BABY: My Breastfeeding Story and Survival Kit

I stopped breastfeeding a few weeks ago, just a day or so before Nathan turned 9 months old. BOY IS IT LIBERATING! HELLO REGULAR BRAS! And it was perfect timing too, because Nathan just started getting his first two teeth! That would have hurt :-/

I am so happy to have been able to breastfeed him for as long as I did. It really was a privilege! Thankfully, Nathan latched immediately, and I didn’t really have any difficulty breastfeeding (aside from one clogged milk duct #PAINFUL). I know that I am very lucky in this respect because many of my friends had issues. Before I had Nathan, I decided that I wouldn’t feel any pressure to breastfeed. If it came easy, then I would do it, but if not, then fed is best and Nathan would have been fed formula exclusively.

In the hospital, I definitely felt pressure to breastfeed. Those first two nights there, we sent Nathan to the nursery to sleep, and I could feel a little judgment from the nurses that I wasn’t doing those first night feedings. I didn’t let it get to me, though, because I knew deep down that formula is just as good, and E and I desperately needed sleep!

I breastfed Nathan while I was on maternity leave, and I only started pumping a couple days before I went back to work. We bottle fed him my pumped milk a couple times before the end of my maternity leave to make sure he would take a bottle. He needed to be able to eat from a bottle in order to go to daycare!

While breastfeeding is a beautiful thing, pumping is most definitely NOT. I would hook myself up to my Spectra pump three times a day at work. While pumping didn’t hurt, I felt like a cow. It was horrible. I am actually surprised I pumped for as long as I did. I was ready to quit when Nathan was 6 months old, but it was right in the thick of flu season. The pediatrician suggested that I continue breastfeeding Nathan until the end of flu season, just to pass along additional immunity. That felt like a good reason, so I powered on through.

Unfortunately, right around 6 months my supply dropped dramatically. It felt like a good time to re-introduce formula. Thankfully, Nathan didn’t have an issue with the formula. We have been using Similac Pro Sensitive formula since it was what they gave him in the hospital. Over the last three months I had been slowly cutting out pumping and breastfeeding sessions. I was only breastfeeding Nathan once before work and then just before bedtime. Then, three weeks ago on a Thursday morning before work, I breastfed Nathan for the last time.

While it was sad, I knew that I had done so much good for him, and now I needed to do this for me! Now that I am done, I am able to reflect on all of the things that made breastfeeding easier for me. SCROLL DOWN for mini reviews of my breastfeeding essentials. I hope it is helpful!

Remember, FED IS BEST. Do what is best for you and your baby. The rest is just noise!

Breastfeeding App

Baby Feed Timer – A friend recommended that I use the Baby Feed Timer app for monitoring Nathan’s eating schedule. It is one of the BEST pieces of advice I received. It would time each feed, and then it  would ping me every three or four hours to remind me that it was time to feed Nathan again. When I started pumping it would also provide reminders to express! It made it so much easier to remember everything and it took the guess work out of when I last fed Nathan. If you are currently pregnant or just had a baby, you need to download this app NOW! It is worth every penny of the $5 it costs!

 My Favorite Nursing Bras

Hot Milk Lingerie – I picked up a few of these bras at the Big City Mom’s Biggest Baby Shower. I loved that their nursing bras looked like regular bras. Some of them were, dare I say, a little sexy! They measured me right there, and within a week the bras arrived at my door. These were the only nursing bras that I purchased before Nathan arrived.

Bravado and Kindred Bravery– A friend (TY AW) lent me her Bravado and Kindred Bravery nursing bras. They were great every day bras. I loved the seamless ones.

Lamaze – Lamaze sent me two nursing bras and a nursing tank to try. My favorite was their seamless microfiber nursing bra. It (almost) felt like I wasn’t wearing a bra!

Playtex – Playtex sent me one of their nursing bras to try and I LOVED it. It wasn’t made of the stretchy seamless maternal.

Leading Lady – Leading Lady sent me a nursing tank and nursing bra to try. The nursing tank was revolutionary. For one, it acted like Spanx. It sucked me in and it was amazing! I wore it under EVERYTHING. Sweaters, button downs. HIGHLY RECOMMEND. Their nursing bra was great as well. I tried one of their seamless bras. To me it actually wore more like a sports bra. It had a wider band. I really liked it!

Pumping Must Haves

Spectra Pump – When I was pregnant I had a hard time deciding between the Spectra and Medela pump. While I hated pumping, I would have hated it even more if I didn’t use the Spectra. The Spectra pump is powerful and relatively quiet! I regret not purchasing extra pump parts. It would have alleviated some of the stress of cleaning the pump parts each night when I got home from work.

Lansinoh Breast Milk Storage Bags – The double seal was the BEST! I tried several other milk storage bags and these were, by far, my favorite.

Pump Bag – You will need a bag to carry your pump and pump parts to work every day. I used this diaper bag as my pump bag. It has lots of pockets to store pump parts, plastic trash bags, milk storage bags, a pen, and anything else you may need!

My Favorite Nursing Friendly Outfits

Boob Design – Boob has the most adorable and functional nursing apparel. I ordered a few pieces when I was pregnant. I am actually wearing one of the Boob sweatshirts in the photo above. Their clothing makes it easy to breastfeed in public, with little to no exposure.

Asos Nursing – Asos has a great selection of nursing apparel. I ordered a few of their nursing dresses. They are fashionable and affordable!

Milk Snob Covers – These covers came in handy whenever I had to feed Nathan in public. They come in a variety of solid colors and fun patterns. See me wearing my palm print cover above! I always kept one in my bag and one in the car. You never know when your baby will be hungry!