The 2-shirt method makes it incredibly easy to feed in public. Just sit down (wherever you are), pull up your top shirt, pull down your under shirt, latch your baby and voila, you're feeding your little babe.
Aim your baby's lower lip away from the base of your nipple. Baby's lips should be turned outward like a fish. Your baby should lead into the breast chin first and then latch onto your breast. Your baby's tongue should be extended, and your breast should fill your baby's mouth.
With your baby's head tilted back and chin up, lift him or her to touch your nipple. The nipple should rest just above the baby's upper lip. Wait for your baby to open very wide, then "scoop" the breast by placing the lower jaw on first. Now tip your baby's head forward and place the upper jaw well behind your nipple.
Don't drink alcohol when you're breastfeeding. Alcohol includes beer, wine, wine coolers and liquor. If you do drink alcohol, don't have more than two drinks a week. Wait at least 2 hours after each drink before you breastfeed.
The cross-cradle hold is ideal for early breastfeeding. Sit up straight in a comfortable chair with armrests. Bring your baby across the front of your body, tummy to tummy. Hold your baby in the crook of the arm opposite the breast you're feeding from — left arm for right breast, right arm for left.
Position baby close to you, with his hips flexed, so that he does not have to turn his head to reach your breast. His mouth and nose should be facing your nipple. His body should be so close that he is touching you. If possible, ask your helper to hand you the baby once you are comfortable.
“The first four to six weeks are the toughest, then it starts to settle down,” says Cathy. “And when you get to three months, breastfeeding gets really easy – way easier than cleaning and making up a bottle.
"Something I recommend to moms is the 5-5-5 rule," Pawlowski says. "Try and use milk within five hours at room temperature, five days if in the refrigerator, and five months if in the freezer."
Foods like beans, broccoli, cauliflower, or some dairy products can cause fussiness, gassiness, or colicky behavior in some babies. Foods like cow's milk, soy, wheat, corn, oats, eggs, nuts and peanuts, and fish or shellfish are common allergy-causing foods.
Use the “flipple” technique to get as much of your breast tissue into your baby's mouth as possible. Point your nipple very high towards their nose, try to get as much of the bottom part of your areola into your baby's mouth and use your finger to flip their top lip up after they have latched on.
How Long Does Nursing Take? Newborns may nurse for up to 20 minutes or longer on one or both breasts. As babies get older and more skilled at breastfeeding, they may take about 5–10 minutes on each side.
During the newborn period, most breastfeeding sessions take 20 to 45 minutes. However, because newborn babies are often sleepy, this length of time may require patience and persistence. Feed on the first side until your baby stops suckling, hands are no longer fisted, and your baby appears sleepy and relaxed.
Switch nursing- switching breasts several times during a feeding has been shown to increase milk supply. Gently massage breast before and during feedings. Use relaxation techniques to reduce stress and promote the flow of breast milk. Provide skin to skin time with your baby for about 20 minutes after feeds.
Adequate hydration also is important for breast milk production. The amount of liquid you put into your body affects how much breast milk you can produce. I encourage women to carry a bottle of water for themselves in their diaper bag.
Generally, moms should be pumping every 3 hours. Pumping more often can help stimulate breasts to produce more milk. Moms can try pumping both breasts for 15 minutes every two hours for 48-72 hours. Then moms can return to their normal pumping routine. Pumping for longer than 30 minutes may not be beneficial.
What are the “3 Golden Hours”? The 3 Golden Hours refer to the immediate hours after a mother gives birth. It's so important that mothers are given the opportunity to be skin to skin with their babies during these 3 hours to breastfeed their baby and form that immediate bond.
Your “magic number” is the number of times you need to empty your breasts per 24 hours in order to keep your supply robust. On average, your magic number is 8 (hence the recommendation to breastfeed every 3 hours).
I still recommend the 240-minute rule by nursing/pumping for 30 minutes up to 8 times a day for the first 12 weeks then reassess. If you are nursing and pumping, you would just subtract your nursing time that 30 minute session.
How long to continue breastfeeding for is a personal decision for your family to make. The World Health Organization recommends exclusive breastfeeding (i.e. no other fluids or solids) for six months and then continued breastfeeding combined with solid foods for 2 years or as long as mother and baby desire.
“A newborn feeding can take 20 to 40 minutes, but by the time they get to be three months old, they often cut way back on feeding duration,” says Nancy Mohrbacher, IBCLC, FILCA and author of Breastfeeding Answers Made Simple: A Guide for Helping Mothers.