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PREPARING FOR BREASTFEEDING
Preparing for the breastfeeding experience before your baby arrives will enhance your breastfeeding success. There is an abundance of informative books, reference materials, classes, and knowledgeable people that can assist you in nursing your baby. The following ideas will help you prepare for what lies ahead.
Discuss breastfeeding with your health care provider
Talk to your health care provider about your desire to nurse your baby. Try to choose a hospital that allows you to room-in with your newborn and has a lactation specialist on staff. If you have prepared a birth plan, a written description of how you would like your baby's birth to be handled, make sure that the request to breastfeed your baby immediately after birth is included.
Have a prenatal breast exam
Have your health care provider examine your breasts and nipples. If you have flat or inverted nipples, ask your health care provider or a lactation specialist for proper treatment. However, keep in mind that many lactation specialists believe that flat or inverted nipples do not need special treatment during pregnancy. If you have had any type of breast surgery, it is important to work closely with your health care provider or a lactation specialist after the delivery to ensure that your baby is able to breastfeed successfully and is receiving a sufficient amount of breast milk.
Prepare your breasts
As your breasts begin to grow and expand during pregnancy, avoid washing your areola and nipples with soaps or shower gels, which will dry out the skin. Plain warm water rinses are all that is required. If you tend to have dry skin and your nipples feel dry and itchy, use a small application of 100% modified lanolin beginning in the last trimester to moisturize the nipples and help to keep them soft and supple. Lansinoh for Breastfeeding Mothers is a good choice. It is the purest form of lanolin and is endorsed by La Leche League International.
Check your insurance coverage
See what your insurance plan covers in the area of lactation support services, such as a lactation consultant, and breastfeeding supplies, such as breast pumps.
Educate yourself about breastfeeding
Read books, pamphlets, magazine articles, and any other information you find about breastfeeding to learn what to expect. Obtain a free catalogue from La Leche League International, which offers an array of breastfeeding information including books, pamphlets, videotapes, audiotapes, and an assortment of breastfeeding products.
Enroll in a breastfeeding class
Local hospitals usually offer breastfeeding classes as part of their childbirth education package. Or you can take a class with a private lactation consultant or midwife. Encourage your partner to attend these sessions with you. Your partner's love, encouragement, and support will be very important to you, especially during the early weeks of nursing.
Attend a La Leche League meeting
Don't wait until after your baby arrives to attend your first meeting. Attending a meeting while you are pregnant will be very helpful and reassuring, and will enable you to build a support system that you can call on during the early postpartum weeks. There you will meet other mothers who are successfully breastfeeding, and you will have an opportunity to observe their nursing techniques. There is also a wealth of information in the group's lending library. Continue to attend monthly meetings with your baby after he's born. These outings with your baby will lift your spirits and offer continuous support.
Ask for support from family and friends
Enlist their support before your baby arrives. Let it be known that you plan to breastfeed your baby. Realize that you will need some help for several days, or even weeks, after giving birth. Ask for help and be gracious in accepting it. Arrange for family and friends to help with household responsibilities so you can devote your time and energy to caring for your newborn. Have them assist with grocery shopping, meal preparation, house cleaning, laundry, running errands, and any other necessary tasks.
Hire a doula
If you would like more help and support during childbirth or after, look into doula services. A doula is a woman educated in childbirth, postpartum recovery, breastfeeding, and infant care who provides nurturing and support to the new mother and her family before, during, and/or after the delivery. She may help with anything from coaching during labor and childbirth to household chores in the early weeks postpartum.
Select a doctor for your baby
Choose a doctor who is supportive and knowledgeable about breastfeeding. Arrange for an informational office visit before your baby is born to discuss any questions and concerns you may have, especially about breastfeeding and the initial well-baby visits. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that babies receive a general health assessment and a formal evaluation of breastfeeding performance by a trained health care provider during the first 24 to 48 hours after delivery. When discharged less than 48 hours after delivery, an early follow-up visit is recommended when the infant is 2 to 4 days of age. During this assessment the baby should be examined and weighed, and breastfeeding should be observed and evaluated. By 5 to 7 days of age all breastfeeding babies should be weighed and assessed for jaundice, adequate hydration, and age appropriate elimination patterns.
Pamper yourself
While you have the chance, indulge yourself with a haircut, manicure, facial, or whatever makes you feel good. Purchase some nursing pads, a nursing bra, and a nursing shirt. Treat yourself to a few pairs of comfortable button-front or oversize pajamas, as you will be spending much of your time in them during the early days.
Prepare a list of breastfeeding resources
Know where to turn for breastfeeding help before problems arise. Prepare a list of telephone numbers of local resources (e.g., breastfeeding support people and organizations, certified lactation consultants, childbirth educators, physicians, midwives) while you're still pregnant, to avoid frantic searches after the baby arrives.
When not to breastfeed
There are very few situations in which it is advisable for a mother not to nurse her baby. Though in some cases, if the mother has a serious health problem or drug addiction, breastfeeding may be contraindicated. If you have any doubts about your health or whether it is advisable for you to breastfeed, check with your health care provider or a lactation specialist who can answer specific questions regarding the appropriateness of breastfeeding under special, individualized circumstances.
Excerpted from Bon Appetit, Baby! The Breastfeeding Kit by Elaine Moran, copyright 1999 by Elaine Moran, used by permission of the author.
Elaine Moran, BA, CLC
Elaine Moran is a trained volunteer counselor for the Nursing Mothers Counsel, Inc. She recently completed the Lactation Counselor Certificate Training Program offered by The Healthy Children 2000 Project and is now a Certified Lactation Counselor, as well as a veteran breastfeeding mom and creator of Bon Appetit, Baby! The Breastfeeding Kit.
Date Published: 2001-09-18
7800 Wolf Trail Cove, Germantown, TN 38138
Phone: (901) 682-9222; Fax: (901) 682-9505