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I would recommend checking out some online resources and books such as The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding so that you have some resources you're familiar with if you run into trouble. You could also look at attending an LLL meeting so you can connect with people who can support you and you can see nursing in action. My other bit if advice would be to let your OB / midwife and your support network know that you're planning on Breastfeeding and would appreciate their support.
Here are some good Internet resources:
http://www.kellymom.com
http://www.nurshable.com
http://www.llli.org
http://forums.llli.org/ (great for support and advice!!) -
I took a class and the only thing I got out of it were remedies for cracked/bruised nipples. No advice on how to avoid them in the first place!!
My best pieces of advice are:
1. Expect, but do not fear, the feeding frenzy before your milk comes in. I was entirely unprepared for a night where my son wanted to feed every 30 minutes or so, but wasn't getting any milk - so he got frustrated and repeat all night long. It was SUPER tough, but we got through it and I believe it gave me an awesome supply.
2. Have Lanolin or some sort of soothing nipple cream on hand, and use your own colostrum to soothe your nipples after every feed.
3. You said you have some friends who had a rough time of BFing - listen to their advice and where they went wrong, but don't let them discourage you.
4. Speak to your husband/partner beforehand about how committed you are, and how supportive you need him/her to be in the moment. At 3am I was so ready to crack into the formula, but my husband and I had discussed it in a more rational moment and he was able to talk me down. Also great to have your partner take the baby away, even for 5 minutes, so you can take a breather.
5. Set small goals, even if they are "make it to the next feed", "make it to tomorrow". Sometimes that's all you need, from about 3 weeks for me every feed got easier, so longer term goals got easier to set.Good luck with L&D, and remember even if BFing is a complete failure, there is food for your baby and thats the most important thing!
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I took a class, read a book they gave us and had a LC. It was still really hard at first but we did it. I'm sure I would have quit if I hadnt had all that.im so glad I stuck with it!on the other hand, my SIL just winged it with no problems!
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The best training is on the job - experiencing it and then I found the HB blog very helpful. I did take a class before and I remembered a few things about positioning that I applied. It was also a good class to take with my husband to help us mentally prepare.
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I don't think there is much to do to actually prepare. Your baby and breastfeeding challenges will be so specific and there's no way to know everything in advance. But I would read a little and be emotionally and mentally prepared for it to be sort of tough. The first 6 weeks were so hard on us (painful, uncomfortable, exhausting, and I was so scared he wasn't getting enough), and I think it would have been easier if I wasn't so surprise by it. Hopefully, everything will be easy for you and baby, and then you'll be pleasantly surprised!
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I winged it and it was hard but we were fine in the end. Seeing a lactation consultant multiple times was really helpful for us. We had a great nursing relationship.
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