This month we have another Mini Series hitting the Bubble. This time we are talking about feeding; be it breast, bottle or mixed. We have some amazing mama’s lined up who are going to share their stories, from their failures to their triumphs.
Each pregnancy, birth and newborn is unique and feeding is exactly the same. From the initial views whilst pregnant to reality after birth sometimes things don’t go to plan. This is what we will be discussing this month. Even though it is response to #BreastfeedingWeek, here in the Bubble we decided to dedicate a month to feeding giving a platform for every mama to have her say.
If you have seen my previous posts, I have talked about my own feeding experience and it wasn’t a straight forward one. I went into my first baby with full intentions and a naivety that feeding would be simple. I wanted to breastfeed and that was that. I did everything to learn about it and realized it should just happen naturally.It never occurred to me that sometimes for unknown reasons it may just not happen or circumstances after birth will not allow it to happen. Z birth was just that, not only traumatic but I became seriously ill leaving me to be without my baby in her crucial first month. My breast feeding struggle which it was (a painful struggle) in the first week with me not being able to express left us to formula feeding within the second week of her life through a cup – mainly because I thought I would be better earlier and would be able to try the breast again. That did not happen, so she ended up on the bottle and it stuck. After I recovered I didn’t have the energy to get her into a new routine especially as she had gotten used to the bottle by then.
By the time I was pregnant with Mr A I had already decided to go straight on to formula feeding. I thought it would be too difficult trying to balance both him and Z and needed my routine so things fell into place quicker for Z. What I realized after was I probably could have breast fed. I felt a lot better after Mr A birth, it wasn’t traumatic like the first and my body – breast actually felt like they were producing.
Looking back now my ‘failure’ the first time was probably my naivety and also the trauma I suffered during birth. My body was busy fixing me up that my brain didn’t have the time to play catch up with my baby’s demands. However I still felt like I had some how failed her, which is something no mum should feel.
Feeding is hard – full stop. If you are first time mum its even harder with no to little experience you rely on others and services to guide you. I support #Breastfeedingweek, but I support #Feedingityourway more. As a mum and parent of however many children you should never feel pressured to do it in particular way, and you should not be made to feel like a failure for choosing a certain route of feeding your baby. As long as your baby is fed, and happy it will make you feel happy and give you some mental piece of mind and we know how important that is. So do it your way and follow your instincts you’ll be amazed how strong they are when it comes to your baby but most of all enjoy that time between you and baby because it disappears faster than you think.
If you need any help or advice on feeding check out the below:
For bottle feeding advice: Take a read of the NHS site for a guide to bottle feeding from taking care of bottles to formula feeding information.
For Breast Feeding Advice: The NHS simple guide on breast feeding and information on the first few days after birth.
NTC for combined Feeding Advice: Gives a breakdown and discusses the benefits and how to’s on combined feeding.
You can find lots of further advice from sites like Tommee Tippee and magazines like Gurgle. Even talking to other parents help. Listen to their experiences and decide for yourself. Ask for advice and learn from how they did it to suit yourself and your baby. It’s amazing what talking about feeding can do for any parent.
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