Have you been considering Calma as your breastfeeding solution? See what other moms are saying and learn from their experiences. We interviewed two Calma users whose babies are in different life stages and breastfeeding situations.

The first interview was with Rachel May, a mother of two. Rachel shared that after many breastfeeding challenges with her first son; she was determined to make it easier to breastfeed her second baby. With her second tongue-tied baby, Maya, she chose to try Calma. Armed with the lessons learned from her son and her success with Calma, she has been able to successfully breastfeed Maya. Keep reading to learn about our full interview with Rachel.

Breastfeeding Before Calma

Both of Rachel’s children were tongue-tied, but after her first child, she was determined to have a better breastfeeding experience. Maya struggled with breastfeeding because she didn’t know how to effectively use her tongue. So, Rachel used Medela’s SpecialNeeds Feeder and other specialty feeding devices to help with breastmilk feeding. These products were helpful in providing breastmilk, but she still wanted more. She wanted Maya to return to feeding at breast.

Deciding to Try Calma

After having two children with special feeding needs, Rachel was familiar with many of the breastmilk feeding products on the market and knew there wasn’t much out there that would help Maya return to the breast. So, she was open to anything that could help:

“There aren’t very many products out there that are really helpful in getting a baby back to the breast and a lot of people end up either quitting breastfeeding or having to make the sacrifices of just exclusively pumping when they run into problems. I was absolutely determined that that wasn’t going to be the case…I willing to try anything that would get her to where she was feeding on the breast…”

So, after some online research, the Medela Calma seemed like the best solution.

Trying Calma for the First Time

Maya struggled with the Calma bottle at first, because she was sucking too vigorously to stimulate letdown. However, after a few tries, she got the hang of it and settled into a calmer sucking pattern. Rachel made adjustments too, such as offering Calma when Maya wasn’t extremely hungry and keeping her more upright during feedings.

Breastfeeding with Calma

According to Rachel, “[Calma] has been a very important tool for getting [Maya] to stay on breast, which I feel is going to do nothing but help elongate my breastfeeding relationship with her.” There was a period of time when Maya would refuse the breast altogether and since starting to use Calma, she’s had a lot more success in getting her to take whole feedings off the breast.

In addition, Calma has also helped eliminate Maya’s struggles with reflux. Overall, Calma became a very important tool for getting Maya to successfully breastfeed.

The Value of Calma

Rachel felt that it’s easy to give up on breastfeeding the moment you encounter your first challenge. So, the more you can do prevent and eliminate these challenges, the more successful your breastfeeding experience will be. Rachel told us she’d “recommend it for any mother that’s going to go going back to work.” She continued by saying, “Every baby should have it to make sure the breastfeeding relationship continues as long as it can.”

Are you curious about Calma and how it can support your breastfeeding goals? Visit the Calma product page on our website, or watch our video to see Calma in action.

Have you tried Calma? Share your thoughts in the comments below.