Dummies and comfort sucking...

[kwills55]

Hiya, just wondered if any of you can help me...
My LO is just over 2 weeks old and has always been a great little feeder, latches on straight away and I got my milk in really quick because of it!

The last week though she seems to have been wanting the breast more and more for comfort? I thought she was a little bit young for this but she will get really fussy, I'll feed her wind her and put her down and she will stay fussy and nothing will settle her other than being put back on.
To start with I just thought it was a growth spurt and she was still hungry but I've noticed she only goes on for about 2 mins then falls asleep. There have also been several times now where during this pick up, feed, put down, fuss process she has fed from both sides and still going back for more and has ended up vomiting everywhere (which I'm sure is just because she is so full!).

I was told by the lactation nurses in hospital to try and avoid giving dummies for 4 weeks so the past few nights I've ended up falling asleep with arm stretched out to her moses basket and my little finger in her mouth so that she can suck for comfort without feeding til she vomits!

I was just wondering though, everyone seems to think having a bf baby suck on your finger for short periods of time is fine, but dummies aren't... Is it not the same thing??
Surely it's still an unnatural 'latch'?

Please tell me if I'm mistaken or if you have any other advice!! Just thinking that I could try giving her a dummy on these occasions to save my finger being attached to her! Xxx

 

[optimistic1]

I gave my daughter a soothie since 3 days old I wasn't going to cause I heard its not a good idea but she was comfort sucking the whole time in the hospital and the pediatrician there told me as long as she has a good latch then its okay to give them a soothie and she is 8 weeks now still breast feeding and occasionally takes her soothie (usually only during car rides and sometimes when she goes to bed) comfort sucking is normal in newborns my daughter still has moments where she just wants to suck and when she comfort sucks she wants nothing to do with her soothie she likes the little bit of milk that dribbles out.

 

[MommyJogger]

At your lo's age, comfort suckling is still really important for building your supply. Your hormones are still at a place where the amount of prolactin produced by frequent nipple stimulation is telling your body how many prolactin receptors are needed in the long-term. Another reason dummy use is advised against is because sucking on a dummy is different to suckling on a nipple and while a finger will also produce a messy latch, it's both 1) closer to a bf latch and 2) much harder to keep a finger in baby's mouth for long enough time periods to actually alter their bf latch.
I'd say if your nipples aren't in terrible pain to let her comfort suck as much as you can stand. My son was refluxy at that age, too (I think all babies are a little refluxy in the beginning, but some babies definitely have it worse than others), and he would want to suckle to keep his stomach contents down. Have you tried putting her down in a position where she's more upright? Mine could more easily be put down if he were propped up in a seat or on a pillow (though obv needed constant supervision for these). I got a wrap and he was really content when kept fully upright in a wrap or carrier and I was able to walk around and feel human again.

 

[firsttime83]

I agree with the above post. Comfort sucking is important to build up your supply. I held off until 6 weeks to give our LO a soother because of this and happy I did. Keep in mind you may have to try a few different soothers because they are so used to your nipple to soothe. The "soothie" by avent I think is what works for us, and it's great because OH can now soothe her when she is tired or whatever as well I'd hold off if you can.

 

[Kellya009]

We gave our baby a soothie soother at about 1 week old I think. She was a great feeder and latcher beforehand but now she's a bit lazy... Like she expects the nipple to pop into her mouth just like her soother does. But I have lots of milk so it didn't affect my supply to give it to her.

 

[kwills55]

Thanks for your replies... Will try and hold off another couple of weeks if I can... Have loads of milk (too much by the amount I leak!) but don't want her to get lazy at latching!! Xxx