Before you start your baby on formula, read this, breastfeeding benefits both you and your baby.

You are finally holding your precious little baby in your arms after a long 40 weeks of pregnancy. You just want to admire their precious little features but they are hungry. Often mothers have to overcome struggles; maybe you think you aren’t producing enough milk or perhaps your baby won’t attach to your breast properly. Breastfeeding doesn’t have to end there and here is why.

How Breastfeeding Benefits You And Your Baby

Breastfeeding benefits for mum

The benefits of breastfeeding extend further than just ‘breast is best’. Yes it is amazing for your baby but it is also beneficial for you, the mother. These benefits include:

• Weight loss – Producing milk for breastfeeding burns extra calories which result in pregnancy weight being lost faster. Like that isn’t reason enough!
• Emotional health – Breastfeeding encourages bonding and a stronger sense of connection between mother and baby. This results in reducing stress levels and the risk of postpartum depression.
• Lowers risk of cancers – Breastfeeding has shown to lower the risk of breast, ovarian and uterine cancer.
• Delayed menstruation – Women who breastfeed will find that as a result of feeding, their periods will be delayed. This is because the production of oestrogen and progesterone hormones are lessened by prolactin. As a result of the low level of fertility hormones breastfeeding mothers produce, it prevents ovulation and menstruation while breastfeeding.
• Feeling empowered – Having the knowledge and being able to watch you baby thrive and grow on breastmilk alone, will leave you feeling empowered. This is a wonderful way for a new mother to feel!

Breastfeeding benefits for baby

We know it is best for babies to have breast milk over formula but often we don’t know exactly why. The benefits of breastfeeding your baby is a list that goes on forever but the main ones you can identify with include:

• Breastmilk is sterile – This means there is nothing to clean, sanitise or be concerned about when feeding your baby. It is pure, sterile and perfect for your baby exactly how it is.
• More resistant to disease and infections – Antibodies are passed from the mother through breastfeeding to the baby, which strengthens their immune system.
• Formulated to suit your baby – Breastmilk has all the nutrients required in perfect dosages to suit your baby and their needs. With thousands of different ingredients, such as proteins, fats, lactose, vitamins, iron, minerals, enzymes, probiotics and stem cells. Breast milk is completely unique.
• First immunisation –Many of the proteins in breast milk are designed to kill bacteria and pathogens, while others act as immune barriers. Breast milk is technically your baby’s first immunisation.
• Gentle on tummies – As a result of it being tailored to perfectly meet the needs of your growing child. It is gentle on tummies and easy to digest thanks to the enzymes already packaged within it.
• Bonding and closeness – While this also benefits the mother, it has beneficial physical effects the baby. It calms the heart rate, increases oxygen levels and regulates breathing in addition to reducing crying.

Other breastfeeding benefits

It is great that breastfeeding benefits both mum and baby but the positive results don’t end there.

• Good for environment – There is no need to recycle tins, clean bottles, sterilise teats, etc.
• It is 100% natural.
• Convenient – You don’t need to prepare bottles prior to leaving the house in case your baby gets hungry. You have the convenience of it being ‘on tap’.
• Eases finances – It is FREE! Because it costs nothing, it eases the financial burden of purchasing formula.

Breastfeeding benefits come in many different forms but just because it is natural, does not mean it is always easy. If you are struggling and want to breastfeed, ask for help or visit Australian Breastfeeding Association online for more information. While breastfeeding is best for your baby, it is sometimes not what is best for the mother or family. This is perfectly OK as well; your baby is being fed, loved and looked after. Parents of formula fed babies should not feel inadequate or guilty by their decision.

Did you find breastfeeding easy and natural? Did you struggle? Was it simply not for you?

Share your tips below to help other mums on this journey?

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Bonding with your baby through feeding

Bringing a new baby home is an amazing feeling. It is exciting. It is scary. It can be very overwhelming but it can also be the most important time of your life. Being able to bond with your baby is such a magical and unexplainable sentiment and for many women breastfeeding helps to establish this deep connection with our baby. Because of this we always hear about how important it is for women to breastfeed because of the advantages it gives both mum and baby but what about dads?

How are dads supposed to bond with their babies when they can’t breastfeed? With teamwork is how. The benefits of mum expressing milk help not only her but also dad and baby. First time dads especially feel like they are left out of the process when it comes to feeding so when a women expresses milk it not only gives dad a chance to bond with his baby through feeding; it also allows the baby’s mum a chance to enjoy a cup of tea/coffee, enjoy a sleep in or even be able to embrace her partner enjoying the closeness of their baby. As I said it’s magical. Even though dads don’t often express their needs where their baby is concerned, dads want to be able to feel this closeness and bond with their baby just as much as mums do. Bonding with your baby through feeding is a great place to start which is easy for mothers who breastfeed and often why they express breast milk.

