As a certified breastfeeding counselor (CBC), you provide ongoing breastfeeding support. At times, your breastfeeding support may look like helping parents navigate the mental load of breastfeeding.
While breastfeeding is a normal physiological process, it often takes practice, patience, and lots of time. This can be stressful for new parents. For the breastfeeding parent, the mental load of breastfeeding can be a lot at times.
Understanding the mental load is an important part of being able to provide empathetic support.
The Mental Load of Breastfeeding
There are many ways breastfeeding can cause a large mental load. Even when breastfeeding is going well, the responsibility of feeding can be draining. As a CBC, you know that many parents also face breastfeeding challenges.
Here is what you need to know about the mental load to provide the best breastfeeding support:
New Parents Feel Pressured to Breastfeed
We know there are risks to not breastfeeding. We also know that many hospitals strongly encourage exclusive breastfeeding while simultaneously providing minimal breastfeeding support.
The pressure to breastfeed is often a major mental stress for new mothers. This can be especially true for first time parents. Not only are they trying to figure out everything they need to care for a new baby, they are trying to navigate breastfeeding with little to no familiarity with it.
When they are told about the benefits of breastfeeding, they can become extremely stressed when things do not go as planned.
As a CBC, it is important to understand how stressful it can be if a new parent feels pressure to breastfeed. You want to provide evidenced-based support without adding to their stress. This can be done through being an empathetic ear, careful delivery of information, and lots of reassurance that they are doing a great job.
Regardless of how long a parent breastfeeds, it is important we never make them feel bad about their journey. Rather, we need to encourage and support them however they end up feeding their baby.
The Mental Load of Being The Sole Feeder
Best practice advice often suggests feeding exclusively at the breast. This is ideal for establishing milk supply and making sure baby masters latching. While this is ideal, it can be quite exhausting for a new parent.
On top of the physical demand, the mental load of being the sole feeder can be exhausting.
As a CBC, you can reassure a new parent that if they need to pump to share feeding, use a pacifier, etc., it is possible for many babies to learn to switch between items. If baby is struggling with latching you can discuss the importance of breastfeeding support.
Non-lactating parents can take the load of diapering, bathing, burping, etc. They can ensure the breastfeeding parent has water, snacks, and a chance to rest between feeds.
Stressing About Their Diet
For reasons which are not evidenced based, many new parents are told anytime baby is fussing it must be what they ate. While occasionally there are allergies, it is quite rare.
Being told to watch what they eat can become a major stress for some parents.
Watch spice!
Broccoli will cause gas!
Do not have a glass of wine. Won’t baby get alcohol?
Just a few things new parents hear. Breast milk is made from the blood stream. Milk is not made directly from what a mother eats. This means consuming spicy food is not going to cause gas in a baby. On rare occasions, babies are sensitive to certain proteins in different foods (allergies) but this is not the same as a baby having gas.
If a newborn is experiencing gastric upset, it is more likely related to swallowing air with a poor latch or while crying. They can also have gas and GI discomfort because their digestive systems are simply learning how to work. These new sensations can be uncomfortable and scary for newborns.
It is important to reassure new parents they do not need to stress about their diet unless a qualified professional has suggested otherwise. True allergies are not gas. A true food issue would include blood and mucus in stool, persistent diaper rash, eczema or hives, and significant spit up (not typical amounts).
Breastfeeding Support – How To Help
As a CBC, you will be supporting new parents during very vulnerable times. In addition to providing evidenced-based support, it is important you provide truly empathetic care. Lots of reassurance and understanding barriers involved in common feeding recommendations.