Pros and Cons of Breastfeeding

Even Angelina breastfeeds!

I used to work at Disneyland and see mothers whip their breast out for all to see and I'd think to myself how inappropriate it was. I now wish I could be so bold. I have accidentally been so bold because my daughter does NOT like herself covered when she is eating. My mother in-law put it to me this way: "How would you like it if someone threw a blanket over your head and said, 'EAT?!'" I put together a little top 10 list of the pros and cons of breastfeeding.

CONS (always look at the negative first)

1. Sense of modesty is thrown out the window
2. Nursing pads (Could be a pro if you're small chested)
   
3. Can't wear a dress (think about it)
4. Pumping at work
5. Leaking
6. Feeling like you have udders
7. It really hurts to start if your baby sucks like a barracuda
8. Trying to cover yourself when you're in public
9. Can't be away from your baby for too long (This may be more of a pro for me)
   
10. Trying to eat when your baby wants to eat at the same time (breastfeeding makes you hungry all the time)

PROS (there are too many to list, but here are the top ten)

1. Free milk, formula costs A LOT
2. Easy to transport (no messy bottles or formula, breast milk is instantly at the perfect temperature for baby)
3. Fun to find how many positions you can feed your baby in (9 so far)
4. You lose weight (I am already below my pre-prego weight without even trying)
5. Bonding with your baby (Nothing like being the only way to soothe your crying baby)
6. Sense of pride (I have sustained a whole person's life for the past 6 months on just MY breast milk)
7. Multi-tasking (I am typing this blog while Audrey nurses)
8. I get extra breaks at work to pump
9. Bigger breasts
10. BREAST MILK is BEST!!!!! (Don't let those stupid Enfamil charts make you believe breast milk is only slightly better. Breast milk is a trillion times better for your baby. Do your research outside of the Enfamil pamphlets they give you in your free diaper bag from the hospital.)

Have a breastfeeding question? Ask me. My mother in-law is a lactation specialist and an amazing one at that, and I am a breast milk advocate. I became one after breastfeeding for 6 months. Actually, I became one after I did not have to bite down on a wash cloth to keep from screaming out in pain each time she latched. That was only the first 8 weeks.

Love,

Today's Mom