Newborn in a sling and breastfeeding
From the moment we learn we are expecting a baby, for most mums our instinct kicks in instantly: “Keep my baby safe, keep my baby well, protect my baby.”
Baby breastfeeding in an Asteraki Mei Tai baby carrier
Holding our baby in our arms is one of the easiest ways to know that our baby is well, and that is why many parents choose to wear their baby in a sling right from the start. Babies want and need to be held; they are genetically programmed to want to be close, all the time, to whoever cares for them.
And little by little, here in Greece too, wearing our baby has gone from being “something a few crazy mums do” to being recognised as one of the fundamental ways of raising our babies. It is no longer rare or “exotic” at all, and more and more often we see parents out and about, wearing their babies while they do their shopping, take their older children to school, or simply go for a walk.
The thing is, a new mum often feels that everyone around her expects her to “get back to her normal life”; she feels there is a pressure to manage lots of things all at once.
“Will I be able to get things done with my baby in the Asteraki?” mums often ask me. And almost as often: “Will I be able to breastfeed and get things done at the same time?”
For many mums it is also important to be able to “stay covered” while breastfeeding in public. I am a mum too (who breastfed) and I understand completely. And the answer is, ultimately, yes.
But I always feel the need to point out the following: Wearing your baby is something that is learned. Breastfeeding your baby, too. Trying to do both at the same time without giving yourself the chance to go through a learning stage can leave you feeling frustrated, or as though you are “not managing”. Day by day, as your baby grows and you find your own rhythm, combining breastfeeding and babywearing will happen almost automatically. But in those first days, when in any case you are simply getting to know your baby, please, don’t feel that you are obliged to do everything at once. You can sit down, rest, breastfeed at your own pace, calmly observe the cues your baby gives you while feeding.
In fact, in the early days, doing it this way is almost essential. If your mind is on how to stay covered, you can’t at the same time keep your mind on how to position your baby correctly at the breast. That sense of being able to have your hands free and do other things should settle down when it comes to breastfeeding. Breastfeeding in a sling, you’ll be able to keep your baby in the position you want without needing nursing pillows, you’ll have the ease to make sure your baby latches well, to support your breast properly, to feel comfortable. But it’s one thing to be able to get up and answer the door when someone knocks or drink a glass of water, and quite another to do other things at the same time. And never, ever assume you can let go of control of the baby in the sling – which is exactly why the baby’s head is never inside the sling during breastfeeding. It is always in your hand; you are the one holding it.
Babies breastfeeding in an Asteraki ring sling
Breastfeeding in an Asteraki mei tai
Note: Almost always, when we picture a baby breastfeeding, we picture it lying down across the mum’s arms. That is the position we are taught to breastfeed in, because without the support of a sling, we would need a hundred hands or a hundred pillows to breastfeed a baby in an upright position. Yet babies breastfeed beautifully in an upright position (and we, too, eat better standing up than lying down). The upright position is better for digestion, for minimising spit-ups and managing reflux. Statistically, of the mums I see every day, whoever tries breastfeeding in an upright position rarely goes back to the lying-down one, even with a ring sling.
As a society, we are used to the image of a baby lying in our arms. In a sling, the baby lies down only to breastfeed, only with its head in our control, and only for as long as it is breastfeeding. For sleep or for a walk, babies in a sling are always in an upright position, from day one.
What to always watch for when wearing your baby:
The basic principles of babywearing:
Wearing your baby is a truly wonderful feeling, and it gives new mums incredible freedom. If you do it safely, you are sure to have many wonderful moments together with your baby. Enjoy this freedom little by little and learn to listen to your baby at every moment, even when it is in the sling (and therefore in your arms).
