Milky Mama of the Month!
For the lovely month of January, we want to highlight mama, Charisse M.!
We asked, and Charisse answered! Keep reading to hear about Charisse, her unique breastfeeding journeys, and her motivational advice. We can all learn from one another’s stories and we look forward to highlighting a Milky Mama every month!
“I know this journey is going to be worth it and I am not giving up whatsoever!”
Charisse has breastfed all 3 of her kids. She is currently breastfeeding her third beautiful baby and has been breastfeeding him for four months. Charisse says, “It takes me about two to three months until I feel like our (breastfeeding) relationship is established properly.” After coming home from the hospital her son is still gaining weight and she is nursing on demand. She says, “I love breastfeeding. Our relationship is just so good! He latches on well and gets the amount of milk he needs to fill his belly…I’d say my breastmilk is enough to feed my growing baby boy” who weighed in at 13 pounds at two months old.
Charisse Overcomes Difficulties
Charisse has had different breastfeeding experiences with each of her children. Her first baby had tongue tie at birth. She experienced raw, cracked, dry and bleeding nipples because of his tongue tie. With her second child, her daughter, she experienced numerous clogged ducts. To get rid of the clogged ducts, Charisse used a few different methods. She continued to breastfeed and use her daughter to loosen and pull out the clogs. She also used her breast pump on the highest setting she could stand. However, she cites that the best method to get rid of clogged ducts is to massage the clogged duct while in a hot or very warm shower or bath. Then, after the massage and warm compress, breastfeed or pump right away. Massaging the breast and clogged area the entire time while breastfeeding or pumping also helped her. Charisse said it was no longer painful to pump or feed and that’s how she knew it was unclogged.
Recently, Charisse has been sick and stressed. She is currently breastfeeding as much as possible, including waking up in the middle of the night to pump, which she states is “crucial” for her to retain her supply, and she is pumping while at work. She has seen a dip in her supply since being sick, but she is persistent! To overcome her dip, she has decided to power pump 1-2 times a day for a week straight. Charisse is going to take vitamins and supplements to help her build her supply back up. She says she wants to “keep this breastfeeding journey going until he is a year old”. Way to set goals and do what you can to achieve them, Charisse!
Charisse and Pumping at Work
A lot of moms have issues with their supply when they return to work because they are not able to pump as often as they would nurse at home. To overcome this obstacle, Charisse made sure her boss knew how important it was for her to be able to comfortably pump at work. She states, “I am not a shy person, so secrecy for me isn’t that big of a deal. I work with only females, so that is another thing that makes it easier to pump.” Her coworkers also have her back, “if males enter the building, they would advise them to stay out of where I was pumping at, until I was done.” While she nurses on demand at home, at work she pumps every 3 hours for 30 minutes each session. What works for Charisse is being honest and open about her desire to be able to successfully pump at work, and making her needs known and sticking to her goal of being able to provide breastmilk for her 4 month old son.
Charisse’s Advice
Charisse has breastfed three different babies. She explains that she has had a different experience with each one, but from each experience she has taken her mistakes, learned and grown from them. Charisse recalls,
"With my first, I was so exhausted and frustrated. I felt like I was not producing enough to even feed him or to make him full. However, I was dead wrong! I was producing so much breast milk I never even noticed because it was the first time I ever did it. If I knew then what I know now, I would have never given up at 3 months postpartum. I literally felt like I was a failure, I was not enough to feed my baby. I completely gave up after 3-4 months and I regretted it 100%."
However, Charisse had been pumping though, and had built up a stash large enough to last until she made the switch over to regular milk. Charisse implores, “So please take it from me, you are enough, even if you are producing 1-2 ounces every session, do not get discouraged because those 1-2oz build up quickly.” With her second child, her daughter, she breastfed and pumped for 8 months. She started pumping sooner than she did with her first born, because she returned to work sooner. While she still felt like she wasn’t able to build up as much of a supply, her breast milk was still enough for her daughter to continue to grow and blossom! Now with her third child, she is four months in. She says, “So far, I am not going to lie, this journey has been exhausting. I am very tired all of the time. But I know this journey is going to be worth it, and I am not giving up whatsoever! I am going to stick with it!”.
Way to go, mama! We love that Charisse has shared her unique experiences with all three of her kids and their breastfeeding journey together. Charisse loves breastfeeding and has learned from each of her experiences. We hope by reading her story, you can learn from her experiences as well. We here at Milky Mama hope that hearing a story straight from one breastfeeding mama will help you know you’re not alone and to never forget, you’ve got this, mama!
To wrap up our spot light on Charisse, we want to share this last bit of advice Charisse shared because it is so beautifully stated,
"Honestly, the best advice I can give and live by is that every single baby is 100% completely different in the breastfeeding area. So, take your time and learn all that you can about breastfeeding before you go home from the hospital. Once you are home it is rough, exhausting, and so worth it in the end. Don't give up! You are an amazing mom and the journey will be worth it 100%! Just give yourself some time to rest and relax."
Thanks for sharing, Charisse!
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