Victoria and Augustus ~ Breastfeeding Anxiety

When I was pregnant with Augustus, I felt more anxious about breastfeeding (or rather, breastfeeding going wrong) than anything else. I was excited about labor and giving birth. Of course, I was just out of my mind excited to meet our sweet little bug. But, breastfeeding! Yikes! I had so many questions. Would he latch? Would I have supply issues? Would I like the experience of nursing a baby? What if I get mastitis? What can I do to not get mastitis? Will I develop thrush? My biggest concern was will I have supply issues?

 

Our little Augustus Jude was born at 41 weeks 3 days by a natural, unmedicated, vaginal birth. His birth was the first vaginal birth in my family since 1959 something I am incredibly proud of. Oh, and he was perfect, beautiful, sweet and he latched immediately! He gained 3lbs in less than 10 days after birth and continued to grow into a soft and squishy baby. Augustus is now almost 13 months old and still nurses many times throughout the day and night. I haven't had any supply issues nor have I had mastitis or thrush.  All of those worries and questions were for nothing!  Interestingly, the one question I never thought to ask while pregnant was, "What happens if my breastfed baby refuses a bottle of expressed breast milk?" I never asked that question because I had never heard of a baby refusing a bottle until Augustus was born. He simply won't take breast milk from a bottle, sippy cup, open cup, straw, or medicine dropper. I love that he loves to nurse and I love nursing him. But, both I and his other mama, Lindsay, wish that he would have taken to a bottle. She would have loved to have fed him more as a small baby, to share those tender moments with him. Instead, they developed their own special routines and care-taking activities. Lindsay gives him his bath every night, lovingly washing his hair, singing songs about getting clean, and teaching him to splash and blow bubbles. And, once Augustus started exploring solid foods, the two of them discovered that they both love vanilla yogurt and vegetarian "sausage" breakfast sandwiches in the morning. And, oh how they love dancing together!

Best advice, don’t overthink breastfeeding.  Relax and enjoy those precious moments.