Tips on breastfeeding your newborn baby

Breastfeeding can be a beautiful experience but it can also be upsetting for a new mother whose baby is not taking to the experience naturally. As a new mum, you need to give yourself room to get comfortable with the general idea of breastfeeding. Understand and accept that the initial stages of this exercise can be a little challenging, and being anxious does not help you or your baby.

Babies can sense any anxiety and this anxiety may transfers onto them, thus causing your new baby to struggle too. Before the actual birth, it is important to take time to read or watch videos that will help give you an idea of all the alternatives that can be used in the breastfeeding techniques.

The following are some basic tips on how you can achieve a successful nursing exercise:

First-time nursing

Try to nurse your baby from the very first time he/she is brought to you. Placing your newborn chest to chest, and then angling your breast to lightly touch your baby’s lips with your nipple should encourage your baby to open his/her mouth to accept and try to suckle. This may not be successful the first time, so trying again is encouraged but should not be forced.

Placement

Ideally, your baby’s mouth should cover the areola and not just the nipple and gently encouraging this would be good. If you experience any pain, there is no need to panic, as this, too, is quite common. Simply gently insert your finger between your baby’s gums to loosen the hold on your breast and try the process again.

Location

Picking a comfortable spot for nursing is good idea. Identifying this particular spot or position and using it whenever convenient will make the nursing process more comfortable for you. This is important as the nursing process usually takes more than 20 minutes and if your physical position is uncomfortable, the nursing process can be painful and disruptive for both of you.

Many new mums complain of back and neck pains, which they usually attribute to uncomfortable, nursing episodes, therefore consider this an important element to explore. Cushions and soft pillows can be helpful in creating the comfort needed for your body if the nursing position your baby chooses turns out to be uncomfortable for you.

Seek advice

You may encounter episodes of engorgement, sore nipples or mastitis and when this happens, you should seek the advice of your doctor as quickly as possible as putting this off, could result in the condition becoming worse and you eventually dreading the nursing times.

Getting comfortable

There are several positions that you can try before you actually find one that is comfortable for both you and your baby. It is important to note that any position chosen may not last very long for your baby since they are growing.

You may need to change these positions to better accommodate both of you. Some of the more common positions would include the cradle, the football and the side lying positions, which can be comfortable alternative to the original chest-to chest one. Did these tips help? Do you have any tips you would like to add? We'd love to hear feedback from you!