Breastfeeding Challenges and How to Overcome Them

This post is sponsored by Evivo but the content and opinions expressed here are my own.

I wouldn’t say that breastfeeding came naturally to me from the start. I had done all of the planning and research about nursing before having my first baby, including taking a birthing class that incorporated breastfeeding knowledge, but none of it could have prepared me for the reality that is actually nursing a newborn! My first daughter was born past her due date and had swallowed meconium, so she was whisked away to the NICU as soon as she was born and stayed there for over 36 hours. Because of this, we had breastfeeding challenges from the start.

My First Experience with Breastfeeding

In the hospital after delivering my first baby, I pumped every 3 hours religiously to help my milk come in and I was able to go to the nursery and try nursing her later that first evening, but it was a lot harder than I anticipated and over the next few days and weeks, she was very fussy like she wasn’t getting enough to eat. Our pediatrician felt like we needed to supplement to help her gain weight, so I reluctantly started topping her off with formula – of course, I’d do anything for my baby, but it was still disappointing and made me feel like I was failing at breastfeeding! We finally got to a good place when she was several months old and I no longer needed to supplement and we continued to have a successful nursing journey until she was 17 months old (and I found out I was pregnant with baby #2!).

My Second Experience with Breastfeeding

Fortunately, my second baby and I got off to a great start with nursing right after delivery. I had no issues with supply and found I didn’t even need to take supplements like fenugreek in order to produce enough milk (which I had to do with my first baby). However, a few weeks into our breastfeeding journey, she developed pretty severe reflux and we tried all the things to help her – gripe water, different nursing positions, even resorting to antacids at our pediatrician’s suggestion. To be honest, none of it seemed to do much and her crying in pain broke my heart, so I started looking at what I was eating to see if it was causing her issues. I decided to cut dairy, which her doctor said could take 15 or so days to get completely out of my system – but I swear, just days later, I started to see a difference in her…less crying, less gassiness and more smiles! We also started her on a probiotic, which is supposed to be great for baby’s gut health and can reduce gas and colic. These changes made the rest of our two-year breastfeeding journey so smooth and pleasant!

How I’m Preparing for Breastfeeding Challenges This Time

While I’m not *expecting* to face breastfeeding challenges when nursing our third baby, I know from experience that it happens and I have had my fair share with each of my kids thus far. I feel much more prepared this time around because I know more of what to expect and I have experience handling different nursing struggles. I’m also trying something new this time that I’ve heard great things about – a baby probiotic called Evivo, that restores the good bacteria, B. infantis, in baby’s gut and reduces bad bacteria. While a lot of advice tells you that babies will eventually grow out of their tummy troubles, the truth is the first six months of life are critical for proper immune and metabolic development to prevent allergies and other illnesses down the road. By giving Evivo to our little one from the start, we can hopefully prevent digestive issues now and in the future.

If you’re new mama or have a little one on the way, I highly recommend learning more about Evivo and how it can help your baby stay healthy and avoid tummy troubles – it just might help you overcome breastfeeding challenges that us mamas sometimes face!

MAMAS! Use code BLOGBC623 for $10 off a 4-week Evivo starter kit or code BLOGJB679 for $20 off an 8-week or greater starter kit!