Experience: My 2 cents about getting Breastfeeding right with second baby

Good day everyone,

I had written an article for World Breastfeeding week in August 2017, but it remained just a draft  because my second child, my daughter decided to be born right then.

The natural birth and breastfeeding my 2nd baby was my Visualisation exercise come true. It was eye opening and a sort of Yeah-I-did-it kind of experience.

Why you might ask, considering this was my 2nd delivery. Let me tell you about my breastfeeding journey.

My Story:
My first born was delivered naturally too but after a lot of efforts and time and on the verge of a Csection. He did not latch on for breastfeeding. He didn't get enough milk in the first few days and had to be in NICU for 3days for Jaudice. As early as 1.5months we started him on Formula milk coz he was always hungry.

I now realise that this was due to my inexperience and lack of knowledge. I was a new mom who relied heavily on the advice of the older women in the family , a lot of which was just old wives tales and misconceptions handed down through the ages.

It was 4yrs ago that I had delivered my son, so I hardly remembered anything.
Like my 1st pregnancy, I was totally active and doing all kinds of things in my 2nd pregnancy which the old aunties will shake their heads for. My inlaws were fed up of me, in short ;)

I attended events and blogged about them. I continued running around with my son. I was running the house when my MIL had to undergo an emergency operation and was on bedrest for 2months. I was eating out with friends. I organised my book club events and was sitting up till 4am. I even went for a Yacht ride at Gateway of India coz I won a contest in my 5th month of pregnancy ;) But I was enjoying it all.

So when I was pregnant with my 2nd baby I talked to friends who are experts in this field, read books, blogs, articles and joined various Facebook support groups.

Now 1 year later albeit with minor hiccups we are still going strong on our Breastfeeding journey and hope to continue till we mutually decide to stop. Crossing my fingers for it to be smooth transition.

Things I did to equip myself:

I will list down things I did for getting myself well equipped. Hope it helps new moms.

• My constant mentor & friend throughout this preganancy was my friend Kaushal Sovani. She is a Special Educator and a Babywearing Enthusiast. Follow her brand : Zoli, Zable and more.
  She prompted me to attend Lamaze classes. I had done GarbhaSanskar classes in 1st pregnancy. You can check for Prenatal Yoga or Lamaze classes or Garbha Sanskar classes around you. They will give an idea of what to do pre & post delivery.

• In the ninth month of my second pregnancy I decided to join classes to brush up on my knowledge. I contacted Fit for Birth in Mulund, Mumbai for Child Birth and Lactation sessions. Fit for Birth arranges super, practical knowledge filled sessions for to-be & new parents. Since I had very little time we did a one-to-one session about Labour Preparation on 9th August and Breastfeeding session was on 10th. 
  The Labour preparation class points were etched in my mind, so when the cramps started I was able to pin point what was happening and changing at every step. I was in contact with my teacher Dr.Riddhi all the time. This time I did all I could to deliver without induced labour or any external medicines. I was squatting, walking around, doing breathing exercises, measuring the time between cramps. It helped a lot and I delivered before me or the baby was exhausted, unlike my 1st delivery. No one in the family was prepared for such a fast delivery, not even the doctors and nurses :D
  
  I laughingly messaged my teacher Dr. Riddhi that I delivered a baby girl & I couldn't attend the Breastfeeding class coz the baby latched on within thirty minutes of being born :D She was constantly in touch with me for 1month after that too, making sure I was able to Breastfeed my baby. I am really thankfull to Fit For Birth for those sessions.
• Both my gynecologist and Pediatrician doctors are old school and totally breastfeeding friendly doctors. So they encouraged me to breastfeed as much as the baby demands. I used to be worried when my baby used to sleep for 4-5hrs sometimes. They assured me that is ok.
• I joined Facebook support groups like:
  Ask the Village
  Informed Birthing India
  Breastfeeding Support for Indian Mothers
  
  Here just reading about other mother's sharing their experience and queries, you get to know a lot of things. It is very helpful being a part of these groups. Through these groups I came to know about Expressing milk and storage procedures, latching techniques, myths busted, food to eat. This pregnancy I ate a lot of regular food instead of only post natal recipes passed on from ages. I only avoided gassy items which might cause colic or gas for baby.
• I followed blogs by fellow mommy bloggers like Mommying BabyT
• I have subscribed to Babycenter newsletter for both my kids. It gives me weekly development changes I can see or will see in my kid. It is really useful. Sometimes my inlaws feel they take our kids, analyse them and write the articles. They are so perfect in terms of what our kids are going through.
• This reading up introduced me to concepts like Babywearing and Cloth Diapering along with minimalist living, eco friendly options for everything we use etc.
  Babywearing has been a life saver for me when handling both kids. It has made my baby independent, trusting of others, cheerful and healthy. It has made me healthy, a lil less stressed, multi tasking mom who can still enjoy what she loves doing without feeling guilty. I have slid down a 40ft slide with my baby in my carrier. It is fun !
  Cloth Diapering again has been a life saver for me and life saver for Mother earth too. It has prevented me into becoming a langot washing machine and at the same time kept my baby feeling dry and comfortable for a few hours.
  
  Will post about these two topics too soon :)

Breastfeeding made me realise:

• You are the best person who knows your baby well. So trust yourself about all decisions you make for them.
• Your baby trusts you totally. They know you will have enough milk supply for them and also know how to get it. Never doubt yourself or your baby.
• Most mothers have more than enough supply. If there is a problem, consult your doctor or a lactation expert. There are simple tips and methods to help you Breastfeed your baby better. Low milk supply may not always be the reason that your baby is crying.
• Breastfeeding mothers will give cold and coughs infection to their baby, not true. Infact the body makes sure the breastmilk will protect the baby from the infection and heal mommy faster too.
• It is not true that Breastfeeding will make the mommy weak and baby clingy. Breastfeeding mothers are advised to eat healthy meals and take calcium supplements. It will help you loose your pregnancy weight more easily but not make you weak. Breastfed Babies become smarter, stronger, cheerful, friendly and independent.
• It is a liberating experience, to be able to feed your baby anywhere, anytime. For my son, we used to haul bottles, formula, thermos of hot water, wipes, bibs, sterilization equipment, extra bottles etc which always went beyond one diaper bag. For my daughter, I just carry her cloth diapers, extra set of clothes, wipes, toys.
• Again a myth that Breastmilk is not enough post 6months. Semi solid and solids are advised only to help them develop taste for other foods.
• Some say you should wean off babies post 6-8months. WHO recommends breastfeeding for first 6months of baby and can be continued till 2years or more. It is their only and full source of nutrition. Dont stop it.
• It is not true at all that Breast milk will not make baby chubby coz it is just Water. It is a super, nutrituion packed drink for babies. Human body is super inteligent.  Each time the milk is different. The body produces breast milk according to the baby's requirement. Both my babies are super active and met all their milestones with or without breastmilk. Dont judge a baby only by chubbiness. 

This year I am supporting the Breastfeeding Awareness and Public Breastfeeding Awareness Project initiative. It is strange in a country like India we need to do this. The pictures have been captured by Out of Focus pictures for their Photo series.

This is my favourite shot. Books, my baby, tea and breastfeeding. All my favourite things in one picture :)

Do contact Out of Focus pictures to get your Pregnancy shoots, Baby shower, Birthday, Birthing and Breastfeeding stories. They are really good and capture the shots in the most candid moments.

Let me know if you have queries I can hope to solve or have more information we can share with other mothers.

Thank you :)
Bye. Take care.