Kathleen Huggins - 25 Things Every Nursing Mother Needs to Know

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Copyright 2009 by Kathleen Huggins and Jan Ellen Brown
Illustrations copyright 2009 by Coco Masuda

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Printed in China
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Huggins, Kathleen.
25 things every nursing mother needs to know /
Kathleen Huggins and Jan Ellen Brown.
p. cm.
ISBN 978-1-55832-383-4 (hardcover)
ISBN 978-1-55832-445-9 (pbk.)
1. Breastfeeding. I. Brown, Jan Ellen, 1954- II. Title. III. Title:
Twenty-five things every nursing mother needs to know.
RJ216.H8448 2009
649'.33dc22 2008022601

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BOOK DESIGN BY DEBORAH KERNER
COVER, TITLE PAGE, AND BABY ILLUSTRATIONS BY COCO MASUDA

2 4 6 8 10 9 7 5 3 1

To our children:

Kate,
John,
KJ,
and Erin

And to our good friends and colleagues:

Ellen ("Binky") Petok
and Gretta Blythe

Nursing your baby can be one of your life's greatest joys. And it's best for your infantemotionally and physically. Nursing makes the baby feel secure and nourishes her with nature's perfect food.

In the words of Dr. Grantly Dick-Read, pioneering natural-childbirth advocate and author of the groundbreaking 1944 book Childbirth without Fear, "The newborn baby has only three demands. They are warmth from the arms of its mother, food from her breasts, and security in the knowledge of her presence. Breastfeeding satisfies all three."

Like many women who are pregnant for the first time, you may feel anxious about breastfeeding. Your jitters may come from listening to your mother, other relatives, or friends. As you embark on the voyage of motherhood, you may feel bombarded with advice, admonitions, and rules. You may feel pressured to do everything right, including breastfeeding, but unsure what "right" means.

If you have never breastfed a baby before, it's understandable that you might question your ability to do it. Like labor and birth, breast-feeding is an unknown for you.

Relax. There are many things ahead that you can't predict or control, but you and your baby will deal with each new experience one step at a time. You will learn together.

In the meantime, you can learn about baby care and breastfeeding before the baby gets here. We have written this book to inspire you and inform you so you'll be prepared for your first weeks as a mother. The next twenty-five chapters will help you navigate the murky but buoyant waters of early motherhood. We may not be able to calm all your anxieties, but we have years of experience helping mothers and their nurslings. Let us share our insights with you.

We all hear the word bonding associated with breastfeeding. The constant physical intimacy of breastfeeding naturally promotes the mother-baby bond, a strong and lasting psychological connection. Of course, mothers can bond with their babies regardless of how they feed their babies, but breastfeeding helps the process along. Oxytocin and prolactin, the hormones produced when you suckle your baby at your breast, flood your body with feelings of love and well-being. After the hard work of labor and birth, these hormones help both you and your baby to begin enjoying the process of nursing.

In the "quiet-alert" state that follows birth, a newborn instinctively roots for his mother's breast. When he finds it, he is rewarded with an elixir called colostrumthe special milk mothers produce for the first several days after delivery. This is your first maternal gift to your baby. The first dose of this golden milk is chock-full of antibodies, which protect the child from infection. It also carries perfect levels of sugar and protein to meet his early nutritional needs. The very act of suckling, and your milk itself, warms your baby's body and eases his transition to his new environment. Meanwhile, sucking stimulates contractions in your uterus, which in turn signal your body to start producing breast milk in earnest.

At this point, you and the baby you have dreamt about are beginning a lifelong love affair. You will marvel at his tiny fingers and toes and the way he turns toward your breast, rooting and making sucking motions with his mouth. What better way to get acquainted and to soothe him than to offer your breast? The wonder and exhilaration of childbirth melds into the joy of breastfeeding. You realize that you are now a mother, and with that revelation comes an explosion of hopes, fears, and other emotions.

The first days after your baby's birth can be a real roller-coaster ride, especially if breastfeeding doesn't come easy. Although breast-feeding is a basic maternal instinct, mothers and their babies must practice togethersometimes quite a bitbefore nursing becomes second nature. Many women tell us it took weeks for them to feel comfortable nursing or to build up their milk supply. Both of us had less than perfect breastfeeding beginnings with our own babies, but in the end we were glad we waded through the doubt and fatigue. Your commitment, too, will lead to a rewarding outcome. With practice, support, and a pair of helping hands (or ears), you can breast-feed your baby!

Maybe you're still unsure whether you even want to breastfeed. Just as you're bound to hear scary birth stories, you'll hear your fair share of discouraging breastfeeding tales as well. You may feel pressured, afraid of being "tied down," or anxious about what your husband will think. You may worry that people will stare at you while you're nursing, that your breasts will be embarrassingly large, or that your milk will leak. If you plan on returning to work, you may be intimidated by the prospect of juggling your responsibilities. These feelings are all very common.

Health professionals tend to tiptoe around the question of breast versus formula because, they often say, they don't want a mother "to feel guilty if breastfeeding doesn't work out." It is nice if your caregiver considers your feelings, but you should know that how you feed your baby is more than just a matter of personal preference.

Is there really much of a difference between breast milk and processed infant formulas? You bet. Babies do grow on formula, of course. But scientists continually identify more and more components of breast milk that play important roles in an infant's growth and development, and formula manufacturers are continually challenged to keep up. It's unlikely that any artificial milk, whether it's based on cow's milk or soybeans, can ever duplicate nature's recipe.