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Search Results for: breastfeeding

Postpartum Options: Breastfeeding, Formula, and Weaning

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How and what you want to feed your baby is a personal decision. You, as a mother, deserve to know all the facts of the various options without feeling ashamed or guilty about your decision. Nutritional possibilities for your baby’s first few months include breastfeeding (temporarily or long term) and formula feeding.  Breastfeeding Breastfeeding is often considered … [Read more...] about Postpartum Options: Breastfeeding, Formula, and Weaning

Breastfeeding 101

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Here are some of the basics when breastfeeding is just getting started, those things that almost all new mothers have questions about: How do I make enough milk? Milk production is not based on how much water you drink, how much protein you eat, whether or not you are pumping in addition to nursing (in normal situations), on what you eat or drink, or on whether you are … [Read more...] about Breastfeeding 101

6 Common Breastfeeding Questions Answered

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CAN I… Take medication while breastfeeding? During pregnancy, you may have been told to be wary of any medication use since it will go through to the baby. This is true, in most incidences. However, the breast actually filters more of the medications than the placenta does, allowing more medications to be used during breastfeeding. Have you been prescribed a medication or … [Read more...] about 6 Common Breastfeeding Questions Answered

Will Breastfeeding Hurt?

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OUCH!! We’ve all heard it… breastfeeding is painful, right? All those terrific friends, family, neighbors, and even total strangers who tell you they had pain or cracked or bleeding nipples for six days, six weeks, or six months. Yikes! What, exactly, is normal then? The research and extensive experience of mothers, lactation consultants, and health care professionals show … [Read more...] about Will Breastfeeding Hurt?

Setting Up a Nursing Room at Work

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Being a nursing mom is very rewarding, but it can certainly be difficult, especially while in a workplace setting. Some schools and workplaces have nursing or lactation rooms that make things a little easier on nursing moms! Here are a few ideas for how your workplace can create a nursing room for employees that are breastfeeding their child. The initial setup is fairly simple, … [Read more...] about Setting Up a Nursing Room at Work

How Can You Help with the Formula Shortage?

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Maybe you don’t have a baby anymore, but your heart is broken hearing about a formula shortage on the news. You may wonder how you can help make sure babies are fed. Here are a few ways you can help: Have you breastfed recently? If you are a formerly breastfeeding mom, you can start to pump again and donate your milk to milk banks. If it hasn’t been more than a year or so … [Read more...] about How Can You Help with the Formula Shortage?

What Do You Do When You Can’t Find Your Infant Formula?

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For a number of different reasons, sometimes it is difficult to find your child’s preferred formula. It can be stressful and heart-wrenching after getting used to one formula and having trouble finding it. Some kids are picky about their formula. Some kids because of various health issues can only have certain kinds of formula. There are things you can do to get your child … [Read more...] about What Do You Do When You Can’t Find Your Infant Formula?

SIDS: A Contemporary and Preventable Nightmare

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I remember one morning getting a call from the local medical examiner. He was asking for medical history and information on one of my 2-month-old patients. After obtaining proper consent, we spoke at length and learned that my precious little patient had passed. He was wanting to obtain any medical and laboratory information about my patient that might give him a medical cause … [Read more...] about SIDS: A Contemporary and Preventable Nightmare

What Does Baby Really Need?

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Shopping for a new baby can often feel overwhelming and confusing, especially when there is so much to consider. However, babies don’t need the fanciest or newest products to thrive. Below are a few things you should expect to use in caring for a baby: Diapers: You might choose to use disposable or cloth diapers, and neither option is better or worse. Brand does not matter. … [Read more...] about What Does Baby Really Need?

Dealing with Postpartum Depression

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You just had a baby. You should feel wonderful. Why do you feel so down? You are not alone. It is estimated that one in seven women experiences postpartum depression or anxiety. As many as 80 percent of women experience postpartum “blues.” Not surprisingly, the immense emotional and physical changes that occur when your body brings new life into the world precipitate a … [Read more...] about Dealing with Postpartum Depression

A Cesarean Section Birth Story

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Like many other cesarean section birth stories, my birth story starts long before the day. My body seemed to love being pregnant. A lot of chronic issues I have were actually alleviated during my pregnancy, rather than made worse. However, one of my chronic issues may have contributed to my birth story. Around 36 weeks, for various reasons, it was determined that my son … [Read more...] about A Cesarean Section Birth Story

The Do’s and Don’ts of Formula Feeding

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I had every intention of breastfeeding my first child, so I was completely unprepared when I realized I would have to formula feed. Whether you plan on formula feeding or suddenly find it necessary, here is a crash course in do’s and don’ts. Do: Stock up. Newborns can eat up to 32 ounces (131.2 grams) of formula a day. A standard container of formula contains 964 grams, … [Read more...] about The Do’s and Don’ts of Formula Feeding

How Can Infant Massage Help You Better Bond with Your Baby?

