Breastfeeding Woes.

I hate movies, and I hate T.V. shows.  They give such distorted pictures of everything.  They always have these cute babies that just attach themselves and are great little feeders without any trouble and mom and baby are happy and life is great.  Well no one told me that in real life that doesn't happen with every baby and mother. 

Charlotte came out and as everyone knows was just a tiny peanut at five pounds six ounces.  She had a tiny mouth and was tongue tied.  Breastfeeding SUCKS.  It has gotten much better but its still not a piece of cake the tv shows and movies make it out to be. 

Charlotte had a really hard time latching.  In the hospital the lactation consultants gave me all different tricks, including a nipple shield and a little device where a syringe with formula is hooked up to a little cord that goes into her mouth so I can pump it in while she eats so she is rewarded.  These things helped her to be able to eat, but complicated everything.  I had so many things to wash and to use, which makes Charlotte NOT a portable baby. 

Luckily she just needed the nipple shield once we got home.  She was able to wean off of that on one breast and finally the other (been off for two and a half weeks now!) So we are moving along.  But it was very frustrating and A LOT of work on my part.  It was easy for me to understand why so many women give it up.  If you have a crappy latcher, it is uncomfortable, inconvenient and time consuming.  I know breast milk is best so I kept working at it and working at it.  Luckily she gets better at it everyday and luckily I did not give up (it was very tempting).  Now my concern is what will happen when I go back to work in two weeks? I plan to pump, but am afraid with her getting bottles at daycare and such she will again have difficulty latching in the evenings when she is at home with me.  I am hopeful that it goes well and that I find the strength to stick with pumping so that she can get the best nutrition possible!