This post is sponsored by Ergobaby.
Oh how I’ve loved nursing this sweet human! Hudson and I had a very rough and short-lived nursing experience, so being able to feed Henley for the past 5 months has been truly magical. I wanted to share our nursing journey for any mamas going through the same struggles we are!
Our Nursing Journey- the struggles we’ve faced and how we’re handling them.
Henley latched from the get-go. I mean, they had just placed her on my chest and she wriggled down and latched on right away. It was beautiful! I remember my mom, Joleen (my dear friend and photographer) and I crying when she did. I had such a rough go of it with Hudson that I was already worried about my nursing experience with Henley. But honestly? She was a dreamboat from day one. We did have a little latch problem after the first week home, but I had a friend come over and show me how to fix that. After a couple of tries she got it and we we’re golden! Then I got diagnosed with melanoma. They had to perform surgery pretty quickly to inhibit it from spreading, so two weeks later I was put under. What wasn’t explained to me until after was that I wasn’t able to nurse for three days due to the radioactive dye used during my procedure. I had enough supply saved up for those three days, thank goodness, but when I went back to nurse her? I had almost nothing! The other issue was not being able to hold her! I had a big incision on the back of my left arm and was only able to carry her/support her with my right for the first week.
The Ergobaby Natural Curve™ Nursing Pillow has helped so much! It’s foam design allows for a sturdy structure that supports baby, as well as raises him/her enough so you’re not slouching while feeding! That’s huge for me for two reasons: 1. slouching causes back problems and poor core muscle tone AND 2. slouching pulled on my stitches so this kept me comfortable. The curve of the pillow also allowed me to rest my arms while she was feeding. Henley loves this pillow because it keeps her belly to belly with me, which is her favorite position in the world. It’s also a positive position for digestion and comfort for baby. The Ergobaby Natural Curve™ Nursing Pillow does come with a lining to protect it from spills and the outer cover is removable and machine washable. As you can see from the pictures, Hen and I both love this nursing pillow!
As of today I’m still having supply issues. She’s had no issues switching to mostly formula, and I’m still fighting the good fight. What I’m doing to get my supply back:
- Power pumping
- Nursing/Pumping every 2-3 hours
- Eating lactation bars
- Drinking milkmaid tea and protein shakes packed with spinach
- Gatorade- I don’t know why but this has helped tremendously
- Trying to get some much needed sleep
- Lots of skin to skin time, which we’re both loving!
- Fenugreek and Fennel supplements
This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Ergobaby.
I absolutely love hearing about other women’s nursing stories; everyone and every baby is so different! I never liked using a Boppy for my Ginny, but this nursing pillow looks amazing! I might have to put this on my wish list ; )
This nursing pillow looks amazing. It provides so much support! Thanks so much for sharing your tips. I’m always looking for ways to boost supply.
Awwww, I love skin to skin time! My daughter is two now, but remembering back to those breastfeeding days makes me want another baby!
Congratulations on continuing your journey. I’m inspired by your dedication to keep going. How much Gatorade are you consuming each day?
I’ve heard great things about the pillow you use. Good luck keeping up the good fight!
Greta | http://www.gretahollar.com
I love reading about others experiences in BF. It was so hard w my first but we still nursed for 15 months and has been a breeze with my second but we’re just about done now. She’s weaned herself naturally, but I’m so sad! I was hoping to last a bit longer.
Thank you for sharing this! And I love Ergo Baby products.
I miss all that skin to skin time! I hope it helps!! If anything you’re getting plenty of good snuggles in. Completely off topic, but your headboard is beautiful! Random, haha, sorry! 😉
I had supply issues with my little man after an infection knocked me down for a week when he was 10 days old, things never settled in right. This pillow looks awesome though and will be worth a try with my second one!
You are such an awesome mama for trying so hard with breastfeeding! Love this post and both of you sweet girls. Oh and that pillow is awesome!
My lil guy was so heavy I would not have been able to keep nursing without our nursing pillow, they are lifesavers!
Great tips for boosting your supply! I was the Fenugreek queen haha!!!! I love your braid!
Ooh that pillow looks so awesome. I didn’t know Ergobaby had nursing pillows too. I love their wrap. Oh supply issues hurt, both physically and emotionally because we just want to give our baby all we can. I’m sorry you had to stop nursing for a while for your surgery (and glad to hear you’re OK after it!!) and that hurt your supply – but hopefully your great plans for increasing it will bring you back to where you need to be. I have a roundup of fun lactation recipes I recently posted, and if you have your own you come up with do add it.
My breastfeeding journey was less than optimum, but it’s nice to see success stories. 🙂 Cute baby and pj’s, by the way.
Great job fighting the good fight momma! I hope your supply gets back up asap! Breastfeeding is amazing. <3 Sending love and positive vibes!
I also had supply issues due to post partum hemorrhage. I did the things you listed and also moringa supplements. I really noticed a difference! Good luck!