I love this discussion-it sounds a little like "How I Spent My Summer Vacation"

My youngest will be hitting 40 soon (Gosh that makes me feel old!).  I nursed my first with very little info other than what was discussed in the Natural Childbirth (community based, not hospital based) class, which was pretty positive for that time.  I hadn't read anything and my mom hadn't nurse my sister and I (more later).  I knew of LLL from a friend who had gone, but never got around to attending (I thought she was a little on the "flaky" side and assumed League might be also.)  Of course, in the hospital, I was told-one minute oper side the first day, 3 each side the second, etc.  I tried to follow that, but soon found myself asking, "When he pauses, does that count as art of the time or do I only count the minutes he is actually nursing?" and pretty much ignored the schedule idea.  I can't remember if I ever tried nursing laying down with him.  After all, I might fall asleep and smother him!  Don't think I tried hand expression, but did use the "bycycle horn" a few times (very inefficient-squeeze, dump, squeeze, dump etc.)  He did get some formula-one time when another supposedly breastfeeding savvy friend was visiting and asked if she could give him a bottle-since she knew what she was doing, it must be a normal thing to do. sheesh!  I started attending LLL meetings early in my second pregnancy when I encouraged a pg neighbor to attend with me.  
The second child was a much more physiologically normal nursing experience (except when she weaned cold turkey at 5 PM on Tuesday afternoon March 1st at age 11 months!  I remember so specifically because our fast began the next day and nursing moms are exempt.  I kid her to this day that she must have thought I really needed to fast!)  I did a little hand expression-learned mainly by reading) but she rarely got a bottle and if she did it was my milk.  It was with her that I learned to nurse lying down.  She was just a couople months old, and I was dutifully sitting upo for the night nursings.  The night I started to doze off and woke just as she was about to roll off my lap, I decided it was safer and more practical to take her into bed with me when she woke to nurse and put her back in her crib if I was awake when she finished.  By the third, he spent the majority of time in bed with me.
So what kept me going in spite of having little info and support? My competitive spirit!  You see, I remember when my older sister had her first she tried to nurse, and tried to hand express (I guess that's where I first saw that) but gave up before the first week was up.  As the older of the two of us, she had pretty much experienced everything before me, and by golly, nursing was one thing I could beat her at!  Now look at where that led me!

Winnie Mading

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