It's that time! Perhaps you have already had your baby, or maybe you are waking up each morning wondering if your little one is coming today. Most babies are ready to nurse within minutes after they are born. We’ve put together some helpful information from Motherwear's Essential Breastfeeding Guide to get you started breastfeeding:

The First Few Days of Breastfeeding
As soon as your baby is born, most doctors and midwives will put the baby right on your bare chest so that his first introduction to the world is in your loving arms. Your baby will probably look around and try to find you and the others in the room. When things calm down a little, he may begin "rooting" around a bit, searching for your breast. Breastfeeding your baby soon after birth is a great start for your nursing relationship. Given enough time (especially after an intervention-free birth), your baby can find the breast on her own, or you can help her along a little. Use the information provided here to get yourself and your baby in a good position for nursing and to make sure that the baby latches on correctly. Relax… this is just practice and your baby may not suck for long. And some babies would just as soon wait until later.

Positioning
Getting yourself and your baby in the correct positions will have a tremendous effect on your early nursing success. Perhaps the most important element of proper positioning is being sure your baby takes your entire nipple and a good part of the dark area surrounding the nipple, called the areola (ah-REE-o-la), into his mouth. Incorrect positioning almost always leads to nipple soreness for the mother, insufficient milk intake for the baby, and frustration for both. Take time to read and follow these simple suggestions.

Your position
First, get comfortable, whether that means sitting up or lying down. You can sit in bed, in a chair, on the sofa, on the floor - anywhere your back is supported and your body is relaxed. If you are seated, your knees should be slightly higher than your hips. A footstool under your feet can help, and a firm pillow on your lap will lift your baby to the height of your breasts and free your arms to help you get started. Many women find that the easiest position in which to begin breastfeeding is the side-lying position. When you're lying down, you can feed from either breast and have one hand free to hold your baby in position or stroke her as she nurses. Pillows supporting your head and upper body will help you sustain this position easily through a long nursing session.

Your baby's position
Once you are in a suitable position, find a comfortable one for your baby. If she is straining to get to your breast, she cannot latch on correctly or nurse well. Her ear, shoulder, and hip should be in a straight line, and her chest should be touching yours.

Pillows and footstools
The right pillow takes the strain off your back, keeps your arms free for hugging, and brings your baby to the perfect nursing height. With the recent popularity of nursing pillows, designs have been honed to perfection. By raising your legs slightly, a nursing footstool helps you nurse more comfortably.

Latching on
Breastfeeding is an exquisite thing and, overall, a rewarding experience for both a mother and child. But the first weeks can be difficult. Too many women give up because they don't realize that, like most other things, getting it just right takes practice. Follow these simple steps to get started.

1. When you and your baby are comfortable, place the palm of your free hand just below your breast and your thumb on top of your breast, then lift. Your fingers should touch the breast, not the areola.
2. Gently touch your nipple to your baby's cheek or lower lip. When she opens her mouth, lift your breast and pull her close so her nose and chin touch your breast. Don't put your breast in your baby's mouth; bring her to your breast. She should close her mouth around your areola and begin sucking. If she doesn't latch on, repeat the process.
3. Be sure both of your baby's lips are flared outward. Nursing will be very difficult if either lip is not. To "flange" your baby's lips for proper latching on, use your thumb, above your breast, to gently tease out her upper lip. Use your finger, below your breast, to stroke her chin and roll her lower lip outward.
4. If your baby's sucking hurts your nipple, her position is not right. Slip your finger into her mouth to break the suction. Then take her off and try again.
5. Most of the areola should be in your baby's mouth. If it's not, take her off and position her again.
6. If your baby has any trouble breathing through her nose, bring her bottom closer to you, or lift your breast slightly to free her nostrils.
7. Be sure your baby's chin is off her chest so she'll be able to suck well.

Ensuring nursing success
Continuing the physical contact you two have shared since conception can only make the transition into her new world an easier one. Studies have shown that babies who stay with their mothers in the hospital ("room in") learn to breastfeed faster, startle less, and establish their day/night rhythms more quickly than babies who are taken to a nursery. Rooming-in also ensures against the hazards of early bottle-feeding that babies sometimes get in nurseries. Insisting on keeping your baby with you will help your breastfeeding get off to a good start.

Babies learn to nurse, just as they will later learn to crawl and walk. A baby confronted with conflicting stimuli may become confused and frustrated. If your baby receives a bottle or a pacifier at the hospital or at home during the early weeks, you may experience difficulty getting him back on the breast. Taking liquid from a rubber nipple requires a process very different from breastfeeding, and it takes much less work. Your baby may have trouble unlearning one method and learning another. Remember all the advantages of breastfeeding, and avoid the bottle whenever possible, especially during the early weeks. If bottle-feeding becomes necessary, wait at least six weeks, until nursing is well established.

Tell the hospital staff frequently that you do not want your newborn to receive any formula, water, or a pacifier, and have your doctor record this on your baby's chart. Another important way to ensure breastfeeding success is to turn down any offers of formula samples to take home with you.

