During pregnancy, you may have many worries and things you are afraid of, especially if it is your first baby. Everything seems to be a new world, almost a long-distance race in which the pregnant woman seems to have to achieve certain milestones as she goes along: preparing the famous baby’s bedroom, shop for the basics and essentials to survive motherhood, getting all the relevant medical tests, worrying about weight gain and diet, deciding where to give birth. 

And then, at one point in this whole process, you might think about breastfeeding – oh dear, breastfeeding, as if I don’t have enough to worry about, right? And then you might think that surely it’s not that hard or that you’ll get help from the people that will attend your birth. However, the reality is, that resources available at most birth centers and hospitals are usually not enough for mothers to receive all the support and instructions they need to breastfeed successfully.

Every breastfeeding journey is different

Even though most of the time, mothers go into breastfeeding without great fears or prejudices about how it is going to work out, other times, some mothers do approach it with fear. They worry because they might have heard other fateful stories where breastfeeding didn’t work out or simply because they have already lived it firsthand and their first breastfeeding experience didn’t work out. Then, there are many emotions at stake.

First, remember that every breastfeeding journey is different. Even one and the same mother may have very different experiences with her different children. History does not have to repeat itself, for better or for worse.

Use fear to prepare yourself

Breastfeeding is not instinctive, at least it is not for the mother (it is for the baby), and mothers have to learn how to do it. That’s why it is advisable to visit a breastfeeding support group, even before the baby is born, although unfortunately, not all local areas have these groups. So prepare and find a virtual support group, know who to turn to in case of problems, and find a lactation consultant, such as an IBCLC, beforehand. Try to reach out to other breastfeeding mothers who can support and guide you, as all of these will be of great help.