Finally, I can get topical: Day 1 and 2

Okay - Anjali is here. And I am officially breastfeeding. I can quit feeling like an imposter, eh?

Day 1:
I was supposed to be at the hospital by 7:15 pm to be induced. I ended up getting there by 6pm because labor had already started after all. She was born by 10:27 after some incredibly tense moments in which an ob for a c-section was summoned. I pushed and pushed for dear life and fortunately, she came without needing a c-section. I was able to breastfeed her straight away, the latch was NOT a good one, she mostly had nipple. Because of the position I was lying in on the bed, I simply could not "get to her" any better. The good news, is that from the very beginning, she's had a good, strong suck and LOVES nursing.

Day 2:
Since I am less sore, not drugged and in a regular bed (not a hospital bed), I am able to experiment with different positions. Far and away, the best is sitting "Indian style" on the bed with a nursing pillow and getting her latched on with football hold. Since I am more experienced this time and can determine myself whether she is properly latched on or not, I can report that it IS true -- if the baby is latched on correctly, there is SO much less pain. I am starting to get sore nipples, but I am not in agony like I was with my son and a proper latch is indeed, critical. However. Even though I am an "experienced" mother, it is still damned difficult to shove enough breast into a newborn's mouth! Their pieholes are just so teeny-tiny that it still takes me a few tries.

I will say that I had forgotten about 2 things - the uterine contractions spurred by breastfeeding are SO painful. Yep, they are necessary, but I had forgotten the pain. However, I'd also forgotten how incredibly sweet and awe-inspiring it is to see your newborn's eyes looking up at you as he/she is gulping away. She LOVES nursing, is anticipating it now and opens her mouth wide. Which helps with the latch, thank goodness.

Housekeeping Note:
This will be in a "Dear Diary" format. I'd like to do this for at least the first 2 weeks to try and document a realistic, real-time experiment with those early days of breastfeeding. All these entries will be under the "Dear Diary" category but I will still do other, separate posts for news and interesting articles.