Here is a schedule for all of the new moms out there that need some suggestions for healthy breastfeeding. I have a few tips that have made my motherhood adventure a safe and healthy one. Remember, breastfeeding is not necessarily an easy task, but if you stick to my schedule (or your own personalized one) you should be fine. So let’s start with my tips:
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Use COCONUT OIL (unrefined ) . For cracked nipples and thrush prevention, I apply coconut oil daily on my entire nipple area. I use this as an alternative to commercial nipple creams.
2. Take probiotics daily! For about tweleve years, I have being using Swanson flem flora probiotics brand. The bottle instructs you to take twice daily, I only take one everyday. It will cost you about $7 for 60 pills (can't beat that price!).
Also, remember that probiotics are good to take daily, even when you’re not nursing because they are good for vaginal health as well as balancing the good and bad bacteria in your body.
You can purchase these products at amazon.com or http://www.swansonvitamins.com/
3. Drink WATER!!
I try to drink a gallon of water a day. Sometimes I don’t have enough time, or I’m able to consume an entire gallon, but you guys get the idea. At the very least, I drink a gallon five days out of the week. Trust me, with breastfeeding, you will be thirsty all the time!
4. Eat a well balanced diet of fruits & veggies!
A few recommendations of my favorite super foods to eat while nursing are: oatmeal, leafy greens such as kale and spinach , sweet potatoes, eggs, all berries, yogurt, avocado, seeds such as flax seeds, chia seeds, and sesame seeds.
5. Buy extra parts. I know, the parts to your pump cost an arm & a leg! But don’t get discouraged. Shop around and always be on the lookout for sales because being engorged and missing one piece to your pump is not cool at all (and very painful too!). Also, I highly recommend buying a manual, hand-held, no-battery-needed pump. Very cheap and smart to have in your car, for times when you can not make it home to pump!
6. Use natural Deordanorant
I would suggest using a natural base deodorant during the nursing period to reduce toxins exposed in your pores. Coconut oil and limes are also excellent natural substitute
My Mommy “Feeding Schedule”
* Okay, so here is my pumping schedule. This process is very rigorous and requires a lot of discipline, but you can do it! Remember, each mom can adjust the “Mommy Feeding Schedule” according to how they deem fit for their bodies.
If you decide to do things completely different, that is fine. Just make sure you follow the schedule you make for yourself, if you decide to go that route. After the first few months you will be a pro!! So just think of this schedule as a guide for how often you should release.
First 6 weeks: I pumped every 2-3 hours. You will have an overflow of milk; enjoy it (ha!). I downloaded this app called “Breastfeeding Timer” that helped me record my times with everything. You will need one! After like 1 week, I tried my best to alternate between feeding him pumped milk and directly breastfeeding him (I did this to prevent my son from being one of those babies that wouldn’t take the bottle.).
6 weeks - 3 months: I pumped every 4 hours, faithfully. I cannot stress enough the importance of pumping and feeding to keep your supply up. Closer to month three, once I had the hang of things, I would do my last pump of the night at, like, 12am and would not pump again until the morning, around 6 am. Between the hours of 12-6 am, I let my son alternate boobs during feedings to empty them.
3-6 months : I pumped every four-five hours. Once my son turned 5 months, I introduced baby food to him, which I make myself using my blender. This allowed me to preserve more of my milk.
After six months of breastfeeding, I'm pretty sure you got the swing of things!
I want to leave you with something fun to do with your little one (5 months or older), especially if they are teething: breast milk popsicles!
The container costs little to nothing at Family Dollar. Whenever you have leftover breast milk, simply place it in the popsicle tray, let it freeze!