Karen is due in
8 weeks. Throughout her pregnancy she planned to breastfeed her baby, but after
a conversation with a mum who had thrush, she is wondering if she should change
her plans to breastfeed.
“I am due in 8weeks and I am so excited…and nervous. This will be my first baby and I want to do everything right. I made the decision to breastfeed my baby for as long as possible. After reading about all the benefits breastfeeding offers, I have never considered anything else.
While leaving the doctor’s yesterday I ran into a new mum I know. She told me she had a continuing case of thrush around her nipples which was making it extremely painful to breastfeed. She had decided it wasn’t worth it and had switched to formula. Seeing her and hearing about her experience has made me question my decision to breastfeed. I think I’ve been a bit naive, imagining it would be this beautiful natural experience when, according to my friend, it’s actually really painful and difficult.
I really want to breastfeed my baby but I’m scared that I won’t be able to, or the pain will be too much and I will have to stop and I was wondering if anyone had any tips for a nervous first time breastfeeder? Is there anything I can do to make it as painless as possible? What about thrush, and mastitis? Are there any ways of avoiding those? It would be so great to hear from any other mums who might have struggled with breastfeeding and overcome their issues, or just to get a bit of reassurance that it will be ok.”
Our survey results are in and there was plenty of support and advice for Karen and any other anxious first time breastfeeders. Over half of you said you were nervous about breastfeeding but 84% went on to breastfeed for over 3 months which is reassuring news for anyone who, like Karen, wants to breastfeed but isn’t sure they will be able to.
When it came to breastfeeding difficulties, just under a third of our respondents experienced problems in the first few days but by 8 weeks the majority of the problems had been resolved with 48% of our mums saying things got a lot easier around that point. Sore nipples were the most common complaint with 78% of respondents suffering from them at one stage or another. Only 20% suffered from thrush and 24% from mastitis.
Our mums had plenty of advice for Karen including:
“Give it a go and get lots of support. Your local support group will be invaluable. I still go to mine every week and every Mum I know I've met there. Once properly established, it’s a breeze and really worth giving a go.” – Kate, Leeds
“Don't set yourself up to fail by having unrealistic expectations of breastfeeding - you have never done it before, so you will probably encounter a few difficulties and problems along the way but it will get easier. Use a good pillow, one which is fairly high and supportive. Experiment with different positions and once you are confident with those, learn how to feed lying down, it will make those night feeds so much easier,” – Sophie, Manchester
“I would suggest you give it a go, and if it's for you then great, but if it's not, at least you gave it a go. I have suffered with thrush on my nipples (and my daughter had it in her mouth) and mastitis, and I won't lie...it hurt A LOT and we had a lot of tears through some feeds, but with creams for my nipples, medicine for my little girl and antibiotics for my mastitis we made a full recovery and are still breastfeeding now and she is almost 6 months. I hope you do give it a go and I hope it works for both you and your baby, good luck x” – Emma, Cardiff