Breastfeeding

I debated if I even needed to include this as a topic. It seems so obvious that breastfeeding is best. There are millions of web pages that go into the research and it is commonly known so did I really need to add anything? Yet I think back to the questions I have been asked and my family being less than supportive all because of a lack of information so here's a post about breastfeeding.

I did all of my research and knew I would breastfeed before my twins were born. My family told me it would be too much work. This is a simple one to prove wrong. Breast milk is always the right temperature, sanitary, free, travels with you, etc. Formula requires bottles (and washing), going to the store ($$), mixing, and making it the right temperature. Breast feeding is not easy, but getting help from a lactation consultant will solve most problems and it's much cheaper/easier in the long run.

A friend asked how it would be possible to breast feed twins. I simply pointed out that I have two breasts. Yes, this is an oversimplification, but it is more than possible to breast feed twins. I learned all the tricks for increasing my supply and keeping it high.

Cuddle time

We had issues with breast feeding, but I knew I still wanted my kids to get all of the benefits of breast milk (less chance of obesity, increased immunity, higher IQs, lower risk of cancer, and on and on) so I pumped. Pumping is the worst of both worlds. You still have the bottles to wash, the cost of the pump, and it's less than comfortable. Pumping exclusively also tends to decrease your supply. I had to pump for 30 minutes every 3 hours with a hospital grade pump in order to keep up. Some days I would get a few ounces extra to freeze for later, but most days I was just keeping up. I spent 8 months sleeping an hour and a half at a time 3 times a day before I reached my breaking point. I had to cut back on the pumping and get just a bit more sleep. I was able to still give my kids breast milk every day for the first year. My original goal was 2 - 2.5 years, but my reality was only making it 1 year.

Tired is an understatement

I encourage anyone with questions to contact their local LLL or read on Kellymom.com to learn more about breastfeeding and its benefits to children and women.