What Are Lactating Breasts?
Breasts that produce milk.
How Are Lactating Breasts Different From Non-Lactating Breasts?
Lactating breasts can be super sensitive. They go through cycles of inflation and deflation. And they have a consistent flow of bodily fluid.
Visually the areola may be heavily pigmented and the nipples naturally elongated.
What Makes Shopping For Them Different As A Minimalist?
As breast tech continues to advance, there are so many cool products to choose from. Like silent pumps that discretely extract milk when you’re in public. To pigmented nipples and duffle bags for dads. But these products also need special care, sanitization, upkeep, and more.
So as a minimalist, you may just want the bare essentials. Products that will make breastfeeding comfortable (not overwhelming).
My criteria for most of the products I buy are:
Must be multi-purpose
100% cotton
Reusable
Accessible online
How Long Do You Need Lactation-Specific Products?
Items like breast pads (which collect the milk from leaking breasts) you may only need for a few weeks.
Since it’s such a short-term item (3 months max) you may be wondering why you need them at all.
If you do not have a product that collects leaking breast milk, you may wake up in milk puddles or have sticky wet shirts.
What Other Products Do You Recommend?
Maybe a boppy. It’s a nursing pillow. Another short term item that hugs your womb while you nurse and helps you position the baby tummy-to-tummy.
The rest of the products you need while nursing are peripherals. Meaning, they aren’t specifically designed for your breast, they’re supportive products to help you maintain other areas of your health while you nurse your little one. Here’s a complete list of my minimalistic wardrobe, which includes shelf-bra camisoles, super comfortable cotton pants, and flip-flops. And this is my breastfeeding essentials idea list.
Why Is Being Minimalistic While Breastfeeding Important To You?
Breastfeeding is a lifestyle that includes hours of skin-to-skin and living life as a pair (for two years or more). There are so many new skills you have to learn and I find the less clutter and more simplistic my space is the greater my inner peace is.
I really hope this helps. What’s your shopping criteria as a minimalist? Need to schedule a one-on-one? Use code: HEART2HEART.
Until next time…
Love The Journey,
