Over the past 20 years theres been a growth in the commercialism of breastfeeding . Ironically one of the biggest benefits of breastfeeding is that it’s free. For most mums, breastfeeding shouldn’t need anything more than a comfortable lounge chair and a firm mattress.

The list of additional equipment just keeps growing but one of the items I feel causes more issues than it solves is breastfeeding pillows.There are many different shapes and designs – some wrap around a mothers waist like a giant bum bag and some just rest on a mothers lap.The manufacturers claim that the pillow makes breastfeeding better. Some of these pillows cost over $100 and of course parents hand over the money gladly for anything that supposedly guarantees the success of their feeding journey.

If a mother was to ask me which is the best breastfeeding pillow-my response is “nature provides you with a natural breastfeeding pillow-yout postpartum belly”

Let me tell you why i sneer at breastfeeding pillows –

A breastfeeding pillow sits on mums lap and the baby lays on top of the pillow.If a mum is sitting on a lounge chair with a breastfeeding pillow, it brings baby so high that the mother then needs to lift her breast up to enable her baby to attach.If she sits on a an upright chair the natural tendency is for mums to lean over  the baby, bringing herself down to meet her baby restsed on the pillow.

This position causes pain for mum as she leans over her baby for up to an hour .Many mums complain of pain in  shoulders, neck and upper back , which she’ll tolerate because mums will tolerate anything of its going to help her baby feed and grow.

The tendency to lean forward also means the baby doesn’t take a deep enough latch & when her milk is flowing freely – baby becomes overwhelmed with the milk squirting everywhere

In addition the shallow latch causes nipple pain .

When mums get nipple pain , they question their ability to keep breastfeeding.

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