There are so many breast pumps on the market that it makes it hard to know which one will be suited to you, which pumps works and which ones are a waste of money. My younger sister and brother-in-law have just experienced the beauty of bringing their first baby into the world which also meant she had been searching for the right breast pump in preparation of their baby being born. She was anticipating returning to work and expressing is a must for her as she wanted to breastfeed her son. She also wanted her partner to be able to experience the feeding process and do night feeds (because no one wants to get up every single time). This is when I received an email asking if I wanted to review the Medela Swing Maxi Double Electric Breast Pump. I called my sister and asked her if she was interested and she was beyond thrilled because she was looking at Medela for her pump mainly because she had heard nothing but great reviews. This particular pump retails for $449.00.

Medela Swing Maxi Double Electric Breast Pump Review

Set Up and Cleaning
The first thing I noticed about the pump after opening the box and taking all the parts out of their individually sealed bags was how simple it is to set up. Without even looking at the directions you can see exactly what fits where. Once I had it all together, I checked the instructions to ensure I set it up properly and to my surprise they are extremely simple and easy to understand. Don’t be scared by the size of the manual.

Before using the Medela breast pump; I sterilised all the equipment. Step by step directions on how to clean are included in the manual which makes it basically fool proof. This can be done by hand washing, putting through the dishwasher or boiling. It took minimal time from start to finish to take apart the breast pump and clean it which is made even more enticing by the fact that all the parts are easy to wipe dry or can be left on a cloth to air dry.

Using the Breast Pump
I think what makes the Medela swing stand out compared to other pumps is the ‘2 phase expression’; which is the 2 stimulation phases that mimics the breastfeeding rhythm. The first stage encourages a milk let down and after 2 minutes the pump will automatically change to the second phase; the ‘expression’ phase, which imitates a long sucking motion similar to the one of a baby. If your milk starts to flow prior to the second phase, you can press the button and it will start the expression phase. I personally found it never took more than 30 seconds to get a good flow to then switch to the expression but as everyone is different you may need the full two minutes in stage one. Both stages are exceptionally comfortable and gentle on the breasts and nipples and the vacuum can be adjusted to suit your need at the time. I used mine mainly as my milk was ‘coming in’ days after my baby was born and there were times my breasts were too sore to even touch yet I could still use the Medela breast pump comfortably.

It took me approximately 10 minutes to pump both breasts and I would get around 100mL from each. What made it even easier was after you finish pumping you can just pop the storage lids in the bottles and store right in the fridge until they are needed. I use the double pump most frequently but it can also be used as a single pump, either of options offer the same great performance.

My favourite part about this pump is the fact that I was able to express breastmilk for my partner to be able to feed bub. It not only allowed him to provide our baby his feeds throughout the night when I needed that extra sleep but he was also given the opportunity to experience that special bonding time that without the pump he wouldn’t be able to do.

Storage
If there wasn’t enough to love about this pump already, the lack of space it requires to store should be added to the list. I was able to keep it in a container on a cupboard shelf where it took up minimal room. The Medela Swing Breast Pump is very portable as you are able to clip the motor onto your clothes and move around the house or store in your handbag for use while out and about thanks to it having the option to operate on batteries (6 AAA).

Pros
The efficiency from start to finish makes a light work load of expressing breast milk thanks to the simultaneous expression in combination with the 2-Phase which ultimately saves you time. The range of vacuum levels and settings allows you to be in control of your comfort and still gain maximum efficiency from the breast pump.

The Medela breast pump is very easy to assemble, use, clean and store. Thanks to how light and compact the pump is, it makes expressing flexible by offering use on batteries or the main adapter.

It allows my baby the opportunity to bond with his dad through feeding.

Cons
It’s very hard to fault this pump! I found that while pumping you have to hold a constant pressure with the shield onto your breast which can become difficult while you’re double pumping. This can be resolved by purchasing an ‘easy expression bustier’ which allows hands-free expressing.

I also noticed the pump makes a bit of noise during use and the harder you set your vacuum the louder it becomes.

Medela Breastfeeding Starter Kit

This kit contains everything a mother needs in those first few weeks of breastfeeding and expressing. It offers an easy and safe way to collect and store breast milk in addition to feeding while containing products that help make mum more comfortable and sooth sensitive nipples for months to come.

This Medela breastfeeding starter kit contains:
• 1x Calma, breastmilk feeding device (specially designed teat that mimics the natural rhythm of breastfeeding)
• 2x 150ml Bottles with multi lids
• 12x Disposable nursing pads
• 1x Purelan 100 7g
• 1x Quick clean microwave bag
• 5x pump and save bags

The Calma lets your baby feed in a way that is similar to breastfeeding which allows for easy transition between the two. Thanks to its one size and shape fits all, your baby will be satisfied from birth until weaning off milk. Just like a nipple.

