Husbands Can Nurse Too
November 16, 2006 by Angela White, J.D., breastfeeding counselor
Filed under breastfeeding stories, health of the mother
In today’s breastfeeding story, Kelly from Thrifty Mommy writes about how her husband made all the difference:
“My husband can breastfeed just as well as I can …
When I had my little girl, I was determined to breastfeed. My husband and I went to the class and I had a best friend that had nursed 4 kids successfully. It was supposed to go easy. We didn’t know for 2 days that I had a complication from my epidural called a spinal headache. I was leaking spinal fluid and my brain was sagging down onto my skull. No one caught it until they were going to discharge me. I had told anyone who would listen that I had such a bad headache that I literally couldn’t move my head, much less nurse well or do anything. Unless I was laying down flat, I just wanted to cry. The nurses kept telling me that I was just sore from delivering. What did they know! I was the one that was miserable. Finally, the nurse that was to discharge me figured out my problem.
But back to the nursing. So when the lactation consultants would come and show us what to do, (they were WONDERFUL!) they would show us how to nurse while laying on my side. I would lay down and my husband would get my little girl to latch on, nurse, and then he would burp her. He had to do this for the first 6 days as I was supposed to be on bed rest so that my spinal injury would heal. He was so good at it that he had to keep “flipping” her lip even after I was able to nurse on my own. He was better at it because he spent more time with the lactation consultant working with the baby than I did due to my headache.
So to all of you dads out there, listen good! You too can breastfeed. My phenomenally wonderful husband is proof of that.”
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Three cheers for Kelly’s hubby! Sorry you had such a hard time, but I’m glad he was there to be a part.
I agree Karen — three cheers! If only every nursing mother had such support, be it from a husband or mother or friend….
There would definitely be more women breastfeeding if they had this kind of support.
My son and I had a horrible time learning to breastfeed and went through weeks of bloodied nipples and gallons of tears before we figured it out. He is now 26 months, and although he weaned himself at 20 months when I was pregnant he still likes an occasional snack. I know that there is no way that we would have been able to do it without the wonderful support of my husband. He went to breastfeeding class during my pregnancy and was there all hours of the day and night helping to adjust pillows, checking latch and telling me what a great job I was doing. After the birth of my daughter he helped to remind me of the little things that I had forgotten about since nursing a toddler is so much easier in some ways. He has several coworkers who have since had babies and it was awesome to hear this big tough firefighter/paramedic talking to them about the importance of breastfeeding. When our friends were over one evening with a newborn Jeff was offering just as much support and information as I was! I tell all dads to be about the importance of their support in helping to make breastfeeding successful.
Jen, that’s wonderful that your husband was and is able to support you in that way! How great that he’s able to promote breastfeeding among his friends’ families too — it really is important to have the husband “on-board” with breastfeeding. My husband is the same way — he asks his co-workers if their wives plan to breastfeed and tells them how to get help if they need it.