Born and brought up in the beautiful city of Bengaluru, Suchitra started to work with an IT firm immediately after her graduation in Engineering. She says, “Creativity has always been my strength.” She has also been associated with several extra-curricular activities since her school days like the school band, Scouts & Guides (received the Rashtrapati award in her 10th) and several other inter school & college competitions. After her baby was born, Suchitra loves to plan and make all the birthday decors. She also makes personalized birthday chalkboards that can be a keepsake capturing all important milestones /memories of the baby. You can check it out here.
1. What were your thoughts on breastfeeding during your pregnancy days?
During my pregnancy, until my third trimester, I wasn’t aware that Breastfeeding is Normal. I have seen many babies in my friends/family circle on formula and assumed that was OK too. A very good friend of mine, Shreya Krishnan, introduced me to the benefits of breastfeeding. I had attended a brief session given by my friend and was aware of the basics of breastfeeding. I felt informed and in control. Shreya had a huge role to play in the initial days until I read up everything on Breastfeeding Support for Indian Mothers (BSIM), a facebook group.
2. How was your birth experience?
I started experiencing minor labor pain just before my due date; although my doctor only waited till my due date. I was induced and progressed pretty well. However after sometime, the doctor announced that the progress is slow and is affecting the baby. Hence I was again given an epidural before C-section. In short, I did not have a good birth experience.
But the silver lining was, in spite of feeling severely drowsy due to the medicines, I informed the nurses to bring my baby in the Golden Hour to have her first feed, Colostrum. My girl latched like a pro and I felt thankful for my friend who advocated about the importance of the first hour.
3. Is it safe to assume things went well after you were back in the room?
No. For the 3 days that I was at the hospital, I was actively nursing the baby, yet she was given 2-3 feeds of formula. I did not have much strength and also had my own doubts about my supply.
While at the hospital, 2 good things happened:
- The pediatrician was supportive of breastfeeding and he strictly mentioned that I should wean the baby off formula by the day of my discharge. I took his words seriously and nursed my baby at every chance, mostly lying down.
- My friend added me to the BSIM group.
On the day of the discharge, we did buy a new pack of formula on the way home. But my baby and I were a good team and we never used that pack ever.
4. So how was it after you got home?
Apart from a few episodes of engorgement, especially in the initial months, the journey was pretty uneventful. Alternating between hot and cold compress helped me overcome it. I had been reading a lot on BSIM and 2 friends of mine who delivered couple of months before me were sharing their experiences too. I loved those late night conversations we had on WhatsApp while nursing the newborn. This really helped me relax and cope.
I did have my share of challenges convincing people who felt the need to introduce water or honey to the baby. Post-partum mood swings made it worse at times. However my biggest strength was having a supportive family, a very pro breastfeeding spouse and my mommy friends. Joining the BSIM group at the start of my breastfeeding journey was a boon and my relation with BSIM only got better over time.
5. You went back to work after your maternity leave. How did you manage to continue with breastfeeding?
It was time for me to join work at 7 months and my decision to take my girl to the crèche facility within my company campus was made even before my birth. I am not a fan of pumping and always preferred direct nursing thanks to the smooth journey I had. The only time I used a manual pump was when my girl contracted Oral Thrush on 2 occasions.
Once I joined work, I would walk to the crèche every 2-3 hours to nurse her. Once meals were introduced, I would nurse her before and after meals. Breaking from work to visit my daughter for these nursing sessions was a bit tiring. But I cherish those 20 minute moments with her. Thanks to a supportive manager who trusted me as a responsible employee.
6. It is nice to see how employers are warming up to the needs of a breastfeeding mother and making arrangements for the same. But we still have a long way to go in that aspect.
I totally agree to this. My employer provided an onsite day care center which proved to be quite beneficial for those who had to return to work and had minimum support at home. I used this facility to the fullest to keep my breastfeeding journey going.
We still have a long way to go because, just like most employers, we don’t have an in-house facility apart from a tiny 6feet * 4feet room with only one fan and not even a window initially. There isn’t much awareness about breastfeeding among the organizations yet and this will take time. But we will get there.
7. Suchitra, I know you are a strong advocate for breastfeeding. How do you manage all of it with your work and home?
While I was on my maternity leave, I mostly read a lot about breastfeeding, weaning and several parenting information. I tried to support mothers with information I gathered and soon I was a peer counsellor with BSIM. As of today, I am the moderator in the group and being able to support other mothers gives me immense pleasure.
What connects me well with this group is its Ethos. Being Kind and Respectful of parenting styles and not having any judgement about others parenting style in the group is what makes me feel more closely connected to the team and its members. Being an online forum has its own share of challenges given that we are in a virtual space and can easily be misunderstood leading to conflicts. But the pleasure of helping a mom keeps me going.
8. Kaira turns 4 this week. How would you describe your breastfeeding journey till now?
This only makes me realize time truly flies! I started my journey with a promise to never wean her until she chooses to. I nursed her anywhere and every time she demanded. I even had an official overseas travel without her for 3 weeks and it was magical to know Kaira coped really well. My supply did not give up on me . Once I returned, we were back to active nursing.
My first set of major aversions started hitting me close to the 3rd year and given the circumstances I was in, weaning her was more difficult than dealing with aversions. Every time I made plans to wean, we would have a sickness hitting us and breastfeeding was my savior. These days we only nurse to sleep at night and rarely nurse during the day. Thanks to the COVID situation, we have days when we nurse during the day too. That is how we are turning 4.
Right now, if you ask me I have mixed feelings about the future of our breastfeeding journey. A part of me loves it and wants her to self-wean. The other part of me firmly believes this child might never understand what is self-weaning and I need to help myself from those aversions. My journey till now can be called very memorable.
9. What would be your advice to new mothers?
My advice to new mothers would be TRUST yourself and your decision. You will do the BEST for your baby; hence stand up for what you believe. New mothers are so overwhelmed with so many changes in their body, mind and their surroundings. This is the most sensitive period for a mother and most times lack of support system fails her and the baby.
