All you need to know about the lactation process
Understanding lactation would help you boost milk supply. We have categorized lactation into three main phases:
1) Steps Leading to a Healthy Lactation:
Your body reacts to your baby’s milk demands and produces in the following way:
- The baby’s sucking is a strong pull for the milk to come.
- Your brain receives the message.
- It then releases the milk ejecting hormone called oxytocin.
- Oxytocin flows through your blood to your breast muscles.
- The milk induced due to prolactin hormone flows out through the breasts.
- You begin feeding the baby.
2) Symptoms to Show that it is Lactation Time:
It is surprising how your body will get ready to feed just at the time your baby starts to get hungry.
- It usually takes two weeks for your body to settle into a proper feeding routine.
- You will start experiencing a kind of tingling under your breasts.
- Sometimes you hear your hungry baby crying and you will experience a sensation in your breasts
- You may most likely experience a fullness and discomfort in the breasts if you have passed the feeding time and not fed yet.
- Many women may automatically start to leak milk when it is time for feeding.
3) Tips for A Smooth Lactation:
The following will help make lactation time better and easier for both you and your baby:
- Nurse your baby in a quiet room.
- Stay calm.
- Follow the lactation diet listed above.
- Wrap warm towels around your breasts.
- Burp your baby after every feed.
- Consult your doctor in case of any discomfort to you or your baby.
- Breast feed your little one regularly.
Avoid worrying about your post-delivery weight-gain. This is the time to eat right. You can always get on a diet later. Make sure you eat the right foods, sleep well and take adequate rest. Keeping calm and staying rested will help you pass through these initial months with ease. Make use of the nursing time to bond with your baby. Very soon she will grow up, and you will suddenly come to miss your breastfeeding sessions!
