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breastfeeding baby

Helpful Breastfeeding Tips

Affiliate links may be included at no cost to you. As always, all thoughts and opinions are my own. 

maternity pictures breastfeeding

From one mom to another, let’s talk about helpful breastfeeding tips.

Let me just say, I am not a specialist.

But I am a mom who:

  • Nurses baby on demand
  • Pumps at work or when I’m away from him for more than a few hours
  • Struggles
  • Loves it
  • Feels frustrated with breastfeeding but also wants to keep doing it
  • Had many common difficulties from the beginning and worked through them
  • Loves it

I just recently shared my own breastfeeding journey, and I was really surprised at all of the emotions it stirred up as I typed out some of the raw truths of my life for the last year. While breastfeeding is one of my most favorite and proud accomplishments along with becoming a mother, man it can be really hard sometimes. And that’s okay to say.

I think often times we are expected to only show the highlight reel of our lives. And, if we say otherwise, it may create discomfort for other people to see us own our truths.

The truth can be that we love being mothers, and we hate it. The truth can be that we feel uncomfortable and stressed being away from our babies, but also we need to be in order to continue recognizing ourselves as an individual person. The truth can be that breastfeeding is really hard, frustrating, and triggering, but we can still want to do it. And any of these truths (there are plenty more, I assure you), are valid and they do not make you a bad mother.

These truths make you an honest, human mother who can recognize her emotions and physiological responses to hard things and embrace who they make you as a person now.

I loved sharing my journey, and I love pouring into mothers. I sit down to write these helpful breastfeeding tips on a dreary 5 am morning while my husband and baby sleep in the other room. Sleep has been hard this week, and I didn’t know if I was going to be able to create anything worth reading this morning with bleary eyes and a tired body.

I started typing… and I felt my heart lurch with passion and my brain snap to attention. Now, I type as fast as I can to get as many thoughts out of my head before the family wakes, and I have to swap my writer hat out for my mother hat. When creativity flows, go with it momma!

My Breastfeeding Journey is very relevant to this post, but it is mostly a chronicle of my experiences and quick recommendations for things I used.

My intention for this post is to:

  • include helpful breastfeeding tips that I think will help you on your journey
  • link the products that I loved so you can find them easily if you so desire
  • answer some FAQs as we go along

So, from one mom to another, here are some helpful breastfeeding tips that may be useful for you as you prepare for your breastfeeding journey or even if you’re in the middle of it already!

Note: Everything linked below is exactly what I used and what I recommend unless otherwise specified. I will not lead you astray 🙂

breastfeeding baby
getting some sunshine with my newborn Theo

QUICK ANATOMY LESSON

  • Your milk needs to be coaxed out. This happens when your baby nurses and triggers your milk to come out. This may take a few seconds or even 1-2 minutes. When your milk starts to come out, that’s called your “letdown.”
  • You may or may not feel your letdown. I didn’t feel mine for several months. It feels like a gentle burning, tingling, warm sensation.
  • When your milk comes out, it comes out of both of your breasts at the same time. Baby is only nursing one, so the milk on the other side is going to spill into your bra/shirt/everywhere if you are topless. This is where the haaka (notes on the haaka below) can be really helpful! Catch that extra milk in the haaka, and save it!
  • Some women have really intense water-hose style letdowns! Sometimes baby’s struggle with that, but usually they will learn to adjust to it. If your baby is having a hard time, please reach out to your lactation specialist immediately!

newborn breastfeeding

NEWBORN DAYS

Thoughts (Many of these notes/recommendations are from my wonderful doula.)

  • Buy a comfy glider, and settle in. Surrender.
  • Keep yummy, comforting, favorite snacks on hand, and drink lots of water.
  • It’s going to be like National Geographic in your house. Be topless as much as you can, and let the girls breathe!!!
  • Use comfort measures as needed (see gel pads and nipple butter below)
  • Ask for help. Make sure your partner has met and is comfortable with calling the lactation specialist for you.
  • Sleep when baby sleeps.
  • Kiss, touch, gaze at, hold, talk to, sing to, adore your baby. You cannot spoil a baby by holding them too much. Read that again.
  • Sit outside or by a window topless and let the sun warm and heal your nipples. Do this at least once/day.
  • Be prepared for how long breastfeeding will take. Both in the sense of how long the baby will actually feed at one time and how long it will take you to feel like you are getting the hang of it.
  • Do as much skin to skin as possible. Baby can do skin to skin with your partner too, and I recommend it. It is a sweet bonding experience for them as well.
  • Babies may find their own position and latch themselves. If it doesn’t feel right, break the latch and try again. 
  • Sunshine every day. Sunshine… every. day.
  • Do more skin to skin.
  • Have homemade, nourishing meals prepped in the freezer or have your best friend set up a meal train. If you have family staying with you, request that they make you warming and nutritious foods. I really enjoyed homemade soups and sandwiches in those first few weeks.
  • Ask for full body massages from your partner daily if possible. It doesn’t have to be long, even 5 minutes at a time will be transformational. If full body is too much, ask your partner to rub your hands or shoulders.
  • Hug your partner every day, many times a day, and embrace for 30 seconds or longer. Take deep breaths, match each other’s breathing, and let them hold you.

