Learning to breastfeed

Breastfeeding is normal, yet it is a learned skill. Learning about breastfeeding shouldn't wait until your baby arrives. 

During pregnancy it is helpful to learn about what to expect with feeding your baby. If your pregnancy is lower risk, start practicing hand expression of colostrum from 36 weeks on.

When baby arrives, it may take time, practice, and support to get the hang of things. Take it one step at a time - every feed counts. To prepare for feeding your baby, explore the resources below and the different sections of this webpage.

Access breastfeeding information online

• Breastfeeding/chestfeeding online modules (self-paced) - Fraser Health
• Help with breastfeeding - Northern Health
• Planning to breastfeed? Tips from lactation consultant Brittney McCullough - Northern Health
• Prenatal classes and education - Northern Health
• Preparing to breastfeed (video) - Breastfeeding information for parents

Attend a prenatal breastfeeding class or breastfeeding support group meeting

• La Leche League Canada (LLLC)
  • Check the calendar of activities. To filter, select from drop-down list under "prenatal class"
• More Milk Sooner prenatal feeding classes
• The Pregnancy HUB (BC Association of Pregnancy Outreach programs)
  • Check availability on the HUB program schedule

Practice hand expressing your milk in the last few weeks of your pregnancy

• Hand expression in pregnancy: Instructions for patients (PDF) - More Milk Sooner
• "More Milk Sooner": Dr. Brenckmann promotes hand expression of milk in low-risk pregnancies - Northern Health
• Prenatal colostrum expression (PDF) - La Leche League Canada

In the first few days and weeks after birth, skin-to-skin contact between you and your baby is important. Right after baby is born, uninterrupted skin-to-skin contact helps to stabilize baby’s temperature and blood sugar, enhances bonding between baby and their parent(s), and improves overall breastfeeding success. Skin-to-skin is important for all babies, whether born vaginally and by caesarean section (c-section).

These resources show how to do skin-to-skin safely:

• Breastfeeding and skin-to-skin contact (video) - HealthLink BC
• Importance of skin-to-skin contact - HealthLink BC
• Doing skin-to-skin safely - BC Women’s Hospital and Health Centre

Remember: Hold baby skin-to-skin when you are wide awake and follow safer sleep practices for infants.

It may take time to find a comfortable, relaxed position for you and your baby. Try different positions. A good position supports an effective latch (also known as deep attachment). An incorrect position and a shallow latch may cause sore, cracked nipples.

Breast compressions can be useful if your baby is latched well but is sleepy or taking a long time to feed. You can use your hands to help your baby get more milk.

If your baby is not feeding often and effectively, reach out for help for breastfeeding. Keep up your milk supply by expressing your milk.

Breastfeeding positions

• Breastfeeding positions (resource with video) - HealthLink BC
• Positions for breastfeeding (video) - Breastfeeding Series, Global Health Media Project

Latching baby

• Attaching your baby at the breast (video) - Breastfeeding Series, Global Health Media Project
• Breastfeeding your baby (PDF) - Baby's Best Chance, Provincial Health Services Authority (PHSA)
• Learning to latch (resource with video) - HealthLink BC
• What to do about nipple pain (video) - Breastfeeding Series, Global Health Media Project

Latching when breasts are engorged

• Breast engorgement - La Leche League Canada (LLLC)
• How to manage engorgement (PDF) - Northern Health

Breast compressions to move more milk

• Increasing your milk supply (video, 2:05 to 3:07 minutes) - Breastfeeding Series, Global Health Media

It’s important for parents to learn to recognize and respond to their babies’ hunger and fullness cues. This helps to meet baby’s needs, helps to establish your milk supply, and can help to prevent breast engorgement. While you can’t see how much your baby is drinking while they are at the breast, signs that they are drinking well include: their chin dropping when milk is flowing; soft “kah” sounds when they swallow; lots of wet and dirty diapers; and good weight gain.

Responsive, cue-based feeding

• Baby feeding cues and behaviours (video) - HealthLink BC
• Breastfeeding in the first three weeks (PDF) - Vancouver Coastal Health
• How often and how long to feed - HealthLink BC

Milk supply

• Increasing your milk supply (video) - Breastfeeding Series, Global Health Media Project
• Is your baby getting enough milk (video) - Breastfeeding Series, Global Health Media Project
• Your milk supply - HealthLink BC

Parents may express their colostrum and milk to increase or protect supply. It can also help:

• In the last few weeks of a low-risk pregnancy, to help activate milk making cells
• If baby is not feeding well due to sleepiness or medical reasons
• If there is a need to temporarily separate from baby
• To relieve breast fullness or tenderness
• When feeding directly at the breast is not possible or preferred, and other feeding methods are needed

Expressing milk in late pregnancy and in the first few days after birth is best to do by hand. A few days after birth when milk volume increases, parents can continue to hand express or use a manual or electric pump.

Reach out for help with breastfeeding if you need to express milk in order to manage a feeding challenge.

Hand expression

• Get started on expressing breast milk - HealthLink BC
• Hand expressing breastmilk (video) - HealthLink BC
• Hand expression in pregnancy: Instructions for patients (PDF) - More Milk Sooner
• How to express your milk by hand (PDF) - Northern Health

Using a pump

• Maximizing milk production with hands-on pumping - Stanford Medicine
• Pumping breast milk - HealthLink BC

Handling and storing milk

• Guidelines for breast milk storage (PDF) - Northern Health
• Storing breast milk - HealthLink BC