This post is just to share with you a little about breastfeeding essentials or what you need to buy and prepare before the little one arrives.. This is 100% based on my own experience & no sponsors or whatever here.. I'm here to share and hope my fellow breastfeeding mommies or mommies to be who plan to breastfeed their babies will find it useful, yeah? :)
I have been breastfeeding my baby boy for 8 months & I wrote quite a bit here and there about my breastfeeding journey, so far, I found breastfeeding is very rewarding & breast milk is the best gift I can provide to my baby boy.. Looking him growing up so well, I just feel happy & proud of myself :)
Here are my breastfeeding essentials/kits:
1) Pregnancy/Breastfeeding Pillow
Mine is called "Big Floppy" This pillow can be used during pregnancy (for better support during sleeping especially when you need to sleep on your left side) and breastfeeding/nursing your baby.
At 8 months old, I stopped direct latching because he kept biting during nursing and it hurt, oh boy! but I still use this pillow during milk pumping.. I love to put my Ipad on top of this nursing pillow, browse Facebook or watch YouTube while expressing my milk.. (I pump on my bed, so I absolutely need this!)
I found breastfeeding pillow useful during early months, especially when I wasn't that good in carrying & nursing him at the same time.. And when my arms felt sore, this pillow provided good support. However, as he grew older, I was actually able to manage to breastfeed him without nursing pillow :)
2) Ipad
Merely for entertainment.. It's gonna be boring to just sit down & pump for 20-30 minutes.
3) Breast Pump and Lots of Bottles for milk storage
I'm using Medela freestyle double electric pump and so far, it's the best! It's super effective to clear milk & produce the amount my baby needs for exclusive breast milk
I bought lots of Medela bottles too for milk storage.. I have 7 bottles in total. My baby is fed fresh breast milk only and no frozen breast milk... So, 7 bottles are enough!
4) Tissues
Oh, yeah, I need lots of these to wipe a little milk here and there.. You will know what I mean!
5) Water
Breastfeeding makes me extra thirsty, so water is a must during milk pumping.. I drink 3 liter of water a day during breastfeeding.. Less water, less milk!
6) Pump Bra
Mine is from this brand, "Simple Wishes" and I have 2 of these bras, one in pink and another one in black :) and so far, it helps me so much and I can't pump milk without this.. This brand provides extra security, so no leaking at all and I can produce good amount too. Basically, when I have this bra on, I can have my both hands to do other things such as reading magazine, playing games on Ipad or even doing my make-up.. Totally hands-free! The best innovation ever! A-Must-Buy, mommies!!
7) Nipple Cream
Mine is from MotherCare and 100% pure lanolin. This makes my nipples much better, it heals dryness & cracks. It's also safe for my baby to nurse after I put this nipple cream on.. My suggestion is if you want to buy nipple cream, make sure that it's safe for baby consumption (or you don't need to wash prior feeding)
8) Mother's Milk Tea
The best lactating tea ever.. I drank this tea to increase my milk supply and oh, man, it worked like wonder.. I was able to pump 900 ml a day. I drank this tea 2 times a day and stopped when my supply was enough :)
9) BlackMores Pregnancy & Breastfeeding Gold
I have 2 capsules a day. I like this brand because besides it has all the vitamins & minerals my baby needs, it contains fish oil/omega too.. Fish Oil/Omega is good for brain development.. Basically, I drink this, so my breast milk contains enough vitamins, omega, iron, etc for my baby's development :)
These are optional items:
10) Nursing Shirt.
I bought it but I never wore it to nurse my baby.. I didn't feel comfortable to nurse him outside, instead he had expressed milk in a bottle when we were outside!
11) Nursing Cover
I bought this too but I found I was wasting money as I never nursed him outside.. I used it inside the house though, when my relatives were at my house & I needed to breastfeed him in the living room.. I also used this when I needed to pump milk in other places, other than my room.
What is this for?
I use this to clean my nipples! I'm pumping milk instead of direct latching, so I got lots of these dirty white stuff on my nipples, look like dried milk or something. Just wet cotton bud and clean it! I personally think it's important to keep nipples clean to prevent blockage!
It's optional, you can use clean cloth to clean nipples too :) but I like this!
For direct latching, I absolutely didn't need this.. Baby's mouth is super effective to clean nipples and clear milk blockage :)
Here he is, my breastfed baby boy :)
Absolutely healthy & growing up well. At 8 months old, he's able to walk while holding into sofa or play yard gates. An excellent development for his age!
Happy Breastfeeding, mommies!! Just drop me an email @ netty_lie83@hotmail.com if you want to ask me anything everything under the sun regarding breastfeeding.. I hope my experience can help yeah :)
Until Next Sharing,
Netty
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