What is the hardest part of breastfeeding?
How about the easier sides of breastfeeding?
As the society in general holds more negative perceptions about breastfeeding, mothers nowadays are more reluctant to try breastfeeding.
As they do not attempt or persist, their breasts eventually stop producing breast milk and this actually puts their children at disadvantage.
Instead of robbing your children from this ideal food choice, let’s listen to four successful working mothers to share about their hurdles and satisfaction along their journey in breastfeeding.
Urgh!!! The Hard Parts Of Breastfeeding
New mothers who have just tried breastfeeding would agree with what Dr. Yasmin, an OBGYN in Hospital Sungai Buloh said when she opened up about the challenges she faced in breastfeeding.
The very early part was about the correct latching or the correct positioning.
Indeed! It’s all about the position of your baby’s mouth on your breast. Most breastfeeding mothers are cracking their heads over how they should hold their babies to make them easier to latch on.
On top of this, most working mothers would share similar struggles with Carmen Yong, the founder of Sugirl Dessert on engorgement.
Carmen shared her personal experience where she once dealt with long working hours and she did not manage to pump her breast milk.
As she was managing and setting events for customers, she endured the pain of engorgement to meet and carry out a long meeting with her customers.
Here’s how she described her experience in short,
The engorgement is really a big headache for me and it directly affects my milk supply as well.
However, the pain does not only occur during engorgement. Fiqa, an online boutique owner, recalled her painful experience during the early stage of breastfeeding.
As other mothers out there, it’s really really tough for me initially as both of us (baby and I) are at the learning phase.
Not only do ordinary mothers struggle with breastfeeding, experts in lactation also faced challenges in the process of breastfeeding.
Siew Pei, a lactation counsellor, talked about her driving experience while pumping her breast milk at the same time.
While holding my two pumps in one hand, I drive with another hand. As you would know, I can’t really drive properly.
She concluded this personal experience in one word: it’s a nightmare.
So, is breastfeeding really a nightmare for all mothers? It might be in the earlier stage, but it would be different once you persist.
Woohoo! The Easy Parts Of Breastfeeding
During her 8-month breastfeeding experience, Dr Yasmin was very fortunate that her baby straight away latched after the birth. On top of this, she did not face any major problem with the milk supply.
She’s equally happy and surprised to discover about her own body as,
I didn’t know I have so much breast milk.
To deal with engorgement, Carmen Yong shared that she invested in a good electrical breast pump to ease the process of breastfeeding. She added that the breast pump really made her entire breastfeeding journey much smoother.
After breastfeeding for four to five years, Fiqa was very familiar with the process of breastfeeding. Therefore, it was super easy when it comes to breastfeeding her second child. She confidently said that,
I have no problem at all with breastfeeding.
As an expert in lactation, Siew Pei confessed that she did not face many issues as her babies could suck very well and eat a lot.
For every two to three hours, her babies would look for her to feed them with some milk.
One tip from Siew Pei’s sharing to have adequate milk supply,
I love to drink milk and I drink a lot of water. So I don’t have the problem with not enough milk.
After all, breastfeeding can be smoother if you follow the professional advice instead of falling into some breastfeeding myths.
Breastfeeding: Is It Worth It?
Looking into their breastfeeding experience, all four mothers agreed that it’s definitely worth it despite all the hard work.
Dr. Yasmin emphasized on her close bonding with her baby after breastfeeding. She also witnessed the magic of breast milk on her baby,
Your baby gains weight because of your breast milk.
Siew Pei shared similar insight about the positive change she noticed with her breastfed babies.
When you look at your baby starting to put on weight and you see how chubby their faces, legs and hands are, then you will realise how powerful you are.
Carmen equally resonates with Dr. Yasmin and Siew Pei as she also realised that her baby is healthier after drinking breast milk. She recalled some sweet memories with her baby during the process of breastfeeding as below,
When you see they smile at you, this journey is really worth it.
On the other hand, Fiqa strives to give new mothers who want to go through this breastfeeding journey more confidence.
Just don’t give up and be persistent. It’s a painful journey in the beginning, but it will be a fruitful journey along the way.
The Journey Can Be Hard Yet Satisfying
If you are planning to breastfeed your baby for the first time, you can first prepare yourself physically with some background information about breastfeeding.
Nonetheless, you can prepare yourself mentally that it would be challenging in the early stage.
What you can do is to seek professional help in lactation or other experienced mothers for breastfeeding tips.
As you work your way through breastfeeding, you will realise that your baby is building up his body steadily with your breast milk.
That’s the most satisfying part about breastfeeding! You are the best nutrient for your baby!
So, just keep calm and breastfeed your baby. And Happy World Breastfeeding Month to each one of you who have breastfed or are currently breastfeeding.
We are truly blessed to have you on the motherhood journey.