MAA – The Mom Series (Bonus Post)

Hello to all my lovely readers, as promised I am bringing to you the 1st Bonus Post of The Mom Series for the month of December, The Breastfeeding Journey. I feel so proud and elated right now while sharing this story of an awesome mom that I am falling short of words. What to say about her? Have you ever felt battling with something big that once you are over with it you decide to work towards it to spread the awareness, so that no one else goes through the similar struggles.

Well, this mom is one such person, she faced challenges right after her delivery but she was determined and never lost hope. Let’s read her very inspiring story in her own words.

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My Breastfeeding Journey

–By Sapna Krishnan

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When I was pregnant, I wasn’t prepared for anything and had zero knowledge about the whats and the hows. Also, I worked until my 7th month, quit and then went to my hometown for my delivery. There I had a c-section and was in the ICU where my daughter, Tanirika was brought to me 2 hours post-surgery.

While at the hospital – The first latch

I had no idea what getting the right latch was during breastfeeding. The nurse tried to help but gave up after 3 tries. She asked my mother to take the baby back to the room and bring her later to try again. I had no clue what was happening.

She was brought back an hour later, maybe because she was crying in hunger. We tried again but she didn’t latch. It was a new nurse on shift and she shouted at my mother for not being able to help me. It broke my heart and being high on hormones, I unleashed myself on the nurse. She apologized and my daughter was taken back again, hungry.

It slowly started to sink in that my baby was hungry and wasn’t getting my feed. The hospital did not even start her on formula. I was moved to the room a little later. Seeing how helpless we were, the nurses in charge of that floor came to help us. And we got the first latch, although not right. It hurt but I kept at it thinking that was normal. My cousin who stayed back asked me to sit through it because feeding the baby was more important than the pain of a wrong latch.

Back to home – Support from BSIM

It was all good at the hospital but hell broke loose when we got home. The pain was unbearable and my daughter had begun to cluster feed. I was advised against nursing while lying down. The first night and she cried her lungs through it because I couldn’t keep her on my breast any longer and I was told I didn’t have enough milk because it wasn’t leaking.

I cried for the next few hours with the baby wailing in my cousin’s arms. I felt like a horrible and incapable mother already, on day 4. My cousin assured me that it is going to be fine and I just need to eat and drink well and my body will make the necessary milk. Determined to only breastfeed my baby, I ate 9 times a day. Oh yes, I wanted to throw up most times but I had to do it if that is what is going to help me breastfeed. Nothing else mattered. Every time she cried, she was on the breast. All other times, I was eating. Sleep? Well, I had no idea, because I kept alarms to wake up to eat/drink.

This went on for a month and then I couldn’t handle it. I stumbled upon Breastfeeding Support for Indian Mothers (BSIM) on Facebook. I studied every post and went through all the documents, links and websites. Finally, I saw the light at the end of the tunnel. Everything felt normal. It may not sound right, but you feel a little better when you know you aren’t alone. The baby was on the breast more, my meals reduced and I became human again.

The Next Hurdle –  To Nurse In Public (NIP)

I had no idea how people did it. Someone suggested a front open (with zipper at the center) dress and although I thought it was a brilliant idea, reality hit when I had to use it. I wasn’t comfortable exposing and the dress did just that and I ended up being confined to the 4 walls.

It drove me mad and I had to do something about it. Why should I stop living because I had a baby? I did a little research and started my own brand in nursing wear by the name, T&S – Threads & Shuttles. Slowly, I realized while I was enjoying what I was doing, I wanted to do more. My hard time around breastfeeding was because of no knowledge around it; thankfully my family was pro-breastfeeding but wasn’t aware of the right techniques.

But there are so many parents who are struggling a lot because of the myths that a new mother is brainwashed with. Breastfeeding requires a lot of dedication in the first year and with the right support and guidance, it gets smoother by the day.

Keeping this in mind, I decided to bring forth the breastfeeding journeys of many inspiring mothers through my blog, Threads & Shuttles. If it helps even one mother to breastfeed her baby, I think I have won it all.

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You are definitely winning it Sapna. Spreading the awareness by bringing out the inspirational breastfeeding stories of many mothers, you are doing a great job. Thank you so much for sharing your story with us.

I loved reading Sapna’s breastfeeding story, hope you all liked it too. Show her some love by leaving your comments in the below section. Sharing the post is always appreciated.

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You can read all the stories of The Mom Series from November >> Here <<