There I was in Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, known to many as
“Fort Lost in the Woods” due to its location in central Missouri. I was well
over a thousand miles from home and family and holding my first-born child in
in the delivery/recovery room of the maternity ward. I was in love and I was in
pain. Despite reading several books and resources about breastfeeding, I felt
like I was failing. My nipples were on fire, I was exhausted, the baby seemed
insatiable and I was feeling so inadequate.
I admitted defeat and reached out to the nurse on duty for
assistance. I told her that the baby
seemed fussy and I didn’t know if she was “getting enough.” She let me know that I had to bear it if I
wanted to breastfeed and promptly came back with a small bottle of sugar water
to supplement the baby. I was shocked
and also put off by her bedside manner.
I was confused because all the books I had read discouraged supplemental
feeding.
God sent me a rescue in the next shift change. A male nurse bathed the baby, spruced me up
and then tucked me in. He asked if I was okay.
I shyly told him that my nipples were burning and I was unsure about the
baby getting an adequate amount of food.
He gently examined my nipples, helped me to apply lanolin and then
assisted me in positioning my daughter while explaining the proper way to latch
the baby. All the book knowledge in the
world couldn’t compare with hands on assistance and compassion.
Since that experience, I have nursed all three of my
children, including an experience with tandem nursing. It has been the most
intimate and heart warming experience. I
wouldn’t trade it for anything. So many women have witnessed me feeding one of
my children and commented that I was doing what was best, while others
congratulated me but added that they couldn’t breastfeed because they were not
able to produce enough milk, they had to work, or had to take medications after
delivery. I believe these to simply be
minor challenges with the major issue being lack of support. If only more women could receive the support
and education necessary to do what the body naturally intends and facilitates
for survival, many more women and children would reap the benefits of
breastfeeding.
I am passionate about
educating women about their ability to breastfeed, so many women feel defeated
and do not meet an earlier goal to breastfeed their child. Another population of women breastfeed but
find it taxing and inconvenient. I am interested in in identifying the
variables that cause detriment to the process of “successful”
breastfeeding. It is possible to educate
the women on alternative perspectives thus alleviating a percentage of negative
thoughts and feelings associated with breastfeeding by some women. It would be optimal if more women found
breastfeeding to be a pleasurable experience, thus creating an opportunity for
the women to breastfeed for a longer duration and decreasing or eliminating the
use of artificial milk.
In closing, I would like to encourage mothers to use their
resources. I was able to successfully
breastfeed my first child for 18 months while on Active Duty in the Army. I attribute my success to sharing my plans
with my supervisor. I let him know that
breastfed babies were healthier and that breastfeeding helped me to return to
my pre-pregnancy weight within four weeks post partum. (Which is very important
with regard to maintaining compliance with the regulations of the Army.) Not
only was he onboard with my plan to take scheduled breaks to express my milk;
he used departmental funds to purchase a miniature fridge for me to store my
milk while I was at work. I felt so
encouraged. My immediate supervisor was
also very understanding of my pumping schedule and she graciously accommodated
my closed door and affixed post-it note labeled “pumping” three times
daily. I believe my work performance was
enhanced by my nursing experience, my daughter was healthy, I felt confident
and at 180 degree turn around from my first day breastfeeding; I felt
successful.