This week's theme is breastfeeding beyond the first month. I thought I'd write about a few of the obstacles we faced after the first month.
"Overall, only 35 per cent of UK babies are being exclusively breastfed at one week, 21 per cent at six weeks, 7 per cent at four months and 3 per cent at five months." (UNICEF)
Far from being the massive pressure group they are often accused of being, women who breastfeed after the first month are in the minority. So, it can be difficult to find out the truth about obstacles you might face as you progress along your breastfeeding journey. Myths abound; horror stories are plentiful; doubt and worry sets in. We hear about hungry babies, who hit 4 months and threaten to consume their mothers. We discover that growth spurts keep on coming, and get longer and tougher. We are told that after 6 months breastmilk loses all its goodness and babies need extra iron. How do we sort the fact from the fiction when it's hard to find women we know who have fed past a certain point?
It's definitely worth doing your own research. Forums are great for anecdotal evidence, but the quality of advice can differ from group to group, depending on the experiences of the members. Never trust formula companies to give you breastfeeding friendly advice. Look for the facts, the scientific evidence, the presence of research material that you can look into.
We have encountered a few obstacles along our way. Dehydration, a traumatic hospital stay and poor advice in the first week. B had her tongue tie snipped at 1 week old, and then proceeded to feed literally all the time, and yet continued to lose weight. I was diagnosed with mammary hypoplasia (insufficient glandular tissue) and so would be unlikely to ever make enough milk to exclusively breastfeed. We had to introduce formula top ups, which I initially gave using a Supplemental Nursing System. Not the easiest thing to use, but it meant that B was still stimulating my milk supply and getting whatever milk she could from me.
However, the first obstacle after the first month of breastfeeding was B learning to smile! We had just got to the point where I could get her to latch well, and she started smiling at me while she was feeding. Utterly adorable, but highly impractical. I'd have to go through the whole rigmarole again. But that soon passed, and she soon learned to latch on properly herself.
With increased age came increased awareness and the trouble of distractibility. B started finding everything interesting. If we were out she wanted to feed, but she wanted to look around too. Cue a lady in Starbucks getting an eyeful of breast when B pulled off to see what Daddy was saying. That time, fortunately, she left go before looking away. Other times she has remained latched on whilst pulling her head in the other direction - I didn't know my nipple could stretch that far!
And the most recent obstacle has been B's development of her pincer grip. Not content with using it to pick up blueberries or baked beans, she decided she ought to practise it whilst nursing. Little pinches here and there make the feed much more extreme!
However, jokes aside, one of my biggest worries was teeth. We had had a difficult start. B had a tongue tie, and I had been in a lot of pain. How would I cope with teeth? I had heard dreadful things about sharp teeth, nasty bites leading to infected nipples and nightmare feeds. I'd heard some say that teeth are nature's way of telling you to stop breastfeeding, though I swiftly popped that in my myth pile - for a start, I knew some babies are born with teeth (!) and the first set of teeth can't be called milk teeth for nothing. I did a bit of research:
- The tongue should cover the bottom gums when feeding, so will cover teeth when they appear. Therefore, a baby who is latched on correctly and actively nursing will not be able to bite.
- I read that in Mongolia some children nurse until they are 9 years old! (Breastfeeding in the Land of Genghis Khan) 9 year olds definitely have teeth, so breastfeeding a toothy child is possible.
- La Leche League suggest that nursing while a baby or toddler is teething can be very useful for comfort and pain relief.
- "Before the use of the baby bottle, dental decay in baby teeth was rare." (KellyMom)
Christmas came. B was 4 months old. Her first tooth appeared, quickly followed by her second. Hmmm. There was no chance I'd be weaning her any time soon, so we had to go with it. And, much to my surprise, it was absolutely fine. I had the occasional nip, which I dealt with by removing B from the breast and putting her down, saying, "You don't bite Mummy; it hurts." If she was biting by accident and wanted to continue feeding, I put her back on; if she was biting out of boredom, or curiosity, then she would be uninterested in feeding again, and we would find something else to do.
I felt it was a good thing that my baby was the first in my NCT group to get teeth, as I was so adamant that we would continue feeding as long as possible, and we could help alleviate the worries of the other mums in the group.
Now, at 10 months old, B has 7 teeth. She can chew a bit when she's teething, or doesn't really want to feed. Occasionally she'll bite me deliberately, mischievously. But I can safely say that any discomfort is nothing compared to the hideous pain I suffered at the start of our breastfeeding journey.
Along the way I've discovered hints and tips to prevent biting and the following have really helped:
And I'm sure that as she gets older, as well as making use of breastfeeding to alleviate the pain and discomfort of teething, B will learn fully how to nurse nicely...
If you have enjoyed reading, you will find more articles about breastfeeding, and some giveaways, at these locations:
Life, Love and Living with Boys
Where Roots Flourish
Twinkle Mummy
Natural Mamas
Dispelling Breastfeeding Myths
Hot Milk Lingerie has kindly provided a set of lingerie for the Grand Prize. Go take a look at their gorgeous collection.
Thank you for reading.
