Attack of the boobs.

It's day four and i am still surviving motherhood (cheers!)

Despite the intensely painful nipple problem i mentioned earlier, i am still breastfeeding..

I'm simply adamant to follow thru on this even if at the end of it my boobs deflate and will probably be worst for wear.

I did not however, expect the pain to get worse. :(

I woke up in the middle of last night to rock hard boobs... and a overwhelming amount of pain on my back. After a quick google i found out that i am currently going thru the 'engorgement' phase of breastfeeding.. basically it's when you run of on collestrum and start having real milk, which then fills up your breast like inflated water balloons (but less fun).

My mother scrambled to find the Tommee Tippee breastpump we had bought a few weeks ago (luckily) in preparation for the birth.. after a quick read of the instructions, i started pumping away the pain...

To my surprise, the nipple pain was relieved as well.. which was a blessing. Don't get me wrong, it still hurt like hell, but at least it was manageable.

I managed to express two small containers of milk, and then went back to sleep.. only to be woken up a couple more times that night by Mahdi..

By 7am this morning, i literally felt like dying. Forget the major abdominal surgery i had, my breast had forsaken me and were burning up. Those last few late night feeds took it's toll on my already fragile nipples and basically left them tattered.

I woke up to Mahdi crying for more milk (which he does every hour).. and i started crying too.

I felt like i should be able to be stronger than this, and give my baby everything he needs.. i was distraught. Finally Muuzi said we should use the milk that i expressed the previous night, at least that give my breast a few hours to rest and heal. I was reluctant to try.. because i had read about nipple confusion, and how newborns should wait at least 4 weeks before being introduced to bottle teats.. but i was desperate.

Mahdi took to the bottle like a champion, and i have to say i was relieved to not have to feed him for awhile.. My plan now is to alternate between a bottle and the breast so that he gets used to both, and i can get some rest and have some time to heal.

 

My little champion at 4 days old