Throughout your pregnancy you have been waiting patiently to meet this little person who has been lovingly kicking you in the ribs for the past few months. Finally, the big day arrives. The hard labor with brutal contractions or the trauma from a c-section is all but forgotten the minute your baby is placed on your chest. You are literally brought to tears by the sight and feel of that little hand curled tight around your index finger. You stroke your hand over her silky, soft skin and you count her fingers and toes. After while your baby starts to bop her way down to your chest where she finally latches feeds from your breasts - like it’s the easiest and most natural thing in the world.
Or not. When my son was born, he didn’t latch at first. Breastfeeding difficulties clouded everything wonderful about the first few weeks with my son. I was unable to bond with and enjoy my baby because trying to breastfeed consumed the early days of motherhood. I was trapped in what felt like a lonely, eternal breastfeeding marathon during which I think I produced more tears than milk. I felt like a failure. In my mind, the scale at the pediatrician's office was there, not to track my baby's growth, but to grade my maternal competence. I failed. My baby’s hunger cries shattered my soul and our pediatrician’s condesending lecture pierced my heart. Sobbing, I remember feeding him a bottle of formula in the blue exam room while a tropical fish mobile was slowly spinning above my head. I was sleep-deprived and worried all the time. When I returned to the pediatrician's office the next day I was told by another practitioner to go back to breastfeeding and that everything was fine. It wasn’t.
The conflicting information given to me about breastfeeding and infant nutrition left me confused and angry. It wasn’t until my husband insisted that we see a lactation consultant that I finally saw light at the end of the tunnel. With the help and guidance of my lactation consultant and after weeks of hard work, gallons of tears and stubborn determination, my son was finally successfully breastfeeding and growing well. Some of us have a defining moment in life where we know what we are destined to do; this was mine - to prevent other new mothers from being afraid of the scale at the pediatrician's office and to help them feed their babies with joy, confidence and comfort.
The hard truth is that breastfeeding can be soul crushingly tough in the first few weeks, don't struggle by by yourself. Call for help. There is light at the end of the tunnel.
Or not. When my son was born, he didn’t latch at first. Breastfeeding difficulties clouded everything wonderful about the first few weeks with my son. I was unable to bond with and enjoy my baby because trying to breastfeed consumed the early days of motherhood. I was trapped in what felt like a lonely, eternal breastfeeding marathon during which I think I produced more tears than milk. I felt like a failure. In my mind, the scale at the pediatrician's office was there, not to track my baby's growth, but to grade my maternal competence. I failed. My baby’s hunger cries shattered my soul and our pediatrician’s condesending lecture pierced my heart. Sobbing, I remember feeding him a bottle of formula in the blue exam room while a tropical fish mobile was slowly spinning above my head. I was sleep-deprived and worried all the time. When I returned to the pediatrician's office the next day I was told by another practitioner to go back to breastfeeding and that everything was fine. It wasn’t.
The conflicting information given to me about breastfeeding and infant nutrition left me confused and angry. It wasn’t until my husband insisted that we see a lactation consultant that I finally saw light at the end of the tunnel. With the help and guidance of my lactation consultant and after weeks of hard work, gallons of tears and stubborn determination, my son was finally successfully breastfeeding and growing well. Some of us have a defining moment in life where we know what we are destined to do; this was mine - to prevent other new mothers from being afraid of the scale at the pediatrician's office and to help them feed their babies with joy, confidence and comfort.
The hard truth is that breastfeeding can be soul crushingly tough in the first few weeks, don't struggle by by yourself. Call for help. There is light at the end of the tunnel.
RSS Feed
