I nursed Saylor for 15 months. In DC, that's a very, very long time.

Now that I am back in this intimate relationship with Milo, there were a few things that helped me then and  help me now that I want to share to help support your breastfeeding relationship. It can be a challenge, but with the right tools and information, many mamas/babies can be successful.

I really believe that  nursing is one of the biggest challenges of first time parenting. It's NOT necessarily a natural process, it takes work and DOES NOT have to hurt, in fact it SHOULD NOT hurt.

Before Saylor, I did a lot of prep work to get ready for breastfeeding. I read the Womanly Art of Breastfeeding by Le Leche League. A MUST have for all nursing mamas. I attended a le leche league meeting.  That was brilliant. I got to see nursing mamas with their babies, all ages ( 6-mos to 3 years)  and got to hear what issues and questions they had.

Then, once she was born I was a regular at the weekly Breastfeeding Center support class. It was awesome. I learned SO much about development, eating, sleeping and motherhood.

1. LEARN how to correctly latch your baby.
2. Be patient with yourself AND your baby.
3. Relax, rest and eat plenty. Stress depletes milk supply.

Local resources 
www.breastfeedingcenter.org- weekly support class, le leche league ( lots of local chapters)
*starting in the fall we will have lil omm support class as well with Nicole, lactation consultant

We are so lucky to have 2 full time lactation consultants at Capital Medical Group, our pediatric group. I met with them with Saylor and again, this time with Milo to check on his latch a week after he was born. This was covered by insurance! YEAH! and turns out.. he IS having some trouble latching on one side.. and I know this b/c one side hurts. so.. we are working on it and I have to be more diligent about watching and noticing his latch and not letting him slip.

I found Sibley's lactation consultants to have lots of varying information. They offered lots of support  with many different suggestions and tips from a variety of consultants.  As a first time mom, I found all the information overwhelming. I really just wanted someone to tell me what to do! At GW, I had the same consultant who came to check on us, she was a very sweet and knowledgeable woman. But I was SO much more relaxed this time about the process, that I really think it helped as well.

Good luck ! Hope this helps you on your journey.