This kit is suitable for every woman that is breastfeeding or expressing and is the number one choice of hospitals and mothers. I highly recommend it for all your storing, feeding, breast care and breastmilk management in those first few weeks and months! RRP $49.90.

Prize Includes: 1x Medela Breastfeeding Starter Pack. RRP $49.90.

**As the winners are chosen based on skill and not chance; you will be sharing for 0 extra entries however I’d love you to share the giveaway with friends and family. Sharing is caring and karma loves kind people. **

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3. Winners must make contact within 72 hours.
4. This is a game of skill. Chance plays no part!
Therefore no extra points are given for sharing however it is good karma!!
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Disclosure: I received the above product for the purpose of this review. All opinions are my own and my sisters.

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*This post is now a tad outdated as it sat in my drafts for months. I thought it had been published and no one cared for the post but it turns out I hadn’t hit publish! So here is the post about my journey breastfeeding my now 11 month old daughter*

Me and Poppet

I’m sure you all know that I have a 12 week old baby, if you don’t than you must be new around here so welcome. Anyway, what you may not know is that I am a breastfeeding mum. I am not anti-formula. I believe whatever you are comfortable doing as a mum is what is best for baby and that not everyone can breastfeed. I however can and do ~ proudly! I breastfed both my boys when they were babies however they were mix-fed from early on and shortly after were 100% formula. This was not entirely by choice but more that my supply couldn’t keep up with their very healthy appetite. B1 was approx. 8 weeks old and B2 was approx. 10 weeks old before they were no longer satisfied.

I was not discouraged when I couldn’t continue to breastfeed them, it was just not meant to be. They were being fed formula and their appetites were being fulfilled so I was content knowing that they were happy and healthy. Now as I mentioned I have a 12 week old baby girl and I am so pleased to report that I am still breastfeeding – successfully! In the first week it was touch and go as she had attachment issues and caused severe damage and bleeding to my nipples but with the help of some amazing nipple shields (*Tommee Tippee Miomee Silicone Nipple Shields*) we resolved those first initials hiccups and allowed myself time to heal while still being able to breastfeed and continue to do so. Poppet is feeding like a champion and without any further complications; I wasn’t expecting to be breastfeeding for any time in particular but used the timeline of the boys as a guide. We have however surpassed and exceeded the duration I thought I was ever destined to breastfeed for and with Hadley being so content and happy to continue; I am feeling so pleased that I am finding it hard to explain in words. I am beyond proud of myself and if I can say in all honesty I feel like I have a closer bond with her because we have accomplished this together. If I had to stop breastfeeding her tomorrow I would be able to do so knowing that we gave it everything we had and I gave her the best start to life I could. This may be my third child but I am amazed at how much you can still learn, how much more you can grow as a person and how each day you can be proud of everything you accomplish as a woman and mother.

*This post is NOT sponsored in any which way. I mentioned the nipple shields as they were an amazing help to me and recommend them to anyone who finds themselves in the same situation.

The post Breastfeeding how you’re comfortable! appeared first on All Mum Said.

Being able to bond and feel those moments of closeness with your baby is one of the most magical and memorable moments in a parents life; I have been very fortunate to have had that instant connection with all my children and I couldn’t imagine it being any other way. With each of my three babies the activities we’ve bonded over have been different but no less special than the others. My eldest son used to love his bath time – the water, the laughter, the fun and who could forget the suddy beards. The moments before bedtime were used to bond with my 2nd son, watching his eyes softly close as he embraced my comforting snuggles and my daughter who is now 10 months old while she is comparable to koala in the way that they love to cuddle around everything, we have been fortunate enough to be able to bond over feeding. My boys only breastfed for 3 months so I felt we never really had a chance to bond fully over that particular experience whereas Poppet was fully breastfed (plus solids) until approx. 8 months and still has night feeds of breast milk now which I believe has allowed us to experience that closeness that mums often talk about.

While not every parent is able to connect instantly with their babies, it should be known that that bond come often grow from these moments of closeness. You don’t have to breastfeed to bond with your baby. You don’t have to have actually grown your baby to have a special bond. YOU are SPECIAL and you ARE the world to your baby, that in itself is a bond to be cherished.

Moments of closeness freebies & giveaway

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 Want to win a soother / pacifier gift pack? Enter below to win 4 packs of Closer to nature 0-6 month soothers. Total $44 (1 x ANY TIME, 1 x FUN STYLE, 1 x AIR TIME & 1 x NIGHT TIME. SOOTHERS RRP $11 ea)

**As the winners are chosen based on skill and not chance; you will be sharing for 0 extra entries. It’s good karma though and I’d love you to share the giveaway with friends and family**

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