Breastfeeding Sucks (pun intended)

I had figured it was just Elias the first time around. At two-weeks-old he was labeled, "Failure to thrive" because he was so bad at breastfeeding. I ended up pumping and feeding him with a bottle (at least until the next saga occurred).

Turns out I can't blame it all on him. Breastfeeding is really frickin' hard. I'm supposed to sit with good posture (yeah right), get Ezra to latch on properly, hold one breast with one hand, hold him with the other. With my third hand I keep his hands out of the way, and with my fourth I tickle him to keep him awake. See the problem yet? I currently sit hunched over, strip him down to his diaper and count down until 15 minutes has passed. Then I switch to the other side. Sometimes it is 3:00 in the morning. Ugh.

People tell me that I can sleep, read a book or even read to Elias while feeding Ezra. Really? When does that happen? Right now it is all I can do to get Ezra to keep eating for the allotted amount of time. And if he doesn't eat right, it isn't that he will just wake up earlier next time. It can affect my milk supply. If he eats less, then I produce less. It becomes a downward spiral. Talk about pressure.

Right now Ezra doesn't seem too skinny. He isn't the fatty I would like, but I think we are managing. I sure hope he and I both learn a little bit more about breastfeeding. Maybe during the next feeding I'll read him some literature on how to sit properly and good latching technique. I'll have to hold the book with my fifth hand.