Breastfeeding class

Tonight we went to a breastfeeding class at the hospital. We had an impossible time finding the room, and the woman who was teaching the intro to childbirth class didn't have e clue either. It's a small hospital, but it's kind of like a maze. I hope when the time comes for the baby to arrive, we don't have as much trouble finding the right place!

The breastfeeding class was interesting. My two other children were breastfed, but a lot has changed even in a few short years. It used to be they wanted no more than "10 minutes on a side", but the thinking now is that the best food for the baby comes later in the nursing cycle, so you should let the baby nurse as long as it wants to (up to half an hour) without changing sides. They also showed us that the "football hold" with the baby's bottom up against wherever the mother is sitting is the preferred position for first-time nursing mothers, since it allows the mother to see the baby's mouth more easily and see whether the baby is latched properly. Probably the best piece of advice: if it hurts, you're not doing it right.

After the personal instruction -- she used a thing that looked like a beanie baby shaped like a boob -- we watched a movie. I think the movie was from the 80's, because the doctors had big hair, wore pink dress shirts with pink ties, and looked as cheesy as can be. It was good to see what the baby's mouth should look like when it is ready to nurse and in the proper position, but I don't think either of us could get past the creepiness of some of the video... in a couple of scenes, the woman teaching the technique to the new mothers put her fingers right on the new mom's nipple, to show her what was happening. I don't think I would be comfortable with that.