1. Bring your baby to you First and foremost, you need to be sitting comfortably in a quiet place. When you are ready, bring your baby to you, with its tummy against yours. It is important that your baby’s head is tilted just slightly backwards, so that its chin touches your breast and its nose is clear of your nipple. 2. Give your baby nothing but breast milk There is no reason to give your baby anything other than your milk initially, unless your  healthcare personnel or doctor has advised you otherwise. All healthy newborn babies can derive sufficient nutrition from the milk you produce, if you give your baby all the opportunities she needs to feed. 3. Feeding on demand You should allow your baby to feed on demand, since children have different feeding habits than your own. Some feed quickly, while others take their time. Therefore, it is important that you allow your baby to determine the length of its meal. He or she should be allowed enough time to release your breast on his or her own. 4. Good nursing positions It’s well worth trying out different nursing positions, especially at the beginning when you spend many hours feeding your baby. In this way, you’ll avoid a lot of stress, which at worst could cause your milk to flow at a slower rate, and your baby to not want to feed as long as necessary. 5. Prevention of breast infection Allow your nipples to dry naturally after feeding. Avoid drying off milk and your baby’s saliva, as doing so may irritate your nipples. If your breasts are very sore, it may help to massage them or apply nipple cream to relieve the discomfort. 6. Night time breast feeding Breast feeding at night helps relieve you of the milk you have produced during the day, and allows you to produce new milk while you sleep. A bedtime feed thus helps to regulate your milk production, and continue the breast feeding process. 7. Breast feeding and soothers It’s best to wait until breast feeding is functioning well and your baby is good at taking your breast every time before introducing a soother. The suckling action a baby uses at your breast is very different to that used on a soother. 8. Maternity bras It is certainly worth buying a maternity bra, which provides good support and can be opened at the front so you can avoid taking it off. A maternity bra can make it easier and more comfortable to breastfeed. 9. Eat a healthy and varied diet It’s essential you eat a healthy varied diet when breast feeding as everything you eat is transmitted via your milk to your baby. You need extra energy (approx. 500 calories) per day. Therefore make sure you get enough vitamins to cover the nutritional needs of you and your baby. 10. Plenty to drink You need more liquids when you are breast feeding, as your baby will drink around one litre of milk per day. In principle, what you drink is irrelevant. You should however try to avoid diuretic drinks such as coffee and tea, which can reduce milk production.