Ep. 6: What happens when breastfeeding doesn’t work out?

This week on the podcast I speak with journalist Sheena McStravick about her attempts to breastfeed her son and what happens when breastfeeding doesn’t work out. Like so many mamas, she really wanted to give breastfeeding a go and had done some research about breastfeeding to prepare herself. And by all accounts, she and her son Dáire got off to a great start breastfeeding. After he was born, he latched on straight away for his first feed! After enduring a gruelling 23-hour labour, Sheena was ecstatic to breastfeed.

At home, matters took a turn for the worst

Once home, and as Sheena attempted to recover from a difficult and draining birth, issues for both her and her son came to the fore. She felt progressively worse and her son was feeding around the clock. Something had to give, and when Sheena was admitted to hospital one week after giving birth, she and her husband had to make a difficult decision.

Despite the reassurance from those around me, the self-doubt crept in and I just had a feeling something wasn’t right.

Sheena

The impact labour can have on breastfeeding success

In this episode, Sheena talks us through what happened during her labour and how this had a profound impact on her ability to breastfeed. We talk about the pressure we put on ourselves as women to breastfeed, and the guilt associated with ‘failing’ to breastfeed and opting to use infant formula.

How do you get past the disappointment of not being able to breastfeed and make peace with the situation you found yourself in? Listen in to this honest and enlightening interview with Sheena.

Sheena’s big talking points

• Trying to breastfeed after a painful labour and only able to breastfeed on one side
• How I became borderline sepsis just days after giving birth
• The immense pressure I put on myself to keep breastfeeding
• How I made peace with my experience and moved on
• The learning curve my husband and I went on with formula feeding
• Advice I would give to others in similar circumstances