Not sure if you're making enough milk to feed your baby? Try these tips to maximize your breast milk production naturally. Breastfeeding can also help you shed pregnancy weight more rapidly and protect you against breast or ovarian cancer later in life. The most common causes of low supply are inadequate food and fluid intake, fatigue, high stress levels, and feeding the baby too infrequently or for only short periods of time. Aim for about 2, calories per day.

Pain during breastfeeding is a sign of a problem and should not be ignored. Although sore or tender nipples are common during the first few days of breastfeeding, it should improve. Normal soreness or pain usually occurs for about a minute when the baby first latches on to the breast. Pain that is severe or continuous or that occurs again after it seemed to resolve is a sign of a problem and should be corrected.

She speaks internationally about inducing lactation and relactation and specializes in helping parents who have not given birth non-gestational parents to breastfeed their babies. In this article Alyssa discusses how parents who have not given birth can breastfeed by inducing lactation and how La Leche League Leaders can support them. Breastfeeding is a special gift a baby receives from their gestational parent [1]. However, many non-gestational parents—adoptive parents, intended parents through surrogacy , parents whose partner is birthing, and transwomen—are finding out that this wonderful experience is also available to them.

Your knowledge, enthusiasm and support can be crucial as your partner learns how to breastfeed. And if your partner is finding it hard to breastfeed, you can boost her confidence and help her overcome challenges. One of the best things you can do is learn about why breastfeeding is important and how breastfeeding works. If your partner is having trouble with breastfeeding, you and she can get support from your midwife, child and family health nurse or GP. Caring for your new baby is an important job, and looking after yourself gives you the energy you need to do the job well.