How to breastfeed successfully

Probably every mother of a first-born child is surprised that breastfeeding can be so complicated at the beginning. The most common problems could be devided into two categories:

1. problems on the part of the baby - they occur especially with smaller babies that are too weak to suck at the beginning and the result is that their weight increases either very slowly or not at all.

2. problems on the part of the mother - these are problems with sore breasts or nipples with fissures.

While problems with breasts can be sometimes difficult to deal with, it is quite simple to help weaker babies to become good sucklings. All you need is patience and endurance. The main rule is - forget any feeding schedule! Let the baby suck as often as he/she demands. Feeding may only take two or three minutes so, the shorter the time baby sucks, the shorter should be the intervals between feedings. With very small and weak babies you may have to watch the intervals yourself because weak babies can be too sleepy to demand feeding. Try to wake the baby up as gently as possible at least every two hours.

In first couple of days after the birth mothers usually do not have too much milk. In some cases it can take two or three days until milk starts to flow. During that time it is necessary to give substitute nutrition. It is crucial NOT TO USE FEEDING BOTTLE. The reason is that the way of sucking from the bottle is completely different and, most of all, much easier than sucking from breasts and, after short time, babies tend to prefer bottle to breasts. Then, it is difficult to teach the baby the correct way of sucking. With newborns it is a good idea to use syringe and feed the baby very slowly, drop by drop while, at the same time, let the baby suck your little finger, finger pad upwards. Baby will still be used to putting some effort into sucking. If you ever need to use substitute nutrition with an older baby and you plan to breastfeed again, you can try to use little spoon or a cup, depending on the age of a baby,instead of a syringe.

With problems on the part of the mother, prevention is always the best solution. You can prevent most of the problems by using the right technique of breastfeeding based on correct position of mother and the baby. Here is a picture of common incorrect position. Mother is holding baby´s head which prevents the baby from natural sucking movement of head and it also disrupts sucking reflex of the baby.

There are several possible correct breastfeeding positions but with each of them it is important to remember

1. child´s head should be in the same height as the nipple and mother should hold the baby´s neck and only lower side of the head

2. child´s belly should lean on mother´s stomach and there should be no obstacle between them - check baby´s arms, one should be placed under and the other above the breast.

Another common mistake that causes problems is the way mother holds her breast when offering it to child. Mothers often hold the breast in a scissor or cigarette-like fashion. That way the nipple is not straightened and directed deep into the baby´s mouth as it should be.

You shold hold your breast with your thumb pointing upwards and other four fingers supporting the breast from underneath.

Last, but maybe the most important thing to check is whether the baby is sucking correctly. You should check if baby´s mouth is wide open and its lower jaw is moving. Baby should never suck just the tip of the nipple. Baby should massage the areola with his/her gums and tongue and the tip of the nipple should be placed deep in the baby´s mouth.

Wrong way of sucking can cause damage to the nipple, the worst being open fissure that can easily get infected and then there is a danger of serious inflammation of the breast - so called mastitis. If that happens, do not hesitate and visit your doctor. It doesn´t have to be the end of breastfeeding but it needs special medical treatment.

I wish you good luck with breastfeeding. However difficult the beginnings are, the rest is a simple plesure - the plesure of very special, intimate moments for you and your baby and the best start for child´s healthy life. And if you didn´t manage to breastfeed your first child, do not think you won´t be able to feed your second baby as well. Just look for help, surf the net, ask questions (I´ll be pleased if I can help in any way). I managed to feed my daughter with my milk for only four weeks but I´ve been breasfeeding my son for eight months now and I plan to do so in next months, possibly years.