Yes find your local Le Leche League (LLL) meeting. It was SOOO helpful for me. I had a lot of problems starting with breast feeding Quinn, but after I had blisters and open sores and feeding her hurt worse then childbirth x10 I decided to check out LLL and they were amazing help. Breast feeding should not hurt and it certainlly should not cause sores, so it's best to find help before it gets so bad it hurts to have a shirt on. They showed me how to properly latch her and unlatch her. I didn't get the hang of unlatching and that's where the majority of my injuries came from. Once you get past the first few weeks it's a piece of cake, and it's just the most rewarding thing in the world! I absolutely LOVE breast feeding and I can't imagine it any other way.
As far as diet, the only thing I watched was spicy and gas producing foods. I do try to eat healthy, but since I plan to breast feed for at least 12 months, I have to be realistic and be able to eat normal. I watched cabbage, sourkraut, and all spicy stuff. When I did introduce foods into my diet that could effect Quinn, I did it slowly. I am fortunate in that Quinn shows little reaction to the foods I eat, but some babies are more sensitive. LOTS and LOTS of water, too. I stay away from sugar drinks like gatoraide, juice is OK but it's also full of sugar so watch your intake of juice as well, but I refill my 32 oz cup at least 3 times a day with just water and I've never had any problems with milk production.
You will also need more protein then normal, so if you're a meat eater, lean chicken and/or hard boiled eggs should be mixed in with your salad if you're eating salad. Try to eat some protien with every meal, lean chicken is great and it's healthy and it'll help fill you up. If you're vegetarian remember to eat legumes for protein, but watch your intake at first since they're a gassy food.
As far as foods not being tolerated, Quinn's very good and I'm very lucky, but whenever I eat sourkraut she fusses, so I stopped eating it. I think it's the combanation of acidic and gassy. I stopped eating it because I don't want it to effect her again.
Gosh best of luck to you. The LLL was a WONDERFUL resource for me, there's also a book that's amazing called "The Art Of Breastfeeding" and I recomend that. You may also be able to check the book out from the LLL, so check them out, they're life savers! Le Leche League
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