Phil & Teds Go

“You can give them the colostrum via a syringe, no need to use a bottle for such a small amount. My biggest advice for breastfeeding is that it sucks for like the first 10 weeks and then gets significantly easier. There are times where you will just be sitting down for hours with a baby either feeding or sleeping on you and that’s okay. Do not worry about the dishes piling up or the unmopped floor. Also if your nips are sensitive, silverettes, nipple butter and heat packs are your friend. Look up cluster feeding, I see it often in the breastfeeding sub (join that sub too!) and people have no idea what cluster feeding is and think that their baby is all of a sudden not getting enough. If you choose to pump please for the love of god get properly measured for your flanges. The ones that come with the pump are for the mythical giant nippled women that seldom exist. For example, medelas smallest is a 21 mm and they provide a 24 mm in all their kits. I’m a 17 mm. When I found this out, my life changed and pumping was not only more comfortable, it was more effective. You can buy smaller flanges for your pumps on Amazon. Also look at the nursing bra hack instead of getting a dedicated pumping bra. Find an IBCLC in your area and only go to them for advice if you are struggling. The LCs at the hospital were terrible, gave little to no advice and just said demeaning you got this mumma type stuff. It wasn’t until I saw an IBCLC that I knew that I had an undersupply and worked with her to fix that. Do not follow a schedule in the newborn stage. Go by their cues. When in doubt, whip it out. Boobs fix all problems and it’s still my go to for my 18 month old. You may get push back or comments on breastfeeding not being enough and you should switch to formula depending on where you live. Shut that down immediately if that is not what you want to do. From a nutritional standpoint, formula is a great alternative to breast milk if you can’t breastfeed for whatever reason. However if you do want to breastfeed, you don’t need to feel like you have to give formula as well. It’s okay to wean whenever you want. If it’s at 3 months or 3 years, do whatever works best for you and your family. Best of luck on your breastfeeding journey! It’s challenging but very rewarding.”