So, you are having a baby and thinking of breast-feeding? You've read the books and seen the photos of what to do, and you're ready to go. What now?

Breast-feeding is a learned skill for both you and your baby. It may come naturally and be an instant success.

Early Days.

In the early days after the birth, you will be feeding the baby a substance called "Colostrum". This is packed full of antibodies and good stuff for the baby. Even if you only manage to breast feed for the first few days, you are really helping your baby out. An extra joy comes around three days after the birth when your milk "comes in". Your breasts have been working now for nine months to get all the milk ducts up and running, and this is when they go for gold. Unfortunately, it feels like they have suddenly gone mad. Your breasts are likely to get very hot, large and uncomfortable. So, what can you do to ease the discomfort? There are a couple of options. Get someone to go shopping for you and buy you a Savoy cabbage. Place it in the fridge and every now and then whip off the outer layer and stick it in your bra around your breast. Honest! The coolness helps and there is said to be a chemical reaction that relieves the pain. Whatever the reason, it does work and boy, will you try anything! A second option is to spend real money and buy some gel-filled bra inserts which again you can cool down and work the same way as the cabbage. The one thing I would add at this point is that, through all the talk I had heard about this, I was expecting to be in agony for days, but it generally lasts just 24 hours or so and then you're done. A cabbage is a cheaper option!

Feeding Bras

There are different designs of bras you can chose from. Some fasten in the middle at the front; others unfasten at the top of the cup and drop down. Try different ones on, but don't go too early - your breasts will change shape during your pregnancy and it is just not worth going until you are a few weeks away from due. Make sure that they can be easily adjusted and are not too tight - you will need space for when your milk comes in. One thing to be aware of is that those bras that have a strap that holds the bra together when the cup is dropped down or similar will put pressure on your breast and may cause a blocked duct. Just keep an eye out for this (more later).

Breast Pads

So what else? Well, you are going to need breast pads. The odds are that your breasts will leak milk, either when you are feeding the baby on one side and the other wants to join in, you hear another baby crying and react in sympathy or sometimes even if you just think about your baby. You can get all sorts of pads. I used washable pads at nighttime and nice, thin ones during the day. It took me a while to discover the Lansinoh pads, but ones of their design are more discreet and less bulky than many of the others on the market. They made me feel less like I was walking round with a handful of cotton wool down my shirt and so could wear slimmer fitting tops in the summer without feeling a fool.

Boy, is it chilly! Clothing Options

If you end up with a winter baby, or feed in to a colder season, the last thing you are going to want to do is hike up your top and leave your back and stomach open to the elements. Having fed ouside in the middle of winter, this really is not an appealing prospect. So, what can you do? You can spend lots of money and buy breastfeeding tops designed to help in this, but that you will never wear again. What my friends and I did, though, was to invest in some really reasonably priced stretchy vests. A well-known department store (Marks and Spencer) stocked great spaghetti strap vests for something like £6 each, or 2 for £9. They are stretchy enough that you can pull down the cup to under your boob, undo your bra and feed, with you back and stomach nicely covered. Also saves displaying that bit of extra tummy you might still be working on getting rid of. At the end of the feed, pull the vest back up and it brings your bra with it (if you have the drop down cup) so that you can get the baby sorted and then re-attach the cup when your baby is out of your hands. Perfect. Now it is summer, I use the vests as pyjama tops, so that I can feed easily without the need for special or cumbersome nightwear.

Another must for feeding, I have found, is a nice cardigan. It has a similar ability to cover the back, but can also hide your boob from side view without the need to drape a muslin. Tuck the cardigan around your baby's head for a cosy and discreet feed.

Muslins

Something that every mother ends up with, breast-feeding or not. Handy to wipe away spills and any milk that finds its way back up again, they also act as cloths to drape over your baby's head if you are unhappy feeding too openly in public. When you have been breast-feeding for around six months or so, you might find that you can drop the breast pads. A muslin is handy to have, though, because from this age onwards, babies have a cute habit of getting the milk really flowing then turning their heads to have a look round, leaving you with milk spraying out and not being too sure where to direct it... Muslins often become a comforter for children to carry around and sleep with, so truly a multi-functional item.