It is so important in these precious times that you plan and arrange to support and heal yourself. Your new baby is a miracle, but your body grew and birthed that child. Your body, your mind, your spirit deserves some TLC.

You will find deeper satisfaction, happiness, and contentment as you learn to become a new mom when you feel supported and loved deeply. This looks like initiating and accepting physical touch and affection from partner, having warming and delicious foods prepared for you (delicious can be a PB&J if that’s what resonates with you), rest, and implementing comfort measures that I talk about in this post. You got this momma, cherish yourself.

breastfeeding haaka
my untrustworthy haaka- buy the one with the suction base!

Newborn Mom Must-Haves

  1. Nursing bras
    1. Amazon option
    2. Target option (These offer good support, I wear under regular clothes.)
    3. Target sports bra option (I’ve got 2 colors, and they are both just about worn out!)
    4. Target sleeping option (These are the ones that I used and still sleep in to this day!)
  2. Nursing tanks (spaghetti straps) for layering
    1. Amazon 3-pack option (I like that these have the built-in bra, and they are long.)
    2. Target option (I have these in grey + white.)
  3. Breast pads
    1. There are disposable options out there, but I just throw these in with my laundry and wash + reuse.
  4. Haaka
    1. Let me just note here that I did not have this one with the suction base and lid. I will definitely buy this one next time. I bought the regular one, and I knocked it over too many times to count. Get this one!
  5. Nursing-friendly pajamas (so many options that I didn’t have and will totally buy for the next baby)
    1. Nursing-friendly pajamas are not totally necessary if you’re on a budget, but it’s nice when you’re breastfeeding throughout the night to have comfy and accessible clothes on. Less hassle!
    2. Amazon option top + bottom set
    3. Amazon option labor + delivery/nursing gown
  6. Soothies gel pads
    1. These are a MUST. These are a MUST. They gave me so much relief. Buy 2 packs (4 total), store them in the freezer, and rotate them out. Apply them after every nursing session until they aren’t cold anymore, and then let your nipples be exposed to the air when possible.
    2. Medela brand works, too!
  7. Earth Mama nipple butter
    1. This is way better than lanolin. Lanolin will be given to you at the hospital, but I don’t recommend it. It is goopy, sticky and smells weird. You have to wipe off lanolin before you can let your baby nurse, and if you aren’t thorough about cleaning off your nipples then you are at risk of getting a yeast infection which can get in your baby’s mouth. Earth mama nipple butter is silky smooth, light, and feels really good on overworked nipples. You don’t have to wipe it off before nursing.
  8. The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding
    1. This was a good resource to have on hand and one that I continue to refer to. It is the gold standard for breastfeeding information, and I found it really helpful! Read this before baby arrives, and keep it close to your nursing station.
  9. Breastfeeding support contact with lactation specialist
    1. Find a specialist, connect with them while you are pregnant, and plan to have contact with them shortly after baby is born. Even if everything is going okay, reach out (or have your partner reach out) to touch base. This will be crucial to your success.
  10. My Brest Friend Posture Pillow
    1. You will need this! This one has a strap that you can clip around your waist, so that when you stand to transfer the baby or walk somewhere it doesn’t fall to the floor and trip you up. There is also a cup holder, and it has a bit of a different shape than a regular Boppy pillow.
    2. Boppy pillows are very popular, and I had one of these too. I kept one in the nursery and one in our room/the living room. You don’t need two. I preferred the brest friend posture pillow over the boppy. But, that’s only personal opinion!
  11. Belly binder
    1. This is the belly binder that I used from ReCORE Fitness. The maternity and post-natal binders are the same. I loved this and started wearing it a few days postpartum. Check with your doctor or midwife about when you can start wearing one. This helped me to feel more “together” and less like my insides were “falling out” with the gentle compression. I thought it was comforting, and I also think it helped my insides get back to where they needed to go.
    2. I started wearing this while pregnant as well. I was in my second trimester, and when I really started to grow I needed some extra support for my pelvic floor. This can help left some of the weight off and support your body. There is a specific way to wrap it around your belly, so make sure you read the instructions!
    3. There are many options on Amazon, but I haven’t used them so I wouldn’t want to recommend products I haven’t used. If you have had a good experience with a different brand, please feel free to comment below so that we can all have more options!
  12. Perineal ice packs
    1. You will be sitting a lot. A lot a lot. While your sensitive lady parts are healing, ice packs can bring you relief and comfort. The application of a cold modality can also help with swelling and inflammation.

