Planning to Breastfeed? Prepare to Succeed

Written by Sherylee Tutt

Since humankind began, breastfeeding has come naturally to new mothers as they watched and learned from their own mothers, sisters, and aunts. As society changed, and increasingly did not support breastfeeding, the business of babies became largely hidden so that today’s expectant parents are quite likely never to have even held a baby, let alone seen one being breastfed.

Many parents-to-be have grown up missing out on that more traditional learning that would have been a part of seeing babies develop. Consequently, most of us have not seen that common breastfeeding difficulties have solutions and that trusting your body and your parenting instincts is important in learning the art of breastfeeding. A lot of misinformation remains in our society about the first weeks of breastfeeding and many new parents find that, even after attending antenatal classes, they are not adequately prepared for the reality of caring for a baby. This is where the Australian Breastfeeding Association’s Breastfeeding Education Classes and Group Meetings can help.

Many studies have shown that hands-on preparation for postnatal parenting, especially for breastfeeding and understanding normal newborn behaviour, can provide a solid foundation for the establishment of breastfeeding. Parents who receive little or no antenatal breastfeeding information often struggle through times that may have simple solutions. Sadly, in spite of the known risks of artificial feeding, many of these parents find that they feel they have no choice but to wean baby. Learning about breastfeeding before baby is born (when you have more time to take in the information and seek answers to your questions) can really make all the difference. For some mums, it can be quite overwhelming to start learning the basics of breastfeeding during the period when both mother and baby are recovering from the birth.

One of the most important skills that a new baby and mother have to learn together is how to position and attach baby to the breast. Books and leaflets can only show so much. The personal demonstration in ABA’s Breastfeeding Education Classes can therefore provide an essential foundation to understanding how to breastfeed in your own unique situation. Empowering new parents with up-to-date facts will mean they will be better prepared to seek advice from knowledgeable and supportive health professionals and breastfeeding counsellors should the need arise. Like most worthwhile things, perseverance and practice can make all the difference to reaching your breastfeeding goals.

ABA’s Breastfeeding Education Classes are designed for pregnant women and their support persons (partner, mother or friend) and are run by experienced breastfeeding counsellors. A new mother’s support person has been identified as the biggest source of support in establishing and maintaining breastfeeding. The attendance of fathers- to-be is actively encouraged as the information they learn can be invaluable in the early weeks. Together, expectant parents learn how breastmilk is produced, how to position and attach baby to the breast, how to tell if baby is getting enough milk, how to increase milk supply, what to expect in the early weeks and easy solutions to common problems. Through this antenatal preparation they find out too that, while producing breastmilk comes naturally, the early weeks are an important time for learning the art of breastfeeding with their baby.

How Prepared Are You?

If you are a member of our forums (or want to join), check out our poll and discussion to see how prepared BellyBelly members felt they were with their first child with regards to breastfeeding HERE.

BellyBelly strongly recommends all pregnant women subscribe to the Australian Breastfeeding Association for only $50 per year, which includes the official ABA publication, ‘Breastfeeding, Naturally’, an extremely helpful resource for all things breastfeeding. You will also receive regular newsletters and updates of groups and information sessions in your area about breastfeeding and parenting. It’s such a bargain and a fantastic support network for all new mothers – no matter if it’s your first time or fifth! Subscribe here!