Mum’s Journey: Getting in the Swing of Things

Even though it’s not the first time I’ve left him, I was still quite nervous. To be honest, I felt very overwhelmed leading up to the day.

Once I was dressed, made-up and ready to go, I was in the middle of feeding him when I realized there had been a nappy explosion. Let’s just say that we both needed to be cleaned up. I finally made it into the office and had a full session of planning meetings.

As the day went on, I could feel that I was going to need to excuse myself to express. During a break, I popped into a private meeting room with my Medela Swing Maxi and expressing bra.

Although it’s a much smaller pump than the Medela Symphony I use at home, I’m still able to express good volumes and keep the supply going while being away from Coby and my home.

As it wasn’t a dedicated breastfeeding room, I sat with my back to the frosted glass. I spent the entire time praying that nobody would walk in or peer in between the lines of frosted glass. Luckily, nobody did!

Having the Right Tools Makes All the Difference!

Saying that, it was still better than sitting in the toilet or my parked car. As women, we really put ourselves into interesting situations for the benefit of our children, especially when it comes to breastfeeding. But, I guess we wouldn’t have it any other way!

A few weeks later, Coby’s breastfeeding has improved… but it’s still not ideal. He still has at least one feed per day. He screams throughout each session and, inevitably, I have to cut it short for both of our sakes.

I’ve established that we are dealing with a pure reflux issue. As a result, the nipple shield and positional feeding didn’t make a big difference.

I have been to my local council breastfeeding clinic, which was really helpful and boosted my confidence. Thanks for the recommendation Katie!

Now, I’m exploring some other avenues to help with the reflux. The first of these is cranial osteopathy. Coby had his first treatment yesterday and we will see how things go over the next few weeks.

I’ve Got to Get Back Into Exercise

I did the 15km “Run for the Kids” (as a walk) on the weekend to raise money for the Royal Children’s Hospital. If it wasn’t for being able to express and bottle feed Coby at times, I would not have the flexibility to do things like the big walks, Pilates classes or work.

I’m so grateful that expressing has been easy. It lets me cherish my time at home with Coby even more!

How would you describe your breastfeeding journey? What advice would you give to new mums who are breastfeeding for the first time? Let’s have a chat here or on the Medela Australia Facebook page.