breastfeeding

PUMPING

  1. Hospital-grade breast pump (keyword here is hospital-grade)
    1. I had the Spectra S1 Breast Pump. Here is a link that will tell you about and compare the S1 and S2, if you are inclined to go with this one. The S1 is considered an upgrade, so I paid about $100 for it and insurance covered the rest. S2 would have been completely covered by insurance, but it depends on which plan you have. I would call your insurance company and find out what they cover.
  2. Required accessories- make sure your flanges fit you correctly
    1. Accessories come with your breast pump. You won’t need to worry about pumping for awhile if you are planning on breastfeeding. Establish your breastfeeding relationship with your baby FIRST which will be all-consuming at first. Don’t overwhelm yourself with pumping. The best way to save milk right away is to use the haaka to catch your letdown on the opposite side from which baby is nursing. In the beginning, you have a lot of extra milk and you can save a couple of ounces each time the baby nurses. This is significant!
  3. Breast milk storage bags
  4. Bottles
    1. Your baby will determine which bottles he/she will take. We bought expensive Comotomo bottles, because they are marketed as being best for breastfed babies. He refused them entirely! We gifted them to friends. We tried 2-3 brands total, and he ended up using Mam exclusively. The recommendation is generally to find a bottle that has a nipple similar to the shape of your own! Let me know if I can help you with this.

RETURN-TO-WORK

Unless you will have access to your baby to nurse him as often as he needs, you will have to pump to maintain your milk supply. However many bottles your baby takes while you are away, that’s how many times you need to pump.

For example, if your baby takes one bottle in the morning and one bottle in the afternoon while you are at work then you need to pump once in the morning and once in the afternoon at a minimum. You have many rights in the workplace as a nursing mother, and this is a simple matter of scheduling time to pump.

You will need a bag to bring all of your things to/from work. I picked up this one on Amazon, and I love it! It comes with a cooler and has plenty of pockets for storage. You can do a quick search on Amazon or your favorite shop and likely find some cute options.

Legally, you must be allowed time to pump your milk off. Please reach out to me or your lactation specialist if you have any issues with your workplace regarding this matter. I’ll be ready to throw down 🙂

GROWING UP

There will be many things that crop up over the course of time. Your baby will grow teeth, you will start your period, your baby will periodically have growth spurts, you may return to work, etc. These all have the potential to affect your milk supply and breastfeeding relationship. The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding was a great resource to help me plan for and understand the experiences we were having as well as contact with our lactation specialist.

Check out my other post, My Breastfeeding Journey, to read about some of the troubleshooting that Theo & I have had to do together over the last year.

OTHER RESOURCES

  • Check out my other post, My Breastfeeding Journey, to read about some of the troubleshooting that Theo & I had to do together.
  • My other post, The Fourth Trimester, has really critical information and helpful tips for how to prepare for those first three months after you give birth. I talk about all things postpartum in this post. I think you will find it encouraging!
  • Me! Please feel free to send me an email or comment below if there are certain topics that you would like to know more about or if you have questions. I would love to help support you in your motherhood journey! It’s a wilderness out there, and our children are the feral animals. Head over to my Contact Us page to send me an email, or find me on social media!
  • Find a local breastfeeding class! Often times, hospitals will pair a labor & delivery class with a breast feeding class.
  • Find a local breastfeeding support group. Connect with them before your birth.
  • Connect with mothers who breastfed their babies.
  • Establish a plan with your friends, family, doula, and midwife to help support you.

As always, it is a joy to create a space for mothers to come to and find solidarity and validation. I hope you did find helpful breastfeeding tips here.

I’m so glad that you are here, and I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to reach out to me on social media or shoot me an email just to say hey! I do this for the mothers, and it brings me great joy.

Talk soon <3

breastfeeding travel

62 thoughts on “Helpful Breastfeeding Tips”

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  3. Thank you so much for sharing this content. I was a breastfeeding mother not so long ago, and I had so many questions and concerns and struggled to find answers and reassurance. Thank you for collecting and curating it in one place.

    1. motherhoodwilderness

      Of course!!! I’m so glad you liked it and could relate to it as well. Mom community it the best <3

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