My beautiful son is now 1 year and 6 months old. Time flies. It doesn't feel 18 months + 9 months (pregnancy phase) at all. It seems so surreal that I have actually breastfeed (BF) my baby for this long.
Since most of my friends now are married,and some of them are now already mothers and soon to be mothers, I really want to share my own experience of exclusive breastfeeding (EBF) with you all. I believe that no other milk in this world is more superior than mothers' milk. It is one of Allah's treasures for humans.
Let me first share this dialogue that happened some time ago.
Me: Susu ibulah yang paling baik. Tengok binatang, mana ada diorang bagi susu lain.
Makcik K: Yelah, sbb diorang xtau bancuh susu. Kalau diorang tahu, mesti diorang pun bagi susu botol. Senang.
Me: (silence. xtau nak cakap apa dah. cakap lebih2 kang, dikatanya aku ni kurang ajar.)
Soon after giving birth, I couldn't wait to BF my son. Nurse kt hospital tu siap kena marah dengan I sebab dia bagi my newborn baby susu botol although I have told her not to do so. Direct breastfeed (DBF) was not easy for both of us at first. Tangan lenguh, belakang sakit. Then bengkak susu. Pastu, manual breastpump yang tak berkualiti menyukarkan lagi keadaan. I should have not listened to this person's advice to not to buy a breastpump yet because you may not need it. So I didn't do any survey on breastpumps; ended up buying 2 pumps before I finally bought Medela Swing. I definitely look forward to using it again for my future babies.
I thank my mother for her advice to start pumping and storing milk as soon as the baby is delivered. Alhamdulillah, berkat nasihat ibu, I dapat store up to 60 auns of EBM, which was my ultimate solution sebab terpaksa masuk kerja sebelum habis pantang. Baru 38 hari dah terkepit2 berjalan naik turun tangga kat sekolah. Kalaulah x pam awal2, mmg terpaksa bg susu lembu...
Kat sekolah, berkepit dengan breastpump selama 8 bulan. Orang lain, masa free gi rehat, minum2 kat kantin, I gi nyorok nak mengepam. It was unbelievable to think back that I managed to juggle between all the school workload and pumping. Nak seribu daya, tak nak seribu dalih, kan?
Unfortunately, during fasting month, my milk supply dropped. I could not produce enough milk stock for my baby. So, he started drinking formula milk, which he hates so much until today. Now that he is cleverer and wiser, he will wait for me to pick him up from his nanny's home.
Some mothers prefer formula feeding than BF. Senang kata mereka. Memang pun, bila anak nak susu, just bancuh dan anak tu minum sendiri. But with BF, you are glued to ur baby. Xboleh nak buat apa sangat. Lagi2 kalau keluar shopping, time anak nak susu, kena pulak cari tempat yang sesuai dan selesa. Nak tinggalkan anak susah sebab dia x nak susu botol. Tapi, disebabkan anak tu melekatlah, terasa kasih sayang mengalir dalam badan dia. The baby will feel the love and love us back too.
From my experience yang xseberapa ni (sebab anak baru sorang), there are few tips I want to share:
- Importantly, pray to Allah swt that you will have good flowing supply of milk for your baby. He is the ultimate Giver.
- Choose a baby-friendly hospital to give birth. Baby-friendly hospital will make sure ur baby is with u within 1 hour of giving birth and they will educate you about BF.
- Get a good pump and get pumping as soon as your baby is born. JANGAN MALAS! Pump everytime you feel sore. Pump the other one yang baby tak susu, e.g. kalau baby susu belah kanan, pump belah kiri.
- Wear comfortable lingerie. Unwired is the best.
- Buy a nursing cover/poncho so that u have the freedom to nurse ur baby in public.
- Eat healthily. Now, your baby is what you eat and drink. Cut down caffeine intake.
- Last but not least, enjoy the nursing time walaupun tengah malam buta. Cuddle and kiss your baby, because the baby soon will grow up and doesn't want to be cuddled or kissed.
Please don't be lured by formula milk 'power' : 4X DHA, gangliosida, no added sugar and whatnot. Whatever they say, our milk is still the best! And I am very thankful that my dear husband, Mohd Hasbullah bin Basir supports me all the way. Love you!
