I never knew anyone growing up who breastfed their baby – my whole life I had only heard about babies getting bottles. When I learned that breastfeeding was possible, I knew right away that I wanted to try. My goal at first was 6 months, then it became a year, and now my daughter is almost 23 months and we’re still going!
While it was wonderful that my baby latched right after my unplanned C-section, the rest of the journey wasn’t easy at first – she wasn’t gaining enough weight so we had to triple feed which meant I would nurse her, pump, then give her a bottle of breastmilk or formula. I had been given some bad advice by a lactation consultant at the hospital that lowered my milk supply. My nipples were cracked, bleeding, and dry, every time I pumped it hurt, and my wrists were aching from holding her head up while I nursed her.
I met with a few IBCLCs from My Pure Delivery and it was life-changing. They taught me how to take care of my nipples, they measured my nipples and I learned I was using the wrong flange size, they showed me how to help my baby have a bigger,