Cloth Diapers and Breast Feeding

Good book: So That's What They're For! by Janet Tamaro.
Super funny and super informative.

Congrats!!!

The best advice I was ever given for a proper latch was "nose to nipple." Line up the baby's nose to your nipple, then they will tilt their head back and have a wonderful latch. I cracked and bled with my son, and it took a few weeks until I was not in agonizing pain, but then I got this advise for my daughter and I never had a bit of pain from day one!
Cloth diapers, as another person said, are addicting! There are SO many cute covers, and more or less convenient options... so I'll share my top two favorites! We used chinese prefolds with prowrap covers (SUPER cheap and SUPER effective... we never ever had a leak!), and with my daughter I got a bunch of FuzziBunz second hand, that I put prefolds in (you can buy inserts, but prefolds worked just fine). I then handed those down to a friend. If you want something more fancy and expensive, look for them used - you'll save a bunch of money and they work just fine!

With DD#1 I wanted to used cloth, but never took the plunge. Also with DD#1 I had a HORRIBLE time with breastfeeding. Labor of love ... really... because every second was PAIN from my cracked sore nipples. I wish I would have sought help sooner. Anyway, we worked through it and now I'm nursing twin DD's!

CLOTH! We are using cloth on our twins. After 2 months of spending $200+ on diapers alone, not even counting wipes.... I was done. I could NOT spend that kind of money for almost 2 years. Just couldn't. Besides... I hated thinking their poo was just sitting in landfill somewhere. Disgusting. So, a friend of mine invited me over and she showed me her cloth system. I was hooked.

I use Bum Genius pockets for night time and Bum Genius Flips for day. LOVE LOVE LOVE the Flips. Now, I will say, there are some newer systems that have improved on the Flips a bit... can't remember the brand off the top of my head right now...but it's the same concept. A microfiber multilayer insert that goes into a diaper cover. No folding. Just stick it in and go.

I do like my BG pockets as well. They are good.

Take a look at www.cottonbabies.com, www.diaperjunction.com Also, online stores like Jilliansdrawers.com and kellyscloset.com (?) will have sampler packs (I think cotton babies does as well) where you can pick a variety of diapers and TRY them for a period of time. Actually wash and use them before you commit to an entire stash. There is typically a return policy associated with these sample packs. These sites really want people to get their hands on cloth and see how EASY it is these days!!!!!

Back in Feb our family took a short trip. DH had a conference in FLa and we all went with him. I was not going to haul the cloth supplies and spend my sunny vacay washing diapers. So, we did sposies for those few days. Let me tell you ... it was not really any easier ... and sposies SMELL!!!! You can SMELL the chemicals. I felt SO bad putting that on my babies bottoms!!!! I was so glad to get home and put cloth back on my babies bottoms.

I will say this, you DO need to use special detergent with cloth. Detergents with optical brightners, or lots of dyes etc... will ruin your dipes. Most cloth websites will sell detergents good for diapers. I like Rockin' Green and Planet. Both can be used on your regular laundry as well. I've just started using Planet..... but my girlfriend LOVES it.

As far as the nursing. I'm sorry to say, the hospital LC's I've come across are not very good. Nipple shields work IF you are fitted properly. I had to use a shield with my twins. They were born a month early and were SO tiny! Their mouths just could not accommodate my nipples. I had recently met a woman who was a private LC ... so I called her and she helped me. She said it's important to fit the shield to the BABY'S mouth... NOT your nipple. Most LC's will fit it to you ... but then baby could still have trouble. If you fit it to BABY ... your nipple will be fine. Trust me. When I saw what she wanted me to put on I thought NO WAY... but it was fine. My babies latched perfectly and we had NO issues. My supply never suffered and within a couple of weeks they had grown to the point I no longer needed the shield.

Also, as far as timing.... if you have a properly fitting shield, then it will NOT affect your supply. And, as my friend said "Is baby being fed? Is baby getting what she/he needs? If so...then what's the problem"

Don't be overwhelmed by the CD options. There are lots. I will say, Rumparooz look interesting. I've never tried them and didn't know about them until after I had my stash. But, they are the only pocket I've seen with a double gusset around the leg.... which, could be good for containing poo. Particularly that exclusively breastfed runny poo. Diaper junction sells Rumparooz.

I would really suggest finding a sample pack so you can try out a variety. Seek a GOOD lactation consultant.... and get help early. Supplementing WILL deplete your supply. And, you can be doing everything PERFECTLY and still end up with sore nipples...that's what happened with DD#1 and I. The LC I used at the time said she wished she could video tape me latching my DD ... I was using perfect technique. HOWEVER, the shape of DD's mouth did NOT suit a "normal" latch. So, we had to adjust. There are tons of reasons why things might not work "normally".

This time around, I sought help much much earlier. And this time, I did NOT have weeks of suffering and almost hating bfing. It was a much better start.

Good luck and congrats!!!!

I used cloth for all five of my children and my daughter uses cloth for her son. It stays cool and prevents the growth of bacteria, it is better for the environment and even when using a diaper service -it is cheaper and also better for the environment-plus, you always have a great cloth for cleaning! Stay with you consultant-she will probably give you more support and practical knowledge than you could glean from a book. Best of luck Sweetheart!

