10 tips for Successful Breastfeeding

 

Congratulations on your beautiful new baby and welcome to the world of motherhood! First we need to tell you something-you got this! We have faith in you that you’ll succeed and you should too! The following are 10 tips from us at North Georgia Breastfeeding courtesy of  Sweet Songs Breastfeeding to get you off to a great start with your nursling. As always, contact us any time. We are here to help you meet your goals!

  1. Surround yourself with supportive people. Gather people around you that support your breastfeeding decision. Lean on them often.
  2. Watch your baby, not the clock. Sometimes babies eat every 2-3 hours, sometimes they cluster feed and eat several times over the course of an hour. Follow your baby’s lead and you’ll build a great supply.
  3. Get comfy! Stay in your pajamas or even better stay in bed. Try laid-back breastfeeding or side-lying nursing to allow for some rest for you.
  4. Housework can wait. Remember that support circle you’ve created? Use them! Allow others to help around the house with cleaning and cooking while you tend to your baby.
  5. Worried about how much your baby is taking in? In the first month or so we can look at dirty and wet diapers to tell the story of your baby’s intake at the breast. Expect 4-6 wet diapers and 3-4 dirty every 24 hours.
  6. Eat your favorite foods. There is a lot of misinformation out there that leads new moms to believe they need to restrict their diet to breastfeed. In general this is just NOT true!
  7. Get Dad involved. If Dad or Grandma or Aunt Sue is feeling left out because you get to do all the feedings, allow them to change diapers or rock the baby. This will give you a chance to shower or eat. Win, win!
  8. Keep visitors to a minimum. This is a special time for you and your baby to nurse and bond. There will still be plenty of opportunity for visits with extended family.
  9. Set mini goals. Make short term breastfeeding goals for yourself-2 weeks, 6 weeks, 3 months, etc. It will keep you from getting overwhelmed and you’ll feel awesome once you make your goals because, spoiler alert, you will!
  10. Avoid pacifiers and bottles. At least for the first few weeks, your baby will learn best if he only gets practice nursing at the breast. Trust us on this one!

 

Created by Sweet Songs Breastfeeding, LLC, please do not copy without written permission.