Breastfeeding is a very wonderful and rewarding experience.

First, I’d like to share my own newborn nurse experience. My little one had a difficulty on learning how to properly latch on my breast. The breast milk was all over his face yet he doesn't get the right amount of it. I was worried because he kept on crying and I can already sense how hungry he is. Hence, I was tempted to grab a formula milk in order to satisfy his hunger yet I am so blessed to have a supportive family who lifted my spirit and gave me more strength to continue my breastfeeding journey. It was really hard! I remember that my nipples were already sore because I have to pull it out using the syringes. In that way, my baby will express the milk easier. It actually took me and my baby roughly 1 week to properly learn how to latch.

Some mothers that I encountered would really say that breastfeeding sucks because whether or not you want to breastfeed is an even a big decision, a very personal experience. Because of this, only you can decide what's best for you. You really need to factor in all the various elements so you can make an informed decision. Hopefully, I would be able to make your decision even easier, and to help guide you along the path once your decision has been made. I will write articles about every aspect of breastfeeding such as from colostrum through clogged ducts, and I'll do so in baby steps. Through my personal experience, I can really say that breastfeeding is like nothing you've ever experienced before.

The first thought that would usually come across the mind of every mother is do I have breast milk? Even the basic idea that milk will soon start spewing from your breasts is like a very odd thought. Although we know the fact that breastfeeding is a natural bodily function performed by every mammal, we still have a second thought of fear that you might not produce breast milk. Probably right now, you are on the fence about whether breastfeeding is right for you. You might even entertain the horror stories you’ve heard from your lactating friends and even from strangers. You have been warned about the pain that you will experience especially when your breast is full and you have seen the size of the nursing bras. Again as I have said earlier, whether or not you want to nurse is a big decision. If this is the case, I’ll help you make the decision of whether breastfeeding is right for you.

I’ll point the good, the bad and the ugly sides of nursing. I have actually read these facts from the book entitled “Breastfeeding Sucks”. The author of this book is Joanne Kimes. You might also want to purchase her book since it really helped me get through my breastfeeding journey with my two sons.

The GOOD

• Breast milk is the beverage of choice for your baby.

o Breast milk is easy to digest and chock-full of disease- fighting agents that help your little one stay well.
o Based on studies, a breastfed baby is less likely to, suffer from ear infections, diarrhea, colic and any possible bacterial infections.
o Also, researchers claimed that breastfeeding lowers the risk of contracting SIDS, meningitis, type I diabetes, childhood lymphomas,
allergies, asthma, and leukemia.

• Breastfeeding is better for the mother’s health as well.

o Studies have shown that women who breastfeed have a lower risk of developing ovarian cancer and postmenopausal breast cancer.
o Based on my personal experience, breastfeeding my little ones, caused my uterus to contract faster after delivery.

• Nursing is a whole lot cheaper than a formula.

o Yes of course! You don’t need to buy formula milk that cost you more pesos/ dollars.

• Breastfeeding can help you bond with your baby.

o Breastfeeding will make you and your little one both happy. I would vouch to this because taking care of a newborn baby is never easy
since sometimes you are awake 24 hours. But if you are breastfeeding him, your worries and stress will go away. Furthermore, this will
make you relax while your baby is still latching on your breast. You may rest on the bed or you may sit comfortably on the couch.
o The more rewarding experience of breastfeeding is until now that my two sons are on their toddler years, they are still very clingy to
me. They always want me to stay on their side or keep me within their sight. Sometimes, if they are crying or having a bad mood, I will
just carry them and let them cuddle my breast. This makes a lot easier to comfort them.

• You will have more free time.

o When your baby’s tummy starts rumbling, you only have to open your nursing bra and give your nipple unlike on formula milk, you have to
load up on formula every 2 weeks, sterilize the nipples and bottles, and prepare warm the formula. Feeding your little one with formula
milk demands more time.

• You will have less stress when you are on the go.

o You don’t need to lug around bottles, formula packets, water bottles, sterilizers, and bottle warmers when going out of the house. So it
is easier for you to go out anywhere without thinking of bringing too much things.

• If you are going back to work and will pump so that you can continue to feed to your baby mother’s milk, chances are you will need to take off fewer days from work. (That’s because breast milk is shown to keep your baby healthier than if you feed him formula.

• You can EAT more!

o A nursing mom needs about 500 extra calories per day in order to produce all that milk. (This is a good reason, right?)

The BAD

• You are shy and don’t want to pull a “Janet Jackson” in front of a crowd whenever it’s feeding time.
• You are afraid of how much nursing will hurt.

o You might be thinking that while your baby is latching on your breast, you might feel a little hurt. But to tell you frankly, it doesn’t
hurt at all! 
• No matter how much you may want him to, your husband will never be able to lactate, and that means he won’t be able to help out with midnight feedings (unless you pump bottles).

• You’re afraid that after you’re done breastfeeding, your breasts will sag.


o Well yes this is true. In my experience, my breast indeed sags but you this reason is never enough to stop you from nursing your baby.
Mothers should put their baby’s health as the top priority. Don’t worry about your breast sagging because like me, when I wear my bra,
it’s not obvious at all. 

The UGLY

• Breast milk poop- The poopy diaper of breastfed babies is sweeter-smelling than the poopy diapers of formula-fed ones.

o Yes, I vouch to this, every time I changed the diaper of my baby it doesn’t smell awful.

I hope that after considering several points, you might now have a decision to whether nurse your baby or not. Please don’t feel guilty if you have a serious reason for not nursing your baby. It might be because you have TB or hepatitis B, or one that’s not as serious but that still requires the use of medication that could be passed on to your baby through your breast milk, then it is perfectly understandable.

If ever that you have inverted or flat nipples, this might also be a major concern. Your breastfeeding journey might be challenging because it will be hard to get your baby to latch on to a nipple that’s gone into hiding. But please try to consider on using nipple shields and breast pumps.

As you can see, breastfeeding needs a lot of effort. But don’t easily quit and just keep on trying because it may seem hard but later on you’ll get through it.

Breastfeeding is a great achievement for every mom. It doesn't only give our baby the best and complete nutrients but also comfort. Also, breastfeeding can work wonders when our baby is hurt, sad, sick, or even when he is upset because I can attest that nursing is a great tantrum-tamer.

KUDOS to all breastfeeding moms!

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