Ready to Breastfeed the dog

I'm ready to breastfeed the Dog

There is something about nursing a baby that is just addicting. I haven't nursed a child in 3 1/2 years...
I look at Patti Malone nursing Rosie and I just get goosebumps! I'd love to have another baby just to nurse her..and yes the babe would be a "her".

That said, I had the worst time ever breastfeeding my first baby. I had an impromptu c-section after 200000 hours of labor and I was exhausted. About 3 hours after Chloe was taken from my womb...a nurse told me to breastfeed her. I couldn't even feel my legs but being a board certified pediatrician ..I could hardly say "Ahh ..no thanks". So I put that sweet girl on my breast after a L & D nurse showed me a thing or two about latching and let her have at it.

It wasn't so bad. 15 min each side. Then I fell into a well deserved coma just to have a nurse wake me up with a screaming baby. "Time to nurse her Doc ! "

Really? Its been only 2 hours. In the Nicu ...babies didn't cry. They fed them every three hours. They appeared content.

Well, I nursed Chloe again. This time they left her with me because I could feel my legs a little. That girl screamed all night long...unless she was nursing.

I must have missed the day in med school where they explained that the "Milk" didn't come in so quickly with a c-section. I was convinced that my body didn't make milk and that Chloe was going to starve and that I might die of exhaustion and that I would be the only female pediatrician that couldn't breastfeed.

By the 3rd day I cringed every time I saw Chloe cry. My Indian dad said ( please read this with an Indian accent) " She is hungry..you must feed her! "

I'd latch her on and my toes would curl in pain. The anesthesiologist could have put the epidural needle in my eye and in would've hurt less. The breastfeeding consultant swore up and down that it shouldn't hurt. YEAH..RIGHT!! It hurt. The virgin nipple has never endured a hungry baby sucking relentlessly on it for 15-20 min every 2-3 hours. For men, I describe it as a baby sucking on their scrotum every two hours. Most men cringe...but understand.

Football hold, across hold, stand on my head and crochet hold...Didn't matter..just freakin HURT.

By the third day at home I was delirious. I was so tired and I just sat in a chair and breastfed and cried. One time the doorbell rang ( you know people send u all kinds of stuff with the first babe..not so much the 4th) and I got up in my nursing jammies and bra and answered the door. It was the UPS man. I graciously took the package and signed. He thanked me and walked away. I turned around and noticed that my breast was hanging out. Lets just say that I left a note for UPS to leave all packages..for the next 2 years.

This went on for 3 weeks. Chloe was getting HUGE but I refused to see it. I was convinced that I didn't make enough milk. She had grown out of all of her teenie clothes and into newborn clothes but all rationale had left me. I was nuts ( please refer to other post in which I describe becoming post-par tum).

Somewhere along the line..about 3 1/2 weeks later I fell in love with breastfeeding. My nipples were tough enough to hang two bowling balls from each and run a marathon. I could quiet Chloe and look at her while nursing her and know that she was getting PLENTY of milk. I took her into the office to confirm and that little kitten had gained a POUND...all from ME....The postpartum,sleep deprived, breast flashing mom who cried at every commercial and song.

Breastfeeding IS NOT NATURAL. It is a learned skill by mother and child. It takes practice and perseverance and trouble shooting. I am so committed to teaching moms to breastfeed and to not feel guilty and to not beat themselves up over being anxious about the amount of milk that THEY ARE producing.

I'm impressed that we as a society have survived. Back in the day..there were no L&D nurses or breastfeeding consultants or classes. Before bottles... women HAD to nurse their babies. I told myself this every time Chloe latched on for the first few weeks. This helped me for some reason.

Also..(.OH GOD...ALL BREASTFEEDING CONSULTANTS BEWARE...I'M GOING TO SAY IT) I supplemented a little at first to assuage my Catholic mothers guilt that I wasn't making enough milk. It wasn't for the baby...it was for me. I might have quit altogether if I thought that I couldn't nourish Chloe with my breast milk. I'd feed her 15 min on each breast then offer her 15 ml of formula. By the third week she promptly threw it up on me...a sign that she was too full. Then I quit giving her supplements.

My point is that new breastfeeding mommas need support. I love helping moms with breastfeeding. I will see them weekly or twice a week to show them that their baby is gaining. I work on a latch that isn't as painful ( my "sucker fish" latch). I should patent it. It works.

HANG IN THERE!! GIVE IT 3 WEEKS AND YOU WILL LOVE IT!!

Now I'm 43 and after breastfeeding 4 girls for a year each...I'm dying to breastfeed again...and OK I'm not really going to breastfeed my 200 lb English Mastiff ( even though he thinks he grew in my belly and that I nursed him for a year and that he is a little human girl).

I'll get satisfaction by helping my patients breastfeed if they choose. It will be fun and real and successful!!