I have accomplished a few feats in my life I am very proud of… Breastfeeding is at the top of that list, as well as becoming a mother to my beautiful daughter. I hate to admit it, I am a perfectionist. I try to plan my little life away which gives me more stress than I should give myself. So I knew when I became pregnant I knew I would be breastfeeding because that’s what my perfect little mind said I had to do. Everything I read and heard said ‘breast is best’ and that’s what I had planned for my babygirl. I scoured the internet reading about breastfeeding and asked others about their experiences preparing myself for this journey. Here were my expectations and reality of breastfeeding.
Expectations
I imagined breastfeeding would be super easy for me and baby. I mean, that’s why I was created right? It’s best for her so it’s a no-brainer decision. My goal was to breastfeed at least until age 3. I read sore nipples and long feeding hours were coming, but I was all in. I also expected it to be somewhat painless and beautiful. It’s funny how expectations can vastly change from what really happens. Following, was my reality for breastfeeding.
Reality
Breastfeeding hurts! Not trying to scare anyone away from doing but I am being completely honest. For the first 4 weeks after my princess was born I suffered from cracked, sore nipples, engorgement, and exhaustion from being on my baby’s schedule. I read about all these things and I didn’t think it would happen to me. I had my perfect little vision and this was the complete opposite. I had heard it would kind of hurt but no idea what I was in for. I think breastfeeding was a little rougher for me because my daughter was born 3 weeks early and her mouth was so tiny causing her latch to be shallow. It was to the point sometimes that I was considering switching to formula and being done. If I didn’t feed on time (sometimes I pumped when I had to leave) they would be so sore with the extra milk. As a first time mom I thought they were joking about catching up on sleep before she came (as if I could ever catch up 😉 ) They weren’t joking. Being someone else’s food source is a hard task. You can be sooo tired but if they’re hungry dinner’s up. Every time I wanted to give up I always told myself to try for 1 more day. My goal of breastfeeding until 3 seemed impossible to reach and was getting shorter and shorter.
Then things got easier. One day I woke up and she latched without pain and everything changed. Soreness was ebbing away and we became breastfeeding pros. Breastfeeding became beautiful and painless for me. We got on a schedule that included bed-sharing. I am so proud and happy that I chose to go forward with it. We continued to breastfeed until she was 1 year and 9 months old. That wasn’t my original goal but I was so proud that we stuck it out as long as we did. I remember when I wasn’t sure how long we would go and we went even farther than I’d imagine. It felt so good to the main source of food and comfort for my daughter. Breastfeeding made us so close and I miss that time. I miss being able to console her without anything but me.
Becoming a mother changed my life for the best. This was one humbling situation that showed me not to be to set on expectations and focus on the reality of the situation. It’s okay not to be perfect and to accept what you’re given. Appreciate every moment you have with your baby because before you know it they’re already another year older and the things you worried about don’t seem so big anymore. Whether you chose to breastfeed or bottle feed you’re still an awesome momma. Finding what works for baby and YOU is very important. I think a lot of us get caught up in forgetting about ourselves because we become mothers. I guarantee I would not have continued breastfeeding if it followed the beginning it started with. Don’t compare yourselves to other moms, do what’s best for you. Your baby needs a happy mom, not a perfect one. I hope this post helps any mom in whatever stage of breastfeeding or bottle feeding that they’re in. Please like and share, comment below and let us know your breastfeeding experience.
Thank you for reading 🙂
