Best Breastfeeding Tip you've learned (either through experience or education)

sekura

Don't be afraid to use a nipple shield and some formula as a teaser to get things started early on.  My nipples weren't shaped right at first, and baby couldn't latch to me for the first 6 weeks.  I used a nipple shield and put a couple of drops of formula on it to tempt him to latch, and used some nipple shapers when I wasn't nursing (and pumped some to stimulate)--after 6 weeks, I was able to get rid of all this and nurse exclusively.  It took patience, time and perseverance, but when DS and I finally got it all figured out, it was way easier than pumping or using bottles.

courtniko

A huge thank you to everyone who contributed tips in this thread!  As a FTM I think that so much of this will help me out a lot, especially the emotional part.

Nuclearcupcake

Can we do a BF check in for some extra support when our babies start arriving?

Lawgrl04

STM+ moms, get ready. Because with each baby, your milk comes in harder and faster.  At least, that has been my experience.  It was crazy painful with baby #3. Add to that she wasn't a great eater, and I was super engorged. She just could not take all of what I was making in those early days. Also, those contractions that shrink down your uterus when you nurse right after birth are more painful, like labor contractions. Don't be shy about asking for some pain meds.

If you get one of these crazy newborns who likes to sleep 6 hours straight at night, you might need to actually wake her up to eat.  My daughter was small and not gaining enough weight, so I had to do this.  I let her go a few nights for the longer stretch early on, and it really screwed up my supply.  I went from very engorged to not enough milk.  Oh, and I got a period 4 weeks postpartum.  My other bleeding had slowed dramatically, then bam, bleeding like a period.  I think it was because my milk supply dropped dramatically (though that is just me guessing).

My daughter was my 3rd kid.  My first baby was a 29 week preemie and I exclusively pumped for a long time, then eventually nursed.  All this is to say that each baby is different and you may face new and unexpected challenges.  But the good news is that most problems have solutions, and it really does get easier in a matter of weeks!

kraft333

Just want to second the gratitude for all this knowledge sharing! I love this thread & would absolutely be onboard for some BF support in Aug & beyond.

happylady07

Educate yourself as much as you can before baby arrives, and take relatives and friends advice with a grain of salt, ESPECIALLY when they weren't successful themselves. Ignore the "didn't that baby just eat, how is it hungry again?", "what if I want to feed him/her", "are you sure you're making enough?" Comments from such people. Newborns eat A LOT. It's normal.

Surround yourself with supportive people who know what the F they are talking about, preferably because they have done it themselves.

Don't give up on a bad day.

Be committed.

It does get easier, but man, those first few weeks were tough!

The most important thing at the end of the day is that you feed your baby, no matter what method that entails, end of story.

The vast majority of women CAN successfully breastfeed, however it is extremely difficult to do so when you get conflicting advice from all over the place, even pediatricians have no idea what they are talking about sometimes. Good friends of mine would have switched to formula early on had they listened to their ped, so being educated yourself is extremely important so you know what advice is bogus. Find a reputable lactation consultant, a breastfeeding moms support group to attend, and there are some fantastic online resources out there, kellymom.com, the leaky boob (FB), breastfeeding (FB), and la Leche league's the womanly art of breastfeeding was my most used baby book.

MC03

Also, there is a breastfeeding board here on the bump and I lurked that thing like crazy and got so much good information.  Sometimes it was just helpful to read about other people having problems too, and I didn't feel so alone. 

Raclla

Lawgrl04 said:

STM+ moms, get ready. Because with each baby, your milk comes in harder and faster.  At least, that has been my experience.  It was crazy painful with baby #3. Add to that she wasn't a great eater, and I was super engorged. She just could not take all of what I was making in those early days. Also, those contractions that shrink down your uterus when you nurse right after birth are more painful, like labor contractions. Don't be shy about asking for some pain meds.

If you get one of these crazy newborns who likes to sleep 6 hours straight at night, you might need to actually wake her up to eat.  My daughter was small and not gaining enough weight, so I had to do this.  I let her go a few nights for the longer stretch early on, and it really screwed up my supply.  I went from very engorged to not enough milk.  Oh, and I got a period 4 weeks postpartum.  My other bleeding had slowed dramatically, then bam, bleeding like a period.  I think it was because my milk supply dropped dramatically (though that is just me guessing).

My daughter was my 3rd kid.  My first baby was a 29 week preemie and I exclusively pumped for a long time, then eventually nursed.  All this is to say that each baby is different and you may face new and unexpected challenges.  But the good news is that most problems have solutions, and it really does get easier in a matter of weeks!

====quote box hell=====

I'm hoping this time is better.  I had serious supply issues with DD.  

I ignored the pediatricians advice to supplement and stuck with it and met with the LC more.  

The point when the LC started asking about medical history, infertility issues, etc is when I started to supplement.  The super crunchy, uber pro breast feeding LC was starting to get concerned and that freaked me out.  

I'm hoping my body remembers what to do this time and does a better job.  

Nuclearcupcake

I got different carriers to try baby wearing and I'm going to practice nursing in some of them too and hopefully we can find one that will work for us. I think it would be easier to nurse with my boys running around if she's in a carrier. Any experience?

Lawgrl04

@Raclla, supply issues can be so frustrating.  I had a really hard time with my preemie, establishing a supply was a huge challenge.  He could not nurse from me at all for several months, so I pumped exclusively.  The advice that ultimately made the difference for me was when a nurse practitioner told me to pump every 3 hours, all day.  I had been sleeping a 6 hour stretch at night and pumping more often during the day.  That just didn't work for my body.  I didn't believe that her advice would make the difference, but amazingly, it did.  I had tried sooo many other things to boost supply.  But my body needed the every 3 hours (or more) in the beginning.  I'm sure that is not the case for everyone, but it was for me.  Hopefully nursing will be easier for you the second time around.  It certainly was for me!

@nuclearcupcake, I think the baby carrier I liked best for nursing was the Maya Wrap Baby sling. It has a ring and it's easiest to get baby into the right position.  Good for when baby was really small.  Honestly, though, I often stuck my boys in front of the tv when I nursed my baby girl.  They definitely got more tv than usual in those first few weeks!!!