First Day Of Delivery

I’m happy that my sister-in-law had delivered a baby girl on July 12. I had shared my experiences as a mother to my sister-in-law . One of the first things to do was to make sure that the baby sucks on mummy’s breast upon delivery. She delivered at the Ipoh general hospital which had a very good system that encouraged mothers to breastfeed their babies. There were breastfeeding guides posted on the wall.

From my own experiences as a mother, it’s very important to be in an environment that encourages breastfeeding. The maternity ward is a great place to start as every mother is busy breastfeeding her baby throughout the day and night. Personally, I found that the nurses were also very helpful in showing me the right way to position a baby during breastfeeding so the new born could latch on properly. An ideal position could help to reduce breast soreness. After a few feeding sessions, a mother would feel some soreness on the nipple. To ease it, lanolin cream is a good option as it is safe for baby and helps to ease the soreness. You can easily get it at a baby and mummy store or purchase it online at stores like 11 street.

I fed my baby every hour after delivery as it is a good way to stimulate milk. There were times when my baby kept crying as she/he needed milk. The nurses only fed her/him with formula milk when I could not produce my own milk on the first day. They also fed the baby with spoon bottle to avoid confusion between the nipple and bottle tits. It took me 3 days to have engorgement and milk flow. The first drops of milk or colostrum were so precious as it contains the most nutrition for the baby. Eventually when the milk flow increased, the feeding continued every 2 hours.

I gained some good tips on the correct positioning of baby during breastfeeding from online portal such as BabyCenter. They provide many tips on breastfeeding.

Here is a tip from the portal:

“Hold her in your lap (or on a pillow on your lap) so that she's lying on her side with her face, stomach, and knees directly facing you. Tuck her lower arm under your own. If she's nursing on the right breast, rest her head in the crook of your right arm.”

Reference: Positions and tips for making breastfeeding work | BabyCenter

www.babycenter.com/0_positions-and-tips-for-making-breastfeeding-work_8784.bc