A challenge I never expected to face after giving birth to my sun was the issue of not producing milk! After delivering my sun, the placenta and even up until two weeks after, my breast didnt produce milk. Doctors, midwives and doulas teach that a mother begins to produce breastmilk shortly after giving birth and delivering the placenta but that was not the case for me. I remember feeling so awful and like ive failed my sun the very first day of his life and the next few weeks to come especially because breastfeeding was one of the top things I was looking forward to.
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What did i do? How did i cope?
1. Even though my breast wasnt producing milk, i still allowed my sun to suck a few times a day to stimulate the glands... encouraging them to produce milk. It was also comfort to my sun and allowed him to get him accustom to the breast and latching until milk production began.
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2. I did breast massages and heat compresses daily. Massage in the shower or just with a bit of oil through out the day. Heat compress with a hot water bag resting it on the breast/under arm area.
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3. Another thing i think greatly helped me to produce milk along with all the things previously mentioned was the organic Mother's Milk tea by Traditional Medicinals.
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4. I know you must be wondering what my sun was eating for the two weeks I wasnt producing milk! My sun was being nourished by a vegan baby formula/recipe I found online made from a mixture of hemp milk, dates (as sweetner) and sea moss gel.
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I know of quite a few women who have gone through the same issue of not producing breast milk in the first few days after giving birth... and feeling defeated, overwhelmed, frustrated and with a hungry baby looking to you jump to bottle feeding then never look back, Missing out on the beautiful and wholesome experience that is breastfeeding. If you dont wish to breastfeed, thats fine and this isn't for you! This is for the mother's who want to breastfeed but might miss out on the experience just because they think that if they didnt produce milk at birth, they never will again.