Congrats! I'm pregnant with #2 as well. With #1 I clothdiapered and breastfed. It stinks your first experience with breastfeeding was so difficult. The first few weeks always are but there is a lot of bad advice out there, even from lactation consultants. Try kellymom for advice(web). I highly recommend La Leche League meetings. Start going now and ask questions about alternative solutions to the problems you had the first time around. You sound like you had a latching issue--hence the extreme pain. There are other possibilities though too--like thrush. LLL is a great help and support system. I bet alot of moms there cloth diaper since those 2 things are under the umbrella of "natural parenting".

Cloth diapering--alot of moms use them for the environment, financial reasons, and because they feel it is better for baby's skin. For me--I'm frugal, like the side benefit of not dumping so many disposables, and I think it helped my daughter potty train early. Disposables trick kids into thinking they are dry while a cloth diaper has to be changed more frequently.

Alot of cloth diaper fans go a little crazy with buying fancy expensive diapers:) Hey if you've got the money go for it, but I 'm trying to save money. I would recommend prefolds with diaper covers (Prowraps were my fave!) Cheap--$1 or 2 per prefold and $8 per cover. Worked better for me than some of more expensive brands that I sampled! If you do it, be aware that for some it can be an addicting habit like shoes...But if you buy what you need and not what you want you should be fine.

I breastfeed and cloth diaper my son, now 17 months.

I agree with others, stick with a lactation consultant over just using books for help. Attend LLL meetings if you can, but at the very least you could check out their website - I found a lot of helpful articles there. Also, I heard that if you 'prep' your nipples prior to giving birth by using lanolin or something similar to condition the skin it might help prevent the cracking and bleeding when you begin breastfeeding.

We cloth diaper with bum genious diapers and inserts. I love them, they are very easy to use and care for, very similar to disposables. We chose to cloth diaper based mainly on financial reasons, but also environmental. I was sickened to know how many disposable diapers enter our landfills throughout the diapering of just one baby! I wasn't willing to contribute to that, so we do cloth. I got ours from cottonbabies.com, which sells more than just diapers. They were on sale when I got them, and I found a coupon code online as well. The website also has a lot of helpful information/faq's regarding cloth diapering.

If you use a nipple shield, you should also have the goal of getting back to breast. I used one for a while because I had overactive letdown and DD couldn't latch. I would start her with the shield and then try re-latching without. It took time, but over the course of a week or so, she was off the shield. If you know you had issues before, I would consider joining a la leache league group so you can get tips from moms and have some info in advance. Knowing what you know now, more support might be beneficial.

We used BumGenius 3.0 All In Ones. We didn't get a lot because daycare wouldn't use them, so we only PT cloth diapered, but we still use them and have since she was a newborn. They come with 2 inserts and snaps and velcro that make them adjustable. I know several families that really like them (and reluctant dads might like all in ones) and the only real complaint I hear is having to buy bigger pants to accommodate them (but that's not such a bad thing). DD had a lot of rash trouble with disposables, but not with cloth.

Go to La Leche League support groups. They will help you too! Lactation consultants are awesome too. Good luck!

RE: breastfeeding, you might want to check with a local La Leche League meeting. As well, this is a great product: http://www.lansinoh.com/products/hpa-lanolin

I can recommend Dr. Sears Breastfeeding book (http://www.amazon.com/Breastfeeding-Book-Everything-Nursi...) as well as the books by La Leche League. Good luck!

Instead of a nipple shield this time around if you have latching issues (which is very common and fixable!!) use the nipple sandwich technique. You press your nipple (back behind the areola) between your middle and index fingers and insert the flattened nipple into the baby's mouth.

Call around for referrals to an actual IBCLC, not just a LC or CLC. The Le Leche League and local Midwives would probably have great leads as well as offer breastfeeding classes.

I'll be using cloth this time around for #2 baby also - good luck!

it's way to early to read the other posts, but I wanted to say that I have been exactly where you are. We lost 2 before getting pregnant with my now 4 month old. He's the first I have cloth diapered, and the first I have successfully breast fed, like you i had many issues the first time I tried with my daughter.

I love cloth. I use standard prefolds that I bought online, snappie closures, and proraps covers. We have very little problems with leaks, and they fit my very big baby well (he was 8.13). I also found this to be the most cost effective method of cloth, and IMO is easier than some of the others. Don't forget that you will need cloth diaper friendly diaper rash cream and laundry soap.

As for the breast feeding, take a class, read everything your library has. And most importantly know that this time can be different. I was miserable and didn't manage to even pump for more than a month with my daughter before I dried up. My son, he latched right on and my milk came in before we left the hospital. My biggest issue has been the fact that for awhile I was soaking through nursing pads at night in the 2-3 hours between feedings and having to wash my sheets daily.

good luck!

Hi S.,

I'm perhaps an hour from you in Bainbridge (near Geauga Lake, feel free to private message). If you'd like, I'd be happy to show you how I cloth diaper and how I have everything set up. I really love it. I use GroVia hybrids but also have some gDiapers and newborn fitteds I used before if you'd like to see a few different types and how they work. I also nurse. Weekends or this summer is good (I teach, so am home in summer). I like a few websites and some have trial programs, www.jilliansdrawers.com, www.nickisdiapers.com, www.snootybootydiapers.com Nursing is hard at first, the first 2-3 weeks mostly due to hormones and excess fluids in your body from pregnancy, but so worth it. So yes, I found it painful, but ice packs and cabbage really help and I wasn't shy about taking the ibuprofen to get through it. I nursed my first for 4 weeks (so I understand the giving up), my second for 16 months, and this is my third, going strong at almost 9 months as well as pumping for work (really love the Nursing Mother's Companion). Best of luck to you! H.