Your milk supply: Is your baby getting enough milk?
Nursing for proper growth
During your baby's first two weeks he should be fed at least every three hours around the clock. Wake him, if needed, to feed at this frequency; if you received an epidural anesthetic during the birth, waking may be necessary for the first several days. When your baby is back to his birth weight and is regularly wetting and soiling diapers, waking him to feed won't be necessary.

Many lactation consultants advise against timed or scheduled nursings, though some mothers find scheduling necessary to fit into their lifestyles. Left to their own timetables, babies breastfeed as needed - sometimes in short, frequent feedings, sometimes in long ones several hours apart, often at night. Your baby knows when he needs food and will know when he has had enough. He will also get the right balance of foremilk and hindmilk for optimal growth. In most situations, you can simply leave the timing to him.

Your job is simple: Feed him whenever he is hungry and let him stay on each breast until he has had enough. Let him finish the first breast, give him a chance to burp, and offer the second.

Is your baby getting enough milk?
Breastfeeding works by the concept of supply and demand. In general, if your baby is nursing frequently, has six to eight wet diapers a day, is gaining weight, appears healthy, and receives no supplementation, she is probably getting plenty of milk.

If you suspect that your milk production is tapering off, simply increase the number of times you put your baby to the breast each day and night. The more your baby stimulates and empties your breasts by nursing (or the more you express or pump your milk), the more milk you will produce. Remember, even if your breast feels empty, it will produce milk as your child nurses.

Easy steps to increase your milk supply
1. Feed your baby nothing but your own milk. If you have been supplementing formula, cut back gradually.
2. Encourage your baby to nurse as often and as long as she wants. Don't give her a pacifier, which would replace sucking at the breast.
3. Check positioning to be sure your baby is nursing efficiently.
4. Encourage your baby to drain both breasts at each feeding. It's fine to switch back and forth a few times during feedings to keep him interested.
5. Drink plenty of fluids, especially water, and eat a nutritious diet. You may want to eat smaller, more frequent meals.
6. Rest, relax, and enjoy the closeness of your nursing time.
If you are still concerned about your milk supply, contact the lactation consultant at your hospital, your midwife, doula or a La Leche League leader for advice. In most cases, a few simple steps will remedy the problem. If your baby is not gaining weight by the time he is two weeks old, keep his doctor informed.

Overcoming Common Breastfeeding Problems
Even once you and your baby have successfully mastered the fundamentals of breastfeeding, it’s not uncommon to experience problems a bit later on. If you are aware of the potential issues in advance, you are better able to work through them quickly, and to know when you may need to seek outside help. Motherwear's Essential Breastfeeding Guide includes sections dedicated to these challenges (including plugged ducts, mastitis, thrush and more), most of which can be easily and quickly resolved. Refer to our Guide to read up on these issues, and for detailed information on how to solve them.

More Resources from Motherwear
Motherwear is committed to your breastfeeding success! Need a little more help or encouragement? Check out these resources, all available in the Breastfeeding Resources section of our website:

Essential Breastfeeding Guide
Our Essential Breastfeeding Guide is an indispensable online resource for breastfeeding mothers and mothers-to-be. Thirty-three pages of insightful information on important breastfeeding topics. Visit the Breastfeeding Resources section and browse, download, and print the Guide. Pass it out to all your friends! Individual chapters are also available separately.

Parenting from the Heart
Our quarterly online magazine, Parenting from the Heart , offers sage advice and personal stories about breastfeeding and mothering from a community of moms. Each issue also features MotherShare, a forum for real nursing moms to respond to a breastfeeding question, offering their insight and suggestions to other new moms and moms-to-be.

Your Monthly Breastfeeding Planner
You’re currently reading breastfeeding information we’ve geared specifically to pregnant moms due any time now! Our website offers insight and information on other stages of pregnancy and birth, to help guide you through the details of selecting your nursing wardrobe, planning for those first days in the hospital and home, breastfeeding in public, returning to work, and more. Browse your current stage, look back or ahead, and refer to this section often as your pregnancy and nursing experiences progress:

It's Time to Shop for Maternity & Nursing Bras (6th month of pregnancy)
Essential Information for New Nursing Moms (7th month of pregnancy)
Pack Your Bag For Baby’s Birth! (baby due in less than 2 months)
Building The Perfect Nursing Wardrobe (baby due in 1 month or less)
Nursing On The Go (baby 1 month old)
Breastfeed Your Baby – Anytime, Anywhere (baby 2 months old)
Yes, You Can Breastfeed & Work (baby 3 months old)
10 Reasons to Keep Nursing your Baby (baby 4+ months old)

Our Favorite Breastfeeding Tips - A collection of our favorite nursing tips, provided by Motherwear customers and organized into distinct categories for easy reference. Review them for support, help and inspiration; share with your pregnant and nursing friends and email your own best tip to us!

"Our Favorite Links" - a resource in the "Breastfeeding Resources" section that provides access to a wide range of valuable online breastfeeding and parenting information and support.