If Only I Had This When I Was Breastfeeding….#MilkSense

I have breastfed four children, including a set of twins.

Believe it or not, breastfeeding my first child was more stressful than breastfeeding twins.

I was actually quite confident with my decision to breastfeed but I still had some stress that stemmed from uncertainty:

Was my baby getting enough?  How could I know how much she was getting? My breastfeeding friends also used to say the same thing:  “I just wish I knew HOW MUCH the baby is getting.”

The stress was further compounded when certain individuals would ask “Are you sure that you have enough milk?”

While I believed then and still believe today that the body provides what baby needs, these questions would always plant a tiny seed of doubt.

One day the seed of doubt was large enough that I felt the need to check.  I decided to give a little squeeze to see if there was anything left – Nailed myself right in the eye!  Well – that answered that question!

But there were more comments.  Certain individuals would comment on my baby’s size.  Yes, she was small, but didn’t people come in all shapes & sizes? Did that not count for babies as well?  I even got comments suggesting that I should be feeding her formula instead of, or in addition to, breastfeeding.

She was growing at a steady rate and her paediatrician assured me that she was holding her growth curve. In my heart I know she was ok, but the comments would be made, planting more little seeds of doubt.

And then there was the PUMPING. I started late because my philosophy at first was “Why pump?  I’m always with her. It’s just adding bottles and washing & sterilizing to the mix – Why do more work?”

Then I got sick and had to go to the hospital.  My baby came with me and gratefully there were very few people in the emergency waiting room & all were there with ‘summer injuries’.  BUT when there was talk of my needing to stay overnight, I realized what a mistake it had been to not have pumped. I didn’t end up staying overnight but I bought a manual pump the next day.

Trepidatious & excited about pumping for the first time, I embarked upon the process. OMG.  After… what was it? 15 minutes? 30 minutes?  I had something like an ounce or two of milk. OMG…what if I really didn’t have enough milk???? The anxiety came back with a vengeance.

I soon discovered, through trial and error, that at certain times of day, my supply was way better and the milk flowed easily.  I also realized that the anxiety of pumping impeded my let-down reflex, just as it would for someone who is anxious about breastfeeding. I learned to distract myself

I invested in an electric pump- I could pump both breasts at once which was a great time-saver.

I also observed that when the milk would begin flowing, and I would see it flowing, it would come even more easily.  The obvious psychological effect of anxiety vs. confidence in milk let-down was incredible to me.

Less than two years later, when I gave birth to my twins, I started pumping immediately and there was no anxiety and no doubts about shortage of pumped or ‘straight from the tap’ milk.  I was now a pro, and I guess that since my daughter had clearly thrived into the incredible toddler that she now was, the comments had stopped for the most part. The popular comments now were:

“You’re breastfeeding TWINS???”

“Do you feed them both at the same time???”

The answer was always Yes & Yes. Here’s a little secret: Feeding two babies simultaneously is far easier than burping them simultaneously- for that part I need help!

The anxiety that I had during my first breastfeeding experience was diminished, but wouldn’t it have been nice to have not gone through that?  To be able to answer with certainty  that in fact this baby was getting x number of ounces each day?

Yes, that would have reduced my anxiety.

Today, that’s actually a possibility with The MilkSense Personal Breastfeeding Monitor.

MilkSense is the world’s first breastfeeding monitor that allows you to determine the amount of milk that your baby receives from your breast.  It collects your personal data and lets you know how much your baby breastfeeds, which can be incredibly reassuring, especially if you’re breastfeeding for the first time.

• Measurements take just 10 seconds and determine the amount of milk available in each breast PRIOR to breastfeeding.
• AFTER baby has breastfed, the monitor measures exactly HOW MUCH milk baby has fed from each breast.
• Based on your history of readings, MilkSense will let you know when your breasts are at their ‘fullest’ so that you can pump more efficiently.
• The monitor is safe for baby, breast milk and for mom, but nevertheless, there is no contact at all between the monitor and baby.
• MilkSense comes with its own software suite which eliminates the need for other breastfeeding logs, apps, etc.  The software will produce reports that you can share with your doctor!
• Its fast, easy to use and extremely convenient.  It’s also portable which is great for moms-on-the go and working moms.
• How MilkSense would have lessened my anxiety when I was a first-time mom!!!

And if these reasons are not enough…there’s actually more.

MilkSense comes with the Bscale portable baby scale so that you can weigh your baby.  It actually adapts to all infant car seats so you can weigh baby in his seat!

I will add this note of caution: Just as I believe that as humans we should not obsess over our weight, I believe equally that we should not obsess over our babies’ weights.

That said, used responsibly, the Bscale can be a very reassuring tool in monitoring baby’s growth and can alleviate a lot of stress for moms who count the days until the next weigh-in at the doctor’s office, or for us Montreal moms who anxiously await the CLSC nurse with her porta-scale 😉

If you know of a mom who is pregnant or breastfeeding – tell them about MilkSense. Share this info with them.

If you are breastfeeding and feeling the anxiety, do yourself, your spouse and your baby a favour by alleviating that stress for you (and all those around you ) by using MilkSense.

It’s also a great gift idea. If out’s there first baby they may never realize how valuable a gift it is, because they will have never have had to go through the anxiety of  “How much did baby get?“.

I envision a future where my generation tells our children’s generation that “In the olden days we didn’t know how much our babies breasted, we trusted it was enough but always wondered and wished we could know.

I believe that MilkSense will revolutionize the way moms feel about breastfeeding, especially first-time moms.

I also think that MilkSense will alleviate a tremendous amount of stress for moms that might have given up on breastfeeding because they found the ‘not knowing’ legitimately too anxiety-provoking for them.

After all this,  I am proud to say that I stuck with my Mommy gut and kept breast-feeding (You should see the size of my daughter today…she’s almost my height, G-d bless her!), but how MilkSense would have helped me….

In the meantime – visit milksense.com to get more information, Like them on Facebook and Follow them on Twitter! Share with your friends!

It’s actually available at select U.S. Walmart stores starting this month!!! It’s also available at Walmart.com – you can check it out here!

Also…Join AskMamaMOE @PositivlyPatty & I for a TWITTER PARTY where you can win great prizes from Walmart or your very own MilkSense!!!

It’s open to RESIDENTS of US & Canada.  Make sure to check out the RULES first by clicking here.

Don’t forget to RSVP using the linky below

Looking forward to seeing you at the Party!

In the meantime, if you have your own breastfeeding stories to tell, I’d love to hear them!

Wishing you an anxiety-free day where everything flows smoothly

Tanya

As with all sponsored posts, I will only ever share with you products and/or services I believe in. All opinions contained within are my own and cannot be bought 

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