Breastfeeding: Not for the Weary

I knew going into mommyhood that I would breastfeed.  I've known it my entire life.  There's never been another option in my mind.  Formula-feeding my baby is just not for me.  And neither is giving up.

That being said, breastfeeding hasn't been as easy as I thought it would be!  Growing up, it seemed like you just had a baby and POP (imagine the sound it makes when you pop your finger out of your cheek) - stick'em on the boob and everybody's happy.  Not so much the case, as my current and former breastfeeding friends and family would agree.  During all of my insanely obsessive Google researching while pregnant (along with a Breastfeeding 101 class), I quickly discovered that breastfeeding takes hard work, extreme dedication and maybe even a few tears for about 99% of the female population.  The few 1% who claim that it was "SO easy!" and that it "Didn't hurt at all!" are the ones we'd all like to punch in the face.  Or they're just big fat liars.

I HAVE been lucky on a few aspects of breastfeeding.  First of all, Delano never had any problems latching on, as this is the most common (initial) problem of all.  The second they handed him to me in the hospital to eat, he latched on and started eating right away.  Second, I took a gamble by introducing Delano to a pacifier really early on (after consulting with a nurse for an opinion) when nothing else seemed to soothe him.  I knew it could possibly lead to what is known as "nipple confusion", where he might begin to reject my nipple after liking a pacifier nipple better.  But he didn't experience any nipple confusion at all, and a pacifier can still soothe him and help him fall asleep when all of the other bases have been covered.  And third, I came into breastfeeding well educated on the subject, at least from a literature and conversation standpoint.  I knew what a correct latch should look like, I knew that it would most likely be painful for a while, I knew about engorgement, etc.

What I wasn't prepared for (sorry guys, if any males are reading this), or maybe I just ignored this part of the literature, was scabby nipples.  I knew they'd likely end up cracked and sore, but scabs were new info to me.  I was also not prepared for "cluster feeding".  I knew that a baby eats (on average) every 2-3 hours during the day and every 3-4 hours at night.  However, cluster feeding is when a baby eats what seems like almost constantly (possibly every 30 min to an hour) for a block of time, often during a growth spurt.  I was also not prepared for the searing "shards of glass" pain my nipples are going through right now, nor was I ready for the after-feeding pain (possibly associated with a situation known as thrush, which I actually had read about) also happening right now.

The nipple scabs are long gone, as are all the cracks with exception of one really stubborn one on my left side.  I discovered nipple shields way too late for the scabs, but those are something I would recommend to any new mother to try if she ends up in the superb cracks & scabs situation ($10 at Babies R Us).  As for the cluster feeding.....that may be what is currently extending my nipple pain, since Delano clusters usually twice a day for about a 3-4 hour stretch at a time and my nips don't have hardly ANY relief between feedings.  Once he finally falls asleep for good, my nips look fine but feel like they've just been run over by a truck.  My easiest feedings are when I've had several hours between them.  As for the after-feeding soreness, it may or may not be a thrush symptom (which is kind of like a yeast infection of the boob).  Delano doesn't show any signs of thrush, and besides the soreness, neither do I.  So I'm just treating it like I have it just in case, which simply means putting a special prescription cream on my boobs between feedings.  I've also been pumping during his long naps to try to give my boobs a break when it's time for him to eat again.

This morning I attended the local La Leche League monthly meeting to see if they had any advice for my current predicaments.  The ladies in the group were incredibly nice and willing to help out in any way they could.  One of the leaders watched Delano latch and eat, and determined that his latch was perfectly fine and not a part of the problem.  She checked the roof of his mouth for ridges (which could potentially cause his latch to be more painful on my end) and he doesn't have any odd or extra ridges in his mouth for that possibility.  She also checked his mouth for evidence of thrush and saw nothing.  So basically, if my soreness doesn't diminish here in the near future (I'll give it two weeks), I can call one of the LLL ladies up personally and we can investigate my boobs some more.

**Sidenote.....I TOTALLY missed this confession during the meeting today (Amanda says I was talking to Delano when it happened), but one of the other new girls in the room was talking about how with her last baby, her medication caused her milk to dry up.  I heard that part.  What I missed was the girl following it up with, "Ok I'll just be honest....I have herpes."

So....to sum it all up, breastfeeding is tough!  But all the woes are temporary.  The cracks go away.  The scabs go away.  A baby WILL latch, even if it's a battle in the beginning.  And according to the experienced mothers out there, the soreness will also go away.  It WILL one day be as easy as we all imagined it growing up.  You just have to stick with it and not give up.  And if you ever have questions or want someone just to watch what you're doing to see if you're doing it right, there are four trained and accredited LLL ladies in town (both young and old) just a phone call away.

http://www.llleus.org/web/ChattanoogaTn.html

For those in other cities, just Google La Leche League to find a group in your area.

Since I don't have any pictures of me breastfeeding (thank goodness, right?), I'll just toss in a few cute pics of Delano in his super early days.  :)

 Found his thumb for the first time (at least that we know of) right after leaving the hospital!

 Rough night I guess.....

 Daddy soothing Delano during one of the early LONG nights.

Sucking his thumb while holding Daddy's thumb.

Cuteness!!!