Progress

I finally got the lump shifted and am feeling a lot better. I was starting to feel ill with it. I called the Borstvoedingscentrum Amsterdam this morning and told them my tale of woe. They gave me a lot of useful advice (as always) and suggested that an electric breast pump would help. I've used this in the past to some success and we all bundled in the car and drove to Amsterdam. I rented the pump and got re-measured for my nursing bras. That was a lucky thing because I have lost 5cm around my ribs since giving birth so my bras weren't offering me enough support. I bought two new bras which cost a pretty penny and then we drove home. My intention was to use the pump during Michael's nap so I fed him normally before the nap. He was being very wriggly so I used a position I haven't used before - his chin was underneath my breast. You know what I'm going to write don't you? Of course you do. After we had spent 75 euro on renting the pump - Michael cleared the blockage in seconds.

Still... I don't care about the cost! Hooray!!! I'm sporting a nasty bruise and some soreness but hopefully I've done enough to avoid mastitis.

I guess for anyone reading this who isn't pro-breastfeeding, you must wonder why women put themselves through this. When it works it really is incredibly satisfying. There is nothing nicer than Michael having his bedtime feed and then lying back, smiling up at me and wrapping his fingers around mine.