Breastfeeding is a gift of life, the best food a newborn can receive and a wonderful way to create a special connection with the baby. However, in most cases it is not an easy path. On the contrary, it is usually full of crises and moments that test a mother who often does not know what is going on.
There are different stages of lactation that cause spikes or spurts in growth, changes that occur as a result of the different needs of the baby. Thanks to the many studies that exist in this regard, we know what these stages or crises of breastfeeding are. Which undoubtedly helps to cope with a situation that is not easy for the mother, who also lives a very sacrificial process, although full of wonderful moments.
lactation crises
All newborns do not latch on to the breast immediately and breastfeeding it is not established successfully in all cases. Unlike, for most mothers it is one of the great challenges of postpartum and although in principle, all women are able to breastfeed their babies, it does not always happen as expected.
Pregnancy, postpartum and motherhood are idealized in every way. Something that causes a lot of confusion and suffering in women, especially in first-timers. This also happens with breastfeeding, because specialists say that all women are physically prepared to feed their children, except in certain cases and for physical reasons.
However, no one talks about mental preparation, the one for which mothers are not prepared. Much is said about how important breast milk is, about the many defenses and advantages it has for the baby and also for the mother. But little is said about those moments when it seems that everything goes back and the mother does not know what to do. Those are the so-called lactation crises and knowing them, she will help you overcome them and continue with successful breastfeeding.
The first crisis at 17-20 days
During the first days of life, the baby is quite regular in his routine, eating and sleeping very constantly. But by the third week of life you need to increase milk intake, its growth requires it and the first shoot arrives. The baby wants to suckle constantly, regurgitates a lot of milk and despite this she wants to continue sucking and does not stop crying when she is not at the breast.
One of the important ones, around a month and a half of life
As the demand for milk increases, the baby requires more. Naturally, the baby knows that in order to get the amount she needs, she has to breastfeed more and more times, and for this she uses erratic behavior. He gets very nervous, he cries in his chest, arch your back with your nipple in your mouth, tense your legs and suck in jerks.
The 3 month lactation crisis
It is one of the most delicate and longest, which can cause the interruption of breastfeeding prematurely. What happens is that the baby is already an expert suckling, it only takes a few minutes to empty the chest. On the other hand, their stimuli undergo an important evolution and they can be distracted by anything. Breastfeeding becomes chaotic, at odd hours, the baby hardly demands the breast and only seems to suckle calmly when he is sleeping.
At year of life
Reaching a year with breastfeeding is an achievement worthy of admiration, since with the crises, the return to work and daily life it is not easy to maintain it for so long. If you have achieved it, congratulations and perhaps you should prepare for a new crisis. At this point andhe baby already eats practically all kinds of foods and milk becomes unattractive, although it remains the main food in the baby's diet. With the year of life there is a decrease in the speed of the baby's growth, which makes it slower and therefore does not need as much food to cover its needs.
To overcome breastfeeding crises, it is very important to follow some tips. The main is do not force the baby to breastfeed at any time and respect their needs. Avoid stimuli that can interfere with breastfeeding, feed him in the room, in the dark and without distractions. Remember that, although sacrificed, breastfeeding is on demand and that means patience, a lot of patience. But it will be worth this stage that never comes back, enjoy it and live fully aware of those moments of intimacy with your baby.