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Massages aren’t just for adults anymore — just like you, your baby might enjoy a relaxing massage. Baby/infant massage consists of specific techniques and patterns for touching your baby, not too differently from adult massages. Research suggests many benefits of baby massage. Massages can lower your baby’s levels of stress hormones like cortisol, reducing fussiness, … [Read more...] about How Can Infant Massage Help You Better Bond with Your Baby?

A Natural Birth Story

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After a failed pregnancy in a past relationship, seven years passed before I conceived again in 2013. I hadn’t had any medical insurance for those years and am glad Medicaid covered pregnant women. I immediately started fighting the push for appointments for this test and that screening. Prenatal vitamins were included, but I saw no reason to alter my healthy state or question … [Read more...] about A Natural Birth Story

Contributors

Editor-in-chief -- Editor and Media Coordinator --Webmaster --Website Coordinator --Late Editor (2016-2023) -- Serrin Foster Joyce McCauley-Benner Brian Heffley Bethanie Ryan Damian Geminder Annemarie Arnold Kathryn Baker Grace Berning Katharine Burgess Abigail Choe Megan Clancy Havens Clark Madeline Davin Meagan Devlin Tatiana Federoff-Durbin Chloe … [Read more...] about Contributors

When You Can’t Breastfeed

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Many moms cannot breastfeed for one reason or another. Perhaps they are on a medication that will make their breast milk toxic for the baby. Maybe the milk just doesn’t come in well or enough. Maybe their employer isn’t very breastfeeding friendly. Whatever the reason, it’s OK not to breastfeed. Formula has come a long way since its invention in 1865. It now very closely … [Read more...] about When You Can’t Breastfeed

What Is Kangaroo Care, and How Can It Help Preemies?

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Premature babies can have a hard road to travel, including incubators, drugs, and surgery. The good news is that among the medical and technical advances has arisen an appreciation of the human side of helping a premature infant to survive and thrive. As early as the 1970s, medical personnel faced with too few incubators and resources in the country of Colombia, for instance, … [Read more...] about What Is Kangaroo Care, and How Can It Help Preemies?

8 Tips to Help Dad Be a Dad to a Newborn

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Many dads can sometimes feel left out of the relationship when they see how close Mom and Baby are. It takes time and effort for dads to find ways to bond with their new baby in the early months, especially when Mom is breastfeeding well. Here are 8 tips suggested for bonding—without using a bottle or feeding the baby: Wear the baby (sling, carrier, wrap), which allows the … [Read more...] about 8 Tips to Help Dad Be a Dad to a Newborn

How to Afford a Breast Pump

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As a new nursing mother, you may find yourself having to return to outside employment, continue in schooling, or in need of a breast pump for other reasons separating you from your new baby. Here are some options for you to look into: Through the Affordable Care Act (for as long as that remains in effect), breastfeeding mothers have the ability to order a new breast pump … [Read more...] about How to Afford a Breast Pump

Find Your Village

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You have probably heard the phrase, “It takes a village.” Usually, this phrase refers to child-rearing and birth, and while it may not take a literal village to successfully give birth and raise children, it does take a metaphorical one. That is why we encourage you to find your village. Women have very powerful instincts. When a baby is conceived, a mother is born. This … [Read more...] about Find Your Village

Labor and Delivery Q&A

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So, you are going to have a baby. As excited as you are, picturing your baby in your arms, you are likely somewhat anxious about what you will experience in order to get there! That is natural. It can be hard to picture how your baby will get from “in there” to “out here.” But don’t worry; your body was designed for this. You are tougher than you know! And the rewards at the … [Read more...] about Labor and Delivery Q&A

Promote Women Deserve Better

Please help us share this resource with those in need and service providers in your community and on campus with the following tools. the handout that describes the resource for service providers, downloadable brochure for women in need, downloadable ads to promote the resource, and shareable memes for your social media sites, as well as ideas of where you … [Read more...] about Promote Women Deserve Better

Should You Breastfeed?

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The decision of whether to breastfeed your child or to use formula is a very personal one. Before your child is born, you may have a plan to breastfeed or not. When your child is born, that plan may totally change—and that’s OK, too! Here are some things to think about as you decide what is best for you and your baby. Reasons to breastfeed: Breastfeeding is an inexpensive … [Read more...] about Should You Breastfeed?

What Do I Need to Breastfeed?

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Baby carriers, baby slings, breast pumps, nipple shields, nursing bras, hands-free bras, nursing clothing, nursing covers, nipple creams and lotions… so much to think about and make decisions about! New mothers are not expected to be the experts on all of these various items that can come up in everyday conversations about parenting and breastfeeding, or that you see in all the … [Read more...] about What Do I Need to Breastfeed?