Breastfeeding is the most natural behavior of all mammals including us humans, and we are defined by it. Among my friends, I was somewhat late to give birth. As my friends were having kids, I started hearing their stories about breastfeeding. The most surprising information was that not everyone produces milk and hence many had to rely on formula feeding from the very beginning.

I wanted to breastfeed my baby and we were lucky that I had milk. However, my breastfeeding chapter involved various educational steps and using products that made it possible to enjoy it. Often, parents are excited about a baby and buy things that the little bundle would need, missing out on things for mommy to be.

Here’s a list of my Breastfeeding tools : (Note: I had my baby in United States so all the prices are in US Dollars. The product links are from Amazon.com for your reference.) A class on ‘how to breastfeed’: The hospital where I was registered to deliver my baby had several classes, including this. It was an hour class with a nurse who showed us some informative videos that explained breastfeeding 101. She showed us inner anatomy of breast, how the milk is produced, the demand and supply nature of breast milk, how to get the baby latch on you.

If you don’t have a class available, I recommend watching some videos online to get a good idea. The interesting fact was how tiny a baby’s stomach is in the initial week! That helped me not to worry when I had just few drops of colostrum on day 1.

1. Feeding in public : Every place has it’s subtle and not so subtle rules about many things, including breastfeeding in public. If you ask me I am all pro for this. I was at ease feeding in US, in India I would feed her in public when needed but preferred to use a dupatta or a cover and in Germany I was at ease until a friend of mine was asked to feed her infant in bathroom. It is unusual but we had to travel a lot during the first year of our baby and I was glad I was not ashamed or embarrassed or guilty for feeding my baby in public.

2. Breastpump : I was lucky to have a health insurance in US, that fully reimbursed my breast pump money. I chose Medala pump in style advanced breastpump . However, I would say if you are going to purchase on your own, I would suggest you may even look at a hand-pump though electric is much easier if you are planning to pump daily including at your workplace. I was not going back to work immediately still I started pumping my milk from the hospital, in fact I was taught how to use it by a lactation consultant in the hospital. It was also recommended to feed
the baby and then use the pump to increase the milk supply.

3. Storage bags : If you are planning to buy breast pump or express your milk regularly then this bags are a must. I bought Lansinoh Breast Milk Storage Bags . These are plastic bags with an option to write date, time, name and amount of milk. I used them after I pumped my milk to store it in the freezer. Experts say this way breastmilk can be stored for up to 4 to 6 months. I generally used it within a month. Whenever I was out, the person in care of my child could give her a bottle. It was convenient to sneak out for a movie or a date with husband and not bothered about feeding. Once I was back I would pump the milk to avoid engorgement.

4. Lanolin : My nipples had cracked in the initial weeks. My baby was born 3 weeks early and so we had some latching difficulty. It was very painful to feed her every 2 hours with cracked nipples. Luckily I asked the nurse in the hospital who recommended Lanolin. Lansinoh Hpa Lanolin Nipple Soothing Cream was soothing and helped me heal almost immediately. This is baby safe and so you don’t need to wash after use. It is safe if baby sucks on it. In fact, it could also be used on baby’s lips if they get cracked due to wrong latching.

5. Nipple shield : I mentioned about the cracked nipples and the pain, right? So during our first month visit to the pediatrician we accidentally found this. Well, my husband did. The reason I am mentioning him is because he showed tremendous support for me to breastfeed. As soon as he saw the Medela Contact Nipple Shield in the doctor’s office we got it home. This was another product besides Lanolin that helped me continue to feed my baby while giving an opportunity to my nipples to heal. Make sure you get the right size. This shields are also useful in the initial months for protecting yourself when your baby is learning to latch properly.

6. Boppy pillow : This was not in my purchase list. I was sure not to spend $30 on a pillow. However, in the initial weeks, I was feeding every 2 hours, tired and exhausted. My husband noticed that and got me Boppy Nursing Pillow and Positioner . The ease with which I was able to place my baby on the pillow and feed helped me relaxed. I used this product until my child was 7 months. Besides feeding, I flew from San Francisco to Kochi, a direct 15 hours flight, with my 3 months old baby feeding and sleeping on this pillow. That was very comfortable especially when I also needed some rest myself. I also used this pillow to support her while she was learning to sit.

7. Nursing bra : This is a must buy according to me. Pregnancy changes a lot in us and this includes our breast size. You will end up buying new brassieres during and after so why not opt for one with ease. This one I would say go buy the brand that you like and can afford, but do buy it. When you are feeding round the clock, a nursing bra is highly convenient and fast.

8. Breast pads : I did not need this a lot except in the initial weeks when the milk supply was still getting established as per my baby’s need. It is again super comfortable to have these pads, I had Lansinoh Disposable Nursing Pads, that you can put inside your bra and forget worrying about spoiling your clothes due to leakage. Some women have excess of milk and it might get embarrassing especially if you are out.

9. Soothing gel pads : This was another thing that was recommended to me for painful nipples. I bought Lansinoh Soothies Gel Pads and used them twice as I found them somewhat expensive and it was only one time use. These gels pads were definitely soothing but you have to discard them after 48-72 hours. I hardly used them that long. For me Lanolin did the job plus applying your own milk also helps.

I hope my breastfeeding tool list has got you some ideas for a comfortable breastfeeding experience. Do comment and let me know what helped you the most in your own experience.

Dhara Sheth also writes for her blog.

The article was previously published on Poise7.

Check out Dr. Nidhi Desai‘s tips for Breastfeeding.

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