump
#4) Resting. It is very very important that we get the rest needed. Delivery is a very hectic process for the mom and the baby. So try to get as much sleep as possible. Try to get some sleep when your baby is sleeping too.. It is very much needed to help you to gain the energy for producing the required amount of BMfor your new born. Not forgetting that you will need to wake up in the middle of the night at least 1 or 2 times to breastfeed your baby. So if you can catch any sleep during the afternoon nap it would be good.
#5) Drink more fluid, soup, natural milkmaid organic tea to help boost the fluid in your body. At average, we need to drink around 8 glasses or 2 liter of water a day. As a nursing mother, we definitely need to drink more than that. The Chinese tradition believes that during confinementperiod, we should be drinking water but need to drink the herbs, red dates, dried longan as our daily water consumption. I was really against this believe and drank the amount of water I needed. Apart from drinking just water, it would be good to drink fish soup as it also contains DHA and Omega to help provide the required nutrition for your baby.
#6) Storing BM. After expressing you need to store the BM in the fridge. The rule of thumb of storing it in the fidge is it can be kept from 3-5 days. If it is being kept in the freezer, then it can be stored up to 3 months. While warming the milk, do not boil it under the fire. All that is needed is to warm it in a hot cup of water of a bottle warmer.
#7) Nipple Confussion. Of course, direct feeding is more beneficial for both the mother and baby. It encourages a lot of bonding between mommy and baby. However, for baby whom are aged below 6 weeks old are encouraged to be fed directly and not to bottle feed so often to avoid the confussion from the baby. Some baby may have a preferance over a method and reject the other method totally. So you will need to select a method which is prefered by your baby.
For the moment, this is what I can think of as a sharing pieces for all of you. I will continue to post more information on breastfeeding and encourage and promote breastfeeding to our babies !
PS: Fathers-to-be, after reading this, please do understand that your wife go through a LOT for your baby so give them all the support and love that is needed.
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