Birth Day Tips

The following is from Day 1 of our ebook "Breastfeeding Success in the First 10 Days After Birth, available here: https://a.co/d/7JrOQtP

Congrats on the birth of your little one! You should start expressing (meaning nursing, hand expressing, and/or pumping) in the first 30-60 minutes after birth, and continue expressing on demand whenever your baby is hungry (when your baby is fussing, rooting, putting their hand in their mouth, or smacking their lips). See below for more about what to do in the first hour after birth.

Did you know that the terms “breastfeeding,” “chestfeeding,” and “bodyfeeding” simply mean feeding your baby human milk? So these terms include nursing as well as pumping and hand expressing to bottle feed.

This e-book walks you through our Healthy Milkies program, and the Healthy Milkies program uses the term “expressing” because it means the removal of milk; whether it is done via nursing, pumping, or expressing by hand. Talking about expressing is important because the amount and timing of milk removal during the first couple of weeks after birth tells your body how much milk to produce in the future days, weeks, and even months down the road.

Starting on the second day (not today!), it will be time to begin the Healthy Milkies program of expressing at least 8 times (often even 10+ times - many newborns nurse 10-12+ times) per day. The amount of milk being produced when your baby is two weeks old is correlated with having a sufficient milk supply months down the road so be sure to follow the Healthy Milkies program (including Daily Tips) in this e-book!

The upcoming Daily Tips will help you have a successful and healthy milk making experience. The information in the Daily Tips might sound like a lot, but it is broken down in relevant sections for each day that are short summaries of what you need to know. Your efforts now will help make sure that you have a healthy milk supply even months in the future!

In the 1st hour after birth:

• Delay cord clamping to increase baby’s iron and blood volume.

• Provide lots of skin-to-skin contact to increase beneficial hormones.

• Start nursing (or expressing) in the first 30-60 minutes after birth, or as soon as possible.

• Continue to nurse on demand (or express on demand - if you are not nursing, express to get enough colostrum for each feeding that your baby demands (in the first several days after birth, hand expressing is generally more successful than pumping).

  • Hand expressing colostrum will help increase milk production (see www.mayabolman.com for more detailed support).

  • Make sure to always express enough colostrum/milk to feed your baby (until your baby is satisfied) every time your baby wants to nurse, whether this is by nursing, hand expressing, and/or pumping.

• Delay bathing your baby for 24+ hours to assist with bonding and milk production.

• A review of decades of research does not support the use of nipple creams when nursing unless prescribed by a doctor (e.g., for thrush or infection) - this is because nipple creams (including lanolin and hydrogels) may change the moisture content of the skin and therefore increase the chance of nipple damage (aka moisture associated skin damage (MASD)) and also increase healing time if the skin is damaged.

  • If broken skin on the nipple may adhere to a breast pad or clothing when healing, nipple cream may be used to prevent adhesion.

Over the next few days, your breasts will produce colostrum until your milk comes in around Days 2-4. Your baby will lose weight during these first few days, and then begin gaining weight again by the end of the week (be mindful that, if IV fluids are given during labor, this can increase baby’s initial weight loss).

If you want to give your baby a pacifier in the weeks soon after birth, be aware that research is conflicting about whether it can be detrimental to breastfeeding by lowering breastmilk supply (more about this on Day 6 Tips).

While in the hospital, you can request assistance from a lactation consultant. However, not all lactation consultants have the same level of training. If you need more help during your nursing/pumping journey, lactation consultants with the highest level of training and certifications are called “IBCLC” (which stands for International Board Certified Lactation Consultant®) and you can find one at https://ilca.org/why-ibclc-falc/ and there are virtual consultants available. Remember that you might want to request 2nd and 3rd opinions.

Before you leave the hospital, some hospitals will give you a free manual pump, so be sure to ask before you’re discharged!

If you and your baby are separated after birth, consider hand expressing until your milk comes in, then hand expressing after (or in addition to) pumping so you can establish a sufficient milk supply for future months. Continue to follow the Healthy Milkies program of expressing as described in the upcoming Daily Tips.

Remember that every person and baby is an individual, and what is true for one may not be true for another. Having a baby is a huge milestone that comes with its own learnings, joys, and challenges. Use the tips that work best for you, and if something doesn’t work well then move on to try something else. We look forward to supporting you in this journey!