Milk Rush

Often I would suddenly feel a tingling in my breasts when they decided to kick in for no reason and "let down" the milk, even if I wasn't even contemplating feeding. A way of stopping the milk flow is to place the palm of your hand over your nipple and gently press in. It works almost immediately and stops you dripping.

Hand Placement

Now this might sound odd, but you need to keep an eye on what you do with your thumb. Imagine cradling your baby's head in your hand. You naturally splay your fingers and stick your thumb out at right angles, right? Well, imagine holding this position for a good half an hour. It will hurt if you do that repeatedly whilst bearing the weight of your baby's head and give you a strain injury up your forearm. Better to make sure that your forearm is well supported with a cushion before you start, as this will take the strain off your arm.

When you settle down to feed, get your cushion, a drink (preferably water or something without caffeine), the phone and maybe a book or magazine. You could be there some time and you won't want to move if it has taken you a while to get the baby latched on. I read loads when I was feeding my daughter, especially when she would sometimes fall straight asleep. I could stay there without getting bored, after all, you can only stare at them lovingly for so long!

There are some good articles on here telling you what to look out for, but in the interest of a reminder, I will just mention it briefly. When I have started down the line of mastitis, the first things I have noticed are:

• Feeling shivery and cold, a bit like I imagine the flu to be.
• Having a sore breast.
• Noticing a red spot of the breast, which also feels hot to the touch.

If you have any of these symptoms, you may have a blocked milk duct. I have always taken a warm, relaxing bath and laid there massaging my breast around the area of the soreness and red mark. Work towards the nipple. I can often feel a lump has developed and try to break it up with gentle pressure. Massaging towards the nipple also helps when you are feeding, although I have always found this a bit of a juggling act! Do keep feeding on the affected side, though. You need to try and clear the blockage and stopping feeding will make matters worse. I have managed to head off mastitis around six or seven times this way, and only had to resort to medication (when I also had cracked nipples) once. If you are not feeling better within a day, head to a doctor for advice.

These are as painful as they sound! I have only had this once when I was struggling to feed my baby on one side and he sucked and sucked skin that wasn't used to it, causing openings on the nipple. There are natural folds and creases over the nipples, but they looked redder and shinier. I was in Spain when this happened to me and a chemist gave me cream, which did the trick in a couple of days, but I don't think an alternative is available in the UK. Speak to a pharmacist or doctor for advice. Advice varies whether to keep the nipples wet or dry. All I would say is never to do anything like use a hairdryer or brisk rubbing with a towel to dry your nipples - it has happened! Ouch.

I was never able to find any advice about how to feed lying down when I had my first. This was something I worked out with trial and error. Ok, it doesn't sound like rocket science, but there are some things you can do to make it easier. I found that it was easier if I got both the top of my shoulder on a thin pillow, just turning my shoulder slightly flat whilst lying on my side and then put another thin pillow over that arm to rest my head on. It also helps to put a wedge or thin pillow under the small of your back to support it. Feeding lying down is like trying to twist your body in three different directions at once and can make your back ache, so pillows are good.

Somewhere down the line, your baby will get teeth and if you are unlucky, they might decide to try them out on you. Through experience, I would recommend trying not to react when this happens (very difficult when you have small teeth clamped round your soft bits). Gently break the grip by putting your finger in between their lips at the side and thus opening the mouth. Remove the baby each time and eventually they will (hopefully) get the message and stop biting. Some suggest saying "No" as well in order to reinforce the message. I tried to keep reaction to a minimum myself because when I did react my then nine-month-old thought it was very funny and did it again, harder. I eventually had to stop feeding at 9 1/2 months because she bit so had she drew blood after every feed. But, and this is important, I don't know anyone else who had to stop for the same reason. I guess I was unlucky!

Breast-feeding can be a challenge but it can also be the most rewarding thing you do with and for your child. And you generally become such an old hand by the time the baby is about a month old that you wondered what the fuss was all about. Give it a go, try and keep at it, but if it doesn't work, don't beat yourself up. You are no use to your baby if you are so stressed about feeding that it becomes a misery.