Throw Away The Shield

by Crystle

Hi my name is Crystle. I live in Michigan. I had my son on June 20th of this year. He was born at 7 pounds 12.25 ounces.

I decided long before my son was born that I wanted to breast feed. After I gave birth to my son, the hospital nurses told me that I had inverted nipples and that my son had a small chin. (Which I found out later we were both just fine.) They gave me a nipple shield and told me that if I didn't use it my son wouldn't latch on right.

For 2 weeks every time I took him to the scale at the lactation consultants' office he was losing weight. She told me that I would have to supplement if he didn't start to gain. Then to my horror his weight dropped to 6 pounds 8 ounces!

I cried every night because I thought I was doing the best for my baby and he wasn't even close to his birth weight. I was so ashamed! I talked to my consultant about my worries ( she was just as worried).

She made me throw away my shield and I'm so proud to report that my son has been feeding great every since! At 2 and half months he is a whopping 13 pounds!!!!!

So to all the other mothers out there, don't give up, it is so worth it!
BREASTFEEDING IS BEST!