Are you breastfeeding or intending to breastfeed your new and precious bundle of joy?

We know that breastfeeding is the best option for developing babies. That being said, some of us are not able to breast feed - for health reasons, due to extreme difficulties or because the baby won't take to you.

In my case, my lovely baby girl was sadly traumatised in hospital by being forced very hard onto my breast. She arched her back, screamed in pain and there was bruising left on her neck. She never took to my breast after that.

I then started expressing milk for her to take and kept it up - I was expressing 8 times a day and generally it would be nothing for me to produce 250mls of milk each time. For those of you that are interested, I used a Medela Swing Breast Pump initially then switched to the Phillips Avent Hand Pump which actually DID get more milk out.

My Community Nurse & Natropaths have both said my production is "phenomenal" and have asked what I've been eating / taking / doing to produce so much milk. To be honest, I didn't research much about it, I just craved different things so I had them - turns out they are great for producing more milk for lactating pregnacious Goddesses like you!

So, here is my recipe for creating a Dairy Goddess... :-)

• Infusions of rasberry leaf tea, all day every day from the moment bubba is born
• Substitute with Weleda Nursing Tea (or add to your rasberry leaf tea) or an infusion of Fenugreek, Stinging Nettle or Chickweed and some Lemon Verbena.
  
• Smoothie in the morning of banana, rice milk, goat or sheep yogurt or kefir, pro-biotic formula, honey & frozen yogurt or icecream (note: see Health Food stores for healthier ice cream options LOL)
• Warm compress (heat pack) just before feeding or expressing to help milk let down
• Skin to skin time daily with bubba - I would strip us both off, go to bed and lie there with her on my chest for hours at a time. I had just had a c-section so it meant I got well needed rest.
  
• Medela Swing Breast Pump daily (I use it 4 - 5 times during the day and 3 times over night to keep up supply & freeze extra milk)
  
• Watermelon daily (don't know if this helps but I just loved having it every morning for breakie!) 

Other herbs for breastmilk production include; Fenugreek, Fennel, Caraway, and Anise Seeds. Homeopathic remedies including alfalfa & Lactuca Virosa have been known to increase milk supply by 50% - 100%.

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Raspberry Leaf tea has been used for centuries to help the uterus contract after childbirth and also to ease labour pains.
It is thought that when the uterus contracts (sometimes producing period like pain) this stimulates the production of oxytocin & prolactin, the two hormones responsible for the production of breastmilk.
So, you're assisting your body in producing more breastmilk and also moving towards having a flat post pregnancy tummy again.
What a winning combo! ;-)

Women have traditionally used herbal remedies to provide support their milk supply. The range of herbs that can increase your milk supply are known as herbal galactagogues.

Weleda Nursing Tea contains 100% certified organic plant ingredients, including Anise, Fennel, Caraway, Fenugreek and leaves from Lemon Verbena. These herbal ingredients have traditionally been used for lactation support and promoting healthy milk flow.

Pleasant tasting with an aromatic fragrance, Weleda Nursing Tea supports relaxed and harmonious breastfeeding. This traditional and nourishing tea is easy and convenient to prepare - just dunk one or two bags in hot water and sip away.

Expressing milk after feeding is the best way to ensure hearty production of breast milk (assuming illness, stress or other factors don't affect your supply). Most days I could produce well over a litre and sometimes, I would be sitting down, expressing, chatting away and the bottles would be overflowing with milk onto my lap!

Newborns tend to consume between 50ml - 100mls per feed, sometimes up to 8 times a day. That is a lot of milk so expressing after feeding will help ensure you can keep up with the demand. Freezing excess milk also means that if your supply should dwindle you have some on hand. Also, breast milk is great for a myriad of health issues so keep a little frozen into ice cubes for things like conjunctivitis, gastro, skin fungus and other ailments your baby may suffer.

I found the Medela Swing breast pump the best out of many options initially however I then went to the Avent Hand Pump because we traveled alot. They were both quite expensive however I found they were well worth the investment.