Adoptive Breastfeeding: What are the Benefits?
How important is adoptive breastfeeding? Does it really make a big difference? From personal experience I can tell you that adoptive breastfeeding is HARD! It is probably one of the hardest things I've ever done. The steps and the physical action of doing it isn't difficult. It is hard in a different way. It is hard to see the results early on. It is time consuming and tedious. It is double the time and effort of breastfeeding and formula/bottle feeding combined. It is so much effort and you are constantly wondering, "Is it really 'worth' it?" or "Is this really going to matter in the long run?" Knowing the positive impacts at the "end of the tunnel" can make all of the extra effort in the beginning worth it. When I first held my new baby, who had spent her first 17 days as "Baby Girl Doe" in the NICU, I knew that I needed to breastfeed her . That is over 17 days of being swaddled in a bassinet. Cozy, fed, and taken care of. She w...