One of the things we don’t expect when we think about weaning is that it can trigger so many emotions in ourselves and our children. And yes, weaning can be a hotspot of many feelings that arise before, during, and after the weaning process. These feelings don’t just affect us; they can also influence our baby’s behavior, which can be very scary. Let’s talk about it! When starting to think about weaning When you start thinking about weaning, when you…
When I became a mother and started going to breastfeeding support groups, a fact that surprised me a lot was that mastitis was called the “disease of the veterans.” The term “veterans” was used to refer to mothers with babies from 3 months of age, those who never had great difficulties with breastfeeding but who, at that point and without warning, suffered from mastitis. We used to say that these mastitis were caused by the mothers’ confidence: the baby slept…
Combination feeding means feeding your baby a combination of breastmilk/breastfeeding and formula feeding. Whatever your reason for combination feeding, we want to help you to maintain it for as long as you want. Usually, two problems happen when you want to maintain mixed feeding and avoid giving up breastfeeding: So if your decision is to maintain combination feeding, you have to take into account these 4 basic guidelines: 1. Give the breast first Whenever possible, breastfeed first and leave formula…
What if breastmilk tastes salty? Breast milk contains a large volume of lactose, which gives it a surprising and unmistakable sweet taste. However, under certain circumstances, it can change its taste from sweet to very salty. Many mothers have noticed this, which can be a reason for worry. Why does it happen? The cells where human milk is made are lined up side by side. During pregnancy and the first days of a baby’s life, these cells stay separate before…
Suppose a nursing mother feels a lump in her breast. Once it has been ruled out that this is a circumstance related to breastfeeding, the mother should see a healthcare provider or gynecologist expert in breast pathologies and have the appropriate diagnostic tests. But when this process begins, many questions arise, and often, mothers are invited to stop breastfeeding altogether at this point, either before or during the tests. Today we answer the most common questions about this case, so…
Mothers are told over and over again that breastfeeding needs to be offered on demand. What does this mean? Every time babies ask for or seem to want breast milk, you give them access to your breast so they can feed for as long as they need and as many times as they need, without any limits. What demand for breastfeeding can you expect from your baby? The expectations of breastfeeding demand you might have before becoming a mother are…
When you are breastfeeding a newborn baby, you are the mother, and you are in charge. It may sound radical when you hear it like that, but what we mean is that it is you, the mother, who decides which breast to give your baby each time. Just by feeling both your breasts a little, you can simply decide which side’s turn it is. Your baby needs to follow your decision and take whatever side they are offered. If you…
Relactation is the process of restoring a mother’s breast milk supply after it has decreased or disappeared altogether. For various reasons, mothers may wish to stop supplementing the artificial formula they give their infants and attempt to resume exclusive breastfeeding. Correcting the cause of relactation Before starting with the relactation process, the causes that led to the initiation of supplementing formula must be investigated as in some situations, it will be very unlikely that relactation can be achieved. These situations…
The fountain in the picture is in the city of Nuremberg (Germany) and depicts the six Virtues: Faith, Hope, Charity, Courage, Temperance, and Patience, crowned by the figure of Justice. All 6 statues have “milk” in the form of water coming out of their breasts and spraying out. Most women are worried about having too little breast milk, so this amount of milk is almost everyone’s dream: a free flow of milk sprays! Many mothers may wish for this, but…
Although you may have heard that babies breastfeed constantly, when your baby arrives, it may actually surprise you how often they nurse. Usually, we are simply not prepared for this! Babies breastfeed for many months, from 8 to 12 times in any 24 hours, which means that you will spend many hours with your baby glued to your breast. You also have to remember that babies take a long time to complete a feed during their first months. They can…