By Julia M.

I have been a part of my local La Leche League Group since the birth of our first child in October 2022, and I’m still participating after we welcomed a new baby in March 2025. The La Leche League Leaders have been so kind, responsive, and steadfast towards the families they support! LLL has helped me so much throughout my breastfeeding journey. In my journey as a mom, I am learning every day that families need to connect to each other, and LLL is a place for that connection. LLL has been a resource for breastfeeding information, a place to celebrate successes, and a safe space to ask questions. Now that we have moved, our new local LLL Group has helped us, too!

As I sat to write about my own nursing journey, I wondered if it would even be helpful for others to hear about, because it was fairly simple. Then, I hoped that even a simple story may encourage other parents that nursing can go off without too many challenges.

My nursing journey started before the birth of our first child. My husband and I read books to prepare for breastfeeding. The reading helped give us some understanding of nursing and the commitment involved, and also the great rewards.

When my first baby was born, I had the help of a lactation consultant at the hospital. Our son was born small, at five pounds and 15 ounces, and he lost weight in the hospital. I knew from the learning I had done about breastfeeding that a weight drop could be normal after birth, so I didn’t immediately get concerned. The lactation consultant suggested that we supplement with formula, and I had a strong reaction against that suggestion. I had read that babies who are introduced to formula early can refuse breastmilk, due to the higher amount of sugar in the formula. I didn’t want that to happen and felt determined to give him exclusively breastmilk. We looked into donor breastmilk as an alternative. While we didn’t end up needing to use it, it was good to have a resource.

I dealt with some sore and cracked nipples in the beginning while working on the latch and pumping with incorrect flange sizes. As I was working towards resolving these issues and repairing nipple damage, I ended up with a case of mastitis. I remember getting ready to host a birthday party at our house. I started feeling warm and feverish, and I had to lie down after we finished dinner. After our guests left, my temperature was higher than it had ever been–I think around 104 degrees! My husband helped me connect to our doctor, who quickly prescribed antibiotics.

After I recovered from mastitis, we continued working through the nipple damage with a lactation consultant, who helped us define our breastfeeding goals. The lactation consultant was able to help look at the way I was nursing in order to troubleshoot our latching difficulties and helped me select a better flange size for pumping. After that home visit, our nursing sessions got much more comfortable. We got into a groove with nursing right up until he was one year old! The week of his first birthday, I started offering him the breast, but he refused. He had been decreasing his nursing for a little while (over a month or so), and I took that as his indication he was ready to stop nursing. It was on his terms, and it went peacefully!

Nursing our second child was easier in many ways! I had more confidence knowing that I had some prior knowledge and experience. Our nursing journey has now been going strong for almost 11 months! Our daughter is happy and healthy. I observe many benefits of nursing her, like very few instances of colds and viruses, a happy temperament, and one of my personal favorites, she is a great sleeper.

There have been challenges to overcome. My latch was still shallow at the beginning like it was with my son. How did I do it the first time? I tried to remember. I made a telehealth appointment with an IBCLC who helped me figure out my latch situation. She used cute crochet puppets to help me learn a latch technique.

Our current challenge, now that my daughter is ten-and-a-half months old, has been learning how to nurse with four teeth. Our daughter is more of a biter than our son was. The actual bite isn’t that bad for me–it was more the anticipation that it would hurt! And we are working through strategies to reduce biting while she nurses. An LLL Leader helped me by reminding me how to create a deep latch (point the nipple towards the back of the baby’s mouth, and pull the baby in close), because the baby cannot bite with a deep latch. It’s been helping! I am excited that, with our new latch skills, I can nurse our baby for longer. We don’t have an exact goal of how long to nurse, but I would love to try until at least her first birthday.

I love that breastmilk is a superfood. It’s amazing! I am still reading research on it, and I am constantly amazed at the complete nutritional profile it provides. Breastmilk also is medicinal–human milk produces antibodies within hours of the baby getting sick, simply from the baby’s saliva. Knowing how very good breastmilk is for my babies motivates me to keep going. Breastfeeding is a journey, and it’s not one size fits all. I learned it’s better not to compare myself or my nursing journey to others and to enjoy time with my babies and be proud of us.

You can find your local LLL Group and volunteer Leaders on our map at lllusa.org/locator/

Did you receive support from an LLL Group or Leader? We’d love to share your stories about LLL or other parenting or human milk feeding experiences! Email your writing to Kylie at [email protected]

Supporting Breastfeeding Families–Today, Tomorrow, Always

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