Breast Feeding and What I Didn't Expect When I Was Expecting

Mama · 04-19-2007, 12:42 AM

Welcome, once again, to our monthly Carnival of Breastfeeding. This time we're writing on the theme...What I didn't expect when I was expecting." 

So here's my top ten list of things I didn't expect about breastfeeding when I was pregnant:

1. I had no idea that that newborns eat every two to three hours around the clock. And, that you start counting when the feeding starts, not when it stops. In other words, if you feed the baby at 9 a.m., you feed again at 11:00 a.m.

2. I didn't know what <a href=" http://www.kellymom.com/bf/concerns/mom/engorgement.html">engorgement</a> was, how to fix it, and that that it would make me look like a cartoon porn star. 

3. I could never have imagined that I'd breastfeed during an OB-Gyn exam. True story.

4. I didn't know that I could get pregnant while breastfeeding. Turns out I didn't meet the <a href=" http://www.kellymom.com/bf/normal/fertility.html#LAM">Lactational Amennhorea criteria</a> for breastfeeding as birth control.

5. I never thought my fear of dropping the baby would actually come true. I could never have imagined falling asleep while breastfeeding and that the baby (10 months) would fall out of the bed. (He was fine, thank God).

6. I didn't expect to comprehend why sleep deprivation is used as a torture device.

7. I didn't know that you can donate milk to human milk banks.

8. I never thought I would have to buy a padded bra after I had weaned my baby. I didn't realize my boobs would need all the help they can get. 

9. I didn't expect to learn how to run a blog all because of my new fixation on breastfeeding.

10. And I certainly didn't expect to write a <a href=" http://mamaknowsbreast.com/2007/04/post_4.php">book </a>about breastfeeding.

And now...I bring you what my fellow breastfeeding bloggers have to say: T<a href=" http://thelactivist.blogspot.com/">he Lactivist</a>, <a href=" http://breastfeedingmums.typepad.com/breastfeedingmums_blog/2007/04/carnival_time_w.html">Breastfeeding Mums</a>, <a href=" http://breastfeeding.blog.motherwear.com/2007/04/what_i_didnt_ex.html">The Motherwear Blog</a> and <a href=" http://www.breastfeeding123.com/breastfeeding-what-i-didnt-expect-when-i-was-expecting/">Breastfeeding123</a>.

And here are our guest bloggers: <a href=" http://motherhood.booklocker.com/2007/04/18/welcome-carnival-of-breastfeeding-readers/">Spit up on my Shoulder</a>, <a href=" http://adventuresofabreastfeedingmother.bl ogspot.com/2007/04/carnival-of-breastfeeding-what-i-didnt_18.html">Adventures of a Breastfeeding Mother</a>, <a href=" http://newmamasnest.blogspot.com/">New Mama's Nest,</a> <a href=" http://rixarixa.blogspot.com/2007/04/breastfeeding-carnival.html">The True Face of Birth</a>, <a href=" http://downwiththekids.net/2006/10/13/goodbye-booby/">Down with the Kids</a>, and <a href=" http://thespicechoir.blogspot.com/">The Spice Choir</a>.

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