Did Anyone find breastfeeding class helpful?

[elf]

??

[Lorette]

I think it was helpful. I also went to some LLL meetings while pg and that was helpful too. Also, set up a support net of LLL leaders, Lactation Consultants, etc. in case (when/if) you have any problems nursing at first. Most people do have problems at first and the best way to fix the problems is to have a support net of people who can help you.

Lorette

[Emily12581]

Yes. I don't think it is going t make you a perfect nurser right away, you need the right baby mama combo for that, but it empowered me with the knowledge of what to do when things went wrong, and what to do to solve them. I had absolutey the best breatfeeding experience you could imagine (minus the mastitis and clogged ducts, which weren't too bad becaue I was infrmed about what to do).

[JenMidwife]

Originally Posted by Lorette

I also went to some LLL meetings while pg and that was helpful too. Also, set up a support net of LLL leaders, Lactation Consultants, etc. in case (when/if) you have any problems nursing at first. Most people do have problems at first and the best way to fix the problems is to have a support net of people who can help you.

: ITA it would have been a great help for me to get involved in the bf'ing community before I was totally overwhelmed w/ my newborn & normal bf'ing challenges.

[tabitha]

yes! but i would suggest LLL meetings instead of a class, which if offered at a hospital is likely to offer some misinformation.

with my 1st, i went to 2 LLL meetings ahead of time and had written the leaders' numbers on a paper in my birth bag (i had a hospital birth). that was a lifesaver. i was alone in the hospital because it 'wasnt visiting hours' when ds was born and the nurses who helped me start nursing were anti-breastfeeding (i quote "if you're gonna breastfeed, you better get used to pain.") . after his first latch i had a blue-black blood blister on my nipple. (the hospital nurses, incidentally, rated this latch a 9 out of 10) because i had been to LLL meetings i knew one thing: breastfeeding should not hurt. if it does, there is something to be improved upon. even sore nipples can be improved upon. and i called my leader and she met me at home when i got there. it was what saved us.

with subsequent babies i had homebirths and no nursing trouble. but if i had, i would have contacted a LLL leader.

[samuelsmom]

I agre with the pp! The classes are usually helpful, but nothing beats a real-live group of breastfeeding moms. Plus, you'll have a face to put with the name if you need to call an LLL leader for help in the beginning. I also highly suggest reading the Womanly Art of Breastfeeding before the baby comes--it's a great resource and helped me feel like I had a handle on the mechanics before the first baby arrived.

[firespiritmelody]

I've got to agree with the LLL suggestions. PRICELESS (and free, to boot) The leaders of my local group are so easy going and laid back, and just extremely helpful all around.

I had issues bfing dd#1 so with #2 I wanted to make sure I was totally prepared (I hadn't heard of LLL before then) I started going to group meetings around 7 moths or so and after a couple of meetings I had a pretty good idea of what I did *wrong* with number 1 (like letting the nurse at the hospital suplement her for stupid reasons) and felt much more empowered when challenges did pop up with #2.

I'll probably start attending meetings again in like may or so.

[sunnymw]

I did not take a class, but I did a whole lot of reading... and I'm stubborn as an ox. At one point, after we'd been using nipple shields for two weeks, I got on the LLL site and asked about shield-weaning to just the breast. Lifesaver!

It may have helped to know beforehand that I had flat nipples, because I was unable to nurse until the nurses found a shield (we tried in the LD room 2 hours after birth)... so he didn't actually get BM until he was 4+ hours old.

OFC this time we're HBing, so no worries about the nursery giving formula again.

[emikey]

I took one with baby #1, and it was so helpful - just because it made it very clear that
a) "natural and normal" doesn't mean no learning curve. It made it perfectly reasonable to be nursing successfully AND learning about nursing and making mistakes and not knowing how to get it right every time.

b) it's a majorly important skill, and if you think about it, the half hour after
birth is not the time to learn a majorly important skill.

c) It taught me a lot about what to look for and just plain how to nurse.

d) BRING YOUR PARTNER so s/he can see that there is a learning curve, and can learn how to help you, and won't give up or assume failure at the first cry.

[tulips117]

I took one when I was pregnant with my first and found it very helpful. One of the most informative parts was this long long video they showed of women breastfeeding...I found it helpful because i hadn't seen a whole lot of that prior. Good luck!

[wryknowlicious]

I didn't have serious 'problems' nursing - but let me say that I really really wish I ahd taken the class!
If you have the oppurtunity to - do it.
And go to some LLL meetings.

And try to find the Womanly Art of Breastfeeding in a used book store or barnes and noble.

Better to be overprepared then under!

[Mom2Lex&Cay]

I have to say, the one I took before my first was born was not very helpful. That's not to say a class wouldn't be helpful. I'm sure it really depends on who offers it. I was also at a hospital with no breastfeeding support for new moms.

Even with the hospital offered nursing support at the hospital where I had DD2, I found the staff not to be properly educated on the issue.

ITA that LLL may be the way to go. Certainly set up a support network ahead of time.

[Snugglebugsmom]

One more vote for LLL here.
What makes LLL meetings different from a breastfeeding class is that a Leader gives information to mothers so that mothers can make their own decisions regarding their babies. You won't be talked down to during an LLL meeting. Plus the meetings are often in informal settings (like at somebody's home), so you feel more comfortable. LLL meetings are great!

[~Megan~]

I think it really depends on who is teaching the class and what they are teaching. Some doctors/nurses are still caught up with making a bunch of rules like always nurse 15 minutes on one side then switch, as if one flat rule could apply to all children and mothers!

You might do better going to a LLL series plus they are free!

[nicmazzei]

My sister took every possible class offered, and gave up nursing after day two or three. I, on the other hand, just read some parts of The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding and participated as much as I could in a breastfeeding forum on a blog site... I'm still nursing 2 years later.

[madiesmommy]

Our hospitals class was taught by a LLL leader, between that and going to LLL, nursing until 2 1/2 years was possible. Now we have another option in our town. A place operated by two RN's that offers massage, birth classes (like hynobirthing) and breastfeeding classes - where they sell natural products like slings and cloth diapers. I would trust them for a class, even though I'd have to pay. I just got lucky with the hospital class, and my daughter latched easy so I did not need much help after birth.

[sunnymw]

I think you have to look at the source of the class I've heard horror stories of the ones done at our WIC office for free, our town has a pretty low BF rate even though we have a decent initiation rate.

[finnegansmom]

I agree about joining LLL first. I find the breastfeeding type classes taught at the hospital were very time and amount oriented. The first thing you learn at LLL is "watch the baby NOT the clock" and it's been that philosophy which has had me nursing my son without any problems or hiccups for 16 months and counting.
LLL forums are nice too, and I would recommend their breastfeeding handbook - I can't remember the name of it though, I have it upstairs...It's on their website. It's a great reference.