Breastfeeding Advice....

Don't give up! I didn't feel good about it until my son was 6 weeks old at the least. Use your lanolin cream all of the time. Make sure that you wear your nursing bra constantly until your milk comes in. I wore mine almost round-the-clock for a good while. A Boppy Pillow was such a blessing as I was learning to breast feed. It is such a bonding time for me and so stress relieving...I almost fell asleep on several occasions! (jem0622)

It is so much harder that I thought it would be. Stick with it, it gets easier! I was to stick it out until DS was 6 weeks old and by then, it wasn't exactly enjoyable, but it wasn't awful either. Now, at 4.5 months, I really enjoy it and don't want to give it up.   (kristin.g)

Go with the flow. I found it hard at first because it seemed like my son wanted to eat all of the time unless he was sleeping. I have found breastfeeding to be the most wonderful bonding experience I could ever imagine. If it doesn't work out for you, don't feel bad because not all mommies can produce milk as the baby needs it, but it's NOT your fault!   (mj68)

BFing is not as easy as one would think. Do not let other make you feel guilty if you decide to bottle feed. Try BFing, get advice, ask questions. But you as the mom really know what's best for you and for your baby. Use a lactation specialist. GET LANSINOH now and start rubbing the salve on your breast in the 8th month to get ready! Those nips are going to get quite a work out and they will need to be prepped before hand. This stuff is a lifesaver for cracked and bleeding nips.  (ozip)

Breastfeeding is a miracle. If you can do it even for a week, DO IT! The good stuff in breast milk is so healthy (and makes their breath smell WONDERFUL!). It's easy for when you want to go out (already prepared and warm) and it isn't "embarrassing" at all! Practice nursing in the mirror before you go out and see for yourself nothing shows once the baby's latched on. My bust is VERY large (38 FF) but I can still manage to hide everything.   (_karen)

Give it all you've got, but if it isn't going to work, don't make yourself miserable (I had to give it up at one month because dd was getting sick on it).   (ruth_73)

I can't stress enough that you should STICK WITH IT. I thought I was going to die the first few weeks from the sheer pain of it. It was almost worse than the labor. I went through worrying about supply to my baby refusing to eat in the evenings to feedings every half hour. Now, at four months, it is a breeze and I really think I am going to miss it when it is done.  (startoestudio)

Keep at it for at least 6 weeks. It is not easy at first. I always thought that it would be so natural. The baby would be born, and immediately start suckling. HA! It is definitely a learned thing. for both momma and baby. Just keep at it   (petreece)

Breastfeed for as long as you can. It is quite a bonding experience for mom and infant, and is the perfect nutrition for a rapidly developing human being.  (jacobsmomee)

Its true what they say, it isn't the easiest thing to do in the beginning. Both you and baby are learning together. Try not to get too frustrated and just take deep breaths and just try again. There is a lot of help out there now for us so use those resources if you need it (like a lactation consultant--they are everywhere now!). I do think it was so helpful that I was able to nurse my baby about 30 minutes after he was born. He seemed to instinctively know what to do! Also, it is normal to feel some pain in the beginning as your nipples are getting used to this new function! I thought I must be doing it all wrong until I finally had someone observe me and they said I was doing just fine. Most important advice, DRINK YOUR WATER! It soooo helps with your production.  (bailey3)

I had a baby who was in NICU for 2 weeks and one day, she never learned to nurse and had terrible nipple confusion. I ended up exclusively pumping for her. What I thought was a temporary thing has become a way of life for me and it works beautifully. Everyone can help feed her a bottle, but she is getting the benefits of breastmilk. Don't give up on breastfeeding if you want to do it, babies are amazing resilient and can learn just about anything. Just because it comes in a bottle makes no difference. It is just as good for them.  (esorrells)