Mothering Corner

Unless you are good at hand express, or only want to nurse directly without expressing, I’ll suggest pregnant mother who has intention to breastfeed invest in a set of good breast pump first before baby is out.

You won’t need the breast pump that soon if your baby is able to latch on well as soon as possible. If you prefer to equalize your milk production to your baby’s demand, then try not to pump for the first 6 weeks. However, if you are badly engorged, you need to empty the breasts, as sometimes newborn babies can take that much milk. The more you empty your breast, the more milk your body will produce! That’s why you need a breast pump!

I have only tried out 2 types of breast pumps. My first pump is Avent ISIS. It’s a manual pump, and I bought it after reading some good reviews about the pump. I bought the traveling set which comes with a cooler bag and cool pads. I don’t like the cool pads as they can only keep my milk cool for 6 hours, so I hardly used that bag and the cool pads. I bought Colebag cooler bag and ice bricks instead, and they can last for 12 hours, which is more practical when I was working for more than 10 hours last time.

As for the pump, I could get letdown easily with it. Maybe it’s the suction of the pump which is very confortable and manage to relax my mind to trigger letdown faster. The pump is also designed to imitate baby’s suckling. However, it’s hard for me to get spare parts here in Ipoh and the only service office of Avent is in Sri Hatamas KL. When my old pump was worn off and yellowish due to prolong sterilizing, I bought a new set before giving birth to Isabelle.

Then, out of the blue, I went shopping a few days before Isabelle popped and bought Medela Mini Electric. Ok, it’s was an impulsive buy, but I have never regret about it! Since I prefer to nurse and pump at the same time, Medela Mini Electric is superb! My hand is less tiring and I don’t have many parts to be washed and assembled too!

Anyway, there are still a few more brands in the market which I haven’t tried out. So, happy breast pump shopping!

Lots of first time mums who wanted to breastfeed in the first place, but failed because of crack nipples, painful breastfeeding experience, baby couldn’t get enough milk, and etc, most of them time, it’s due to poor latching on.

Getting a good latch on needs some practice, but if you do it right the very first time, it comes naturally for both baby and you. And remember that, breastfeeding is not painful! If you’re feeling some discomfort or pain, detach the baby’s mouth by inserting your pinky into her mouth from the side to let go of her suction first. Then, baby will naturally open her mouth and release your breast. Never, never, and never pull your nipples out! (Ouch!) That hurts a lot!

No matter what’s the position you’re breastfeeding in, you have to make yourself COMFORTABLE first. As I may recommend lying down position, but some mothers prefer to breastfeed sitting up. So, as long as you’re feeling comfortable with whatever position you’re breastfeeding in, it’s up to you to decide.

Please make sure that you’re not straining your back, don’t hunch, your episiotomy or c-sec wound’s not hurt, or your arms are tired. Mommies have to be feeling good first before you breastfeed as baby can sense your tense and be cranky too.

Then, align baby’s NOSE to your nipple, and make sure that baby’s mouth is widely open, then bring BABY towards the breast and make sure that baby takes in the areola but not only the nipple. It’s breastfeeding, not nipple feeding. So, make sure baby’s mouth fully covers the areola to prevent nipple crack which is very painful.

Make sure you’re sitting well, with your back straight and supported with pillow if necessary, and your feet are nicely placed on the ground or a small stool. Always ensure that baby’s head and body are aligned, which means baby’s not turning her head. And baby’s tummy will be touching your tummy too, and I liked to do this without clothing during confinement to ensure the skin to skin contact.

Let baby suckle until she’s full and detach by herself, or she falls asleep and you’ll have to detach by using the method I mentioned above. A full newborn baby will normally sleep after a feed, or pee or poo!

I’m writing this from my experience, without referring to books, so if I missed out anything, please feel free to let me know. Thanks!

P/S: If you’d like to look at how it’s done, you can refer here.