We’re based in Makati but we’ve decided to give birth in my home province, La Union, so I can be with our family and other relatives, and have them as support system.
I initially planned on breastfeeding my baby for 3 months, as I knew I was going back to work after my maternity leave.
But due to the pandemic and lockdown restrictions, we had to stay longer in the province, and were not able to go back to Makati.
My first 2 to 3 weeks of breastfeeding was hard. It was painful to breastfeed.I cried and stayed up awake in the middle of the night.
I was feeding my baby almost every hour yet I was still worried my baby wasn't getting enough milk.
Overall, it wasn’t a good experience and so thought I had to research how to make breastfeeding more comfortable and enjoyable.
I joined breastfeeding webinars, read articles online, and consulted fellow moms.
I invested in breastfeeding products like nursing pillow, nursing cover, milk catcher, nipple balm, and breastfeeding clothes.
I also started looking after what I’d eat to increase my milk supply, like having tinola and other dishes with malunggay, lactation cookies for dessert, lactation spreads and malunggay pandesal for merienda.
When there is no available malunggay to eat, I made sure to take in malunggay capsules. I also tried to increase my fluid intake and even started drinking malunggay milk tea and chocolate drinks.
After a month, I noticed great improvement on how I was feeling towards breastfeeding, and my baby had also learned how to properly latch.
It is a conscious effort until now to take care of my body.
Fortunately, I’m already on my 9th month of exclusive breastfeeding and I plan to continue this until I can.
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