My breastfeeding journey

I am so happy how far I’ve come with my breastfeeding journey. I hope my story can inspire a new or expecting mother to find the strength & motivation to continue their journey too🫶🏼

When I was pregnant with my first I planned to breastfeed but had a rough start. From the first stay I wasn’t sure if my baby was latching properly. My baby also had jaundice & although I was adamant about exclusively breastfeeding I was told by the nurses that my baby needed formula to supplement & reduce his jaundice. So we started supplementing with formula in the hospital.

We kept supplementing with formula at home & I started to struggle with my milk supply. I tried pumping in between feeds but would hardly get half an ounce total. I was relaying more & more everyday on formulaI which didn’t sit well with my baby. I tried teas, electrolyte drinks, lactation cookies, breast massages, just about everything but nothing seemed to increase my output. I felt defeated & so discouraged that I constantly thought about putting an end to my breastfeeding.

When my son was 5 weeks old I got severely sick with food poisoning & was hospitalized for 3 days. During that time I pumped at the hospital to try to keep my supply up, while my baby was being cared for by my cousin (my husband also got food poisoning). As luck would have it my cousin was still breastfeeding her 18month old & breastfed my son (with my approval of course) & during that time my son gained weight cause he wasn’t throwing up all the milk🥺 I’m eternally grateful for my cousin❤️

During my time in the hospital I researched as much as I could about breastfeeding, time & time again I found that latching & allowing your baby to feed us often as possible is the best way to increase your milk supply. When I got released from the hospital & finally reunited with my baby I made the decision to completely stop using formula. My supply wasn’t where I wanted it to be & I knew the next couple of days ahead of us. We’re going to be rough. I won’t lie, it was definitely a hard week and a half with hardly any rest & constant breast-feeding but so worth it. By the second week we were getting on a routine & my baby was sleeping longer. My supply was so good that I was constantly leaking.

I breast-fed my first born until he was 15 months old when he stopped by himself. And today I am still breast-feeding my 9 month old baby girl who has never drink formula🙌🏼 Something I wish I’d done differently was to stop using formula as soon as we got home & put more trust on my body.

Remember, mamas that our bodies are amazing and they know what our babies need. Trust your body, be patient with body, trust in yourself & your baby, & follow your baby’s lead❤️

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