its hard, and no one can fully explain to you just how hard it is, you have to see for yourself, i remember thinking 'oh my god is this what people go thru to have kids!!!!!!!!' i was flabbagasted that this was what it was like and wondered why anyone would go back for seconds.

its not easy, and sometimes it gets harder before it gets easier..... i felt as you described for probably the first six months.... even now pregnant with number 2 i am nervous at juggling a newborn and toddler together and wondering how i will cope.... this is why women have babies and not men! we are strong and even though you think you can't get thru it, you will, cos you have to!

i highly recommend a baby cradle swing (i wouldn't have survived without mine) - and i highly recommend taking bubs to a specialist chiropractor/osteopath - because in hindsight i really feel this could have helped my little girl and i never did it, and maybe it could have given us both some relief instead of induring her screams for so many months... in hindsight i think her neck was perhaps damaged as the obstetrician manually turned her while she was inutero, via the birth canal, and i could never lay her on her back or have her in the pram, she was just miserable. its worth a shot.

re: the breast feeding, its hard and i hated it.... keep trying and persevere and try to get all the support that is available to you, there are breast feeding clinics at warragul... have you tried a nipple shield - not sure if it would help. If at the end of the day it doesn't work out and you use formula, at least you will know you tried everything possible....

going into motherhood for the secondtime i feel a bit more confident i suppose in not stressing over things, if the breastfeeding doesn't work out (i dearly hope it does) - i'm not going to stress and beat myself up, as i know formula does the job just fine.... if this bub only wants to sleep in a sling or swing or attached to me, i will just go along with it, instead of trying to force it into a cot on its back, as i now know that it doesn't last forever and you just got to follow their lead and do whatever works...

sorry i've rambled - i'm very pregnant and very depressed and uncomfortable and am dealing not very well with my very active and loud 2.5 year old.... so i'm sorry if the above was little help or didn't make sense.