Reflection as Breastfeeding Peer Counselor

Becoming a certified breastfeeding peer counselor is a community project that I wish to take part in. The reason why I have chosen this as my community service is because I truly want to help other mommies to be successful in breastfeeding. I failed to breastfeed my 1st LO, but I got successful on the 2nd LO. Of course, I won't say that it's purely my own effort to be successful in this. There are people who feed me with right info throughout the breastfeeding journey. The lactation nurses in the hospital, my nurse from KK Desa who came to visit me after I got discharged from hospital, and members from breastfeeding fb group. The lactation nurses in the hospital were trying to teach me how to hold my baby and how to latch my baby in the hospital. My KK Desa nurse, Fatmatul 'came to the rescue'when I need people to assure my latching was correct in the early days. Breastfeeding moms in the breastfeeding group shared their valuable experiences. Of course, the most important is I am being positive during the learning stage. I believe I can and I didn't give up. I kept trying to latch my LO everyday, every meal, though my poor nipples sore like hxll in the during the confinement month. Whenever I latched my baby that time, my legs were kicking coz of my sore nipples. Until my hubby was laughing at my action.

My advice to new moms who want to breastfeed your baby, try to get someone to help you with the latching and share some tips with you. If you do not want to go for a breastfeeding/lactation consultant who sometimes can charge you a big sum of money, you can go back to the hospital where you deliver your baby, look for the lactation nurses; or get a breastfeeding peer counselor to help you. If you still can't find the right solution to solve your problem, then probably you want to get the lactation consultant to help you.

Always get the right person to help you when you need in breastfeeding. And never give up before you try your best.