Breastfeeding Your Baby Successfully

2011-08-28T17:01:00.000-07:00

As a new mother, the experience you have breastfeeding your baby will be unique. What works for you could be very different to what worked for a previous bub, what worked for your mum, sister and best friend. In saying that, there are some tried and tested methods that will get you off to a good start and enable you to establish a breastfeeding routine that works for you and your baby.

My top tip for successful breastfeeding is to relax. Yes, I know this is nearly impossible if attaching your baby really hurts and you have a screaming, starving baby, BUT it is really important. If you are stressed, you baby will sense it and it may make the whole feeding process harder.
Here is a list of the things I did so I could better relax during each feed:

Breastfeed your baby in a place that is comfortable for you. If you don't want to feed in front of people (this can be really daunting, especially early on), then don't. Ask them to leave or move to another room where you can relax. If its summer, set up in a cool place or winter, in a warm spot.
Put all the things that you might need during the feed in one place. I had my water bottle, phone, remote control and breastfeeding pillow all together so that when my baby was ready to feed I could sit down straight away and feed. This helped both my baby and I. It meant my baby was attended to quickly and didn't get really worked up (a screaming baby is soooo stressful for all involved!) and I didn't have to rush around trying to find the things that I would need.
When you sit down, relax your shoulders and take a few deep breaths before you attach your baby.
If you have other young children, make sure you have them organised too. While you are establishing breastfeeding, each session may take up to an hour - a long time for a toddler to entertain themselves! If you can, feed your baby where your other children can be part of the process and in a secure environment. My little girls used to copy me, it was so funny. They would put washers over their shoulders (their burp cloth) and would feed their baby dolls from their belly buttons! Because they felt like they were part of the process, they were easier to manage and didn't try to get up to too much mischief.
Feed in a secure environment if you have other children. I had gates installed on our living room doorways and latches put on the kitchen cupboards and drawers. This ensured there were very few things my two little ones could get into while I was feeding and it really lessoned to need for me to have to get up and disturb my bub during each feed. It also meant I could relax a bit more without worrying what the others were getting into or doing as I could always see them.
Wear clothes that are easy to feed in, and that you are comfortable in. Breastfeeding Tops are great because they keep your back and tummy covered and allow for easy access to feed your baby.

Check back for more breastfeeding tips as we will cover off many more over the coming months. If you are looking for breastfeeding tops online we recommend Barefoot Maternity and Nursing Wear

Breastfeeding Discreetly, Anytime, Anywhere

2009-02-16T18:14:00.000-08:00

Breastfeeding tops are specifically designed with the nursing mother in mind. Breastfeeding tops, sometimes referred to as nursing wear or breastfeeding garments, allow you to breastfeed discreetly by accessing your nursing bra without exposing your post partum tummy and / or excess flesh.
With clever designs on the market such as the cross over style nursing top by Barefoot Maternity(pictured below), breastfeeding mums can maintain their sense of style and at the same time, breastfeed confidently and easily. To breastfeed, you simply pull aside the cross over layer and lift the under layer to access your maternity bra.

Long Sleeve Breastfeeding Top

Barefoot Maternity & Nursing Wear are an Australian company specialising in maternity, breastfeeding, long length maternity, hospital birth packs and many more mother and baby related products. Shop at the Barefoot Maternity online clothing store.
Picture of hot pink nursing top supplied courtesy of Barefoot Maternity clothing.

Breastfeeding Australia

Breastfeeding Your Baby Successfully

Breastfeeding Discreetly, Anytime, Anywhere