Easier Said Than Done

As those who are parents know quite well, there are a lot of things about having a child that seem easy enough...until you actually have one. One such thing I have struggled with since Simon's arrival is breastfeeding. I'll admit that before I actually had to do it myself, I thought breastfeeding must be relatively easy and I was confused as to why any woman would choose not to breastfeed her baby. However, now that I have experienced it, I completely understand why some women don't breastfeed. It is really hard! Not only do you have to ensure that your baby can latch on, suckle appropriately and coordinate swallowing with all of that, but you also have to worry about your milk supply being adequate AND you have to worry about being able to pump an adequate amount of milk for when you aren't with your baby. It's a lot to worry about right after having a baby. It is very easy to feel defeated, inadequate and like a failure if any part of the breastfeeding process doesn't work out at first. Fortunately for me, I had access to some wonderful Lactation Consultants as well as friends who have experience in breastfeeding to offer encouragement and advice. It is really important to Trenton and me that Simon is breastfed, so I am trying to do whatever I can to ensure that I can breastfeed him. Our goal is to breastfeed him for a year. Currently we are supplementing him with formula because he wasn't gaining enough weight with breast milk alone. Hopefully, I can increase my supply so that we can get rid of the formula soon. :)