finding it so difficult

[blinkybaby]

baby is 9 days old now.

MW came round yesterday and basically told me I'm not producing enough milk which is why my baby is constantly at the breast ALL day and never satisfied. I had to top up last night otherwise I'd have been feeding all night, the same as I had been doing all day. I feel like I'm going mad. I can't understand it because I have wet patches on my clothes where milk comes through, I can squeeze it out, and baby sometimes spits up my milk? So I know its there????

Ive had a really stressful time, my mum is seriously ill in hosp and she's not here to help me, the MW said this might be why I'm not producing enough as im stressed out. I just want a happy baby but he cries all the time!

Help me - I feel like throwing the towel in but I don't want to! This is too hard!

 

[Blah11]

I suggest you stop topping up for starters. You need to keep going as hard as it sounds topups are a slipperly slope and if you want to continue to BF you have to just grin and bear it for now.

& I disagree with your MW 100%, shame on her for telling you that (remember not all MWs know lots about BF). Babys do feed constantly for the first month or so then it gets better when their tummies grow bigger and can handle more milk.

 

[- Butterfly -]

i remember feeding constantly for first 2 weeks. If baby is producing wet and dirty nappies then you are producing enough milk. stay strong and positive xxx

 

[Leesie]

totally agree with Blah11. If you want to continue BF'ing, stop the top-ups and put LO to boob as often as possible. Your baby is busy building your supply, and there is no reason to think you milk production isn't completely normal and sufficient. As long as LO is making enough wet nappies, you should not need to worry about that.

I felt the same as you do now for the first 6 weeks of BF'ing. I really wanted to pack it in. I'd like to encourage you to hang in there though as the rewards once BF'ing is established are huge, it's so worth it.

It sounds like you're having a very rough time so and good luck

 

[jeanettekaren]

Finn was exactly the same. He has only now, at 8 weeks, started to develop distinct feeds rather than just one long one. He still wakes every 2-3 hours in the night for a feed. Just the nature of bf'ing in the early days but it does get better and you are doing the best for your baby.

Have faith in your body and keep going

 

[kelly29]

what nonsense take no notice babe you sound as though you have enough milk? they feed like that all the time, i know my lo does xx i know there are things you can eat and do to up milk supply but by the sound of it all is well xx

 

[CeriB]

Same as above really - keep at it!! I felt the same at 2 weeks, constantly feeding, crying and painful! Your baby is helping you produce enough milk and it is not fair to say your not producing enough - you are and thay will continue. Maybe you could speak to your GP about your other stresses and see what help they can offer?

If you really want to carry on with BFing, you will and you will push through. However, everyone has to make their own decisions - happy mummy, happy baby. Good luck!

 

[blinkybaby]

\he's wetting but his poo still hasn't changed from meconium so im worried. hes only done three or four bowel movements since he's been born, and they were still browny/greeny and tarry. thats why im a bit worried...

 

[mystika802]

Like the others said...it DOES get better! Let baby go to the breast and increase your supply....or if you can, express after baby eats. Stress doesnt help but it sounds like yours doing fine! Keep it up. We had many days of that yucky tarry poo, he was in the hospital for 5 days after he was born and has his first "normal"ish poo maybe the last day there and then it went back to the meconium poos again until we were home.

 

[lozzy21]

Your MW is talking crap it put it simply.

A newborns tummy is only as big as a marble and cant strech like an adults can so they feed little and often. Baby is also building up your supply and the only way to do that is by feeding. Topping your baby up with formula usualy does make them go longer between feeds because its harder for their tummys to digest, like an adult eating a load of carbs before their veg, you get full on stodge so you only have a little veg so your not getting all the nutriants.

 

[summer rain]

Is there a breastfeeding support team there hun? Most areas have them; they are run by the council and offer free BF support. In some areas there is something similar run by surestart; if not most hospitals offer BF support. It is possible your LO isn't getting enough but topping up with formula is not the solution at this stage; in fact it could clog your baby's system up more leading to him pooing less; at this stage its so important they are pooing and weeing frequently to get rid of any jaundice they may have. My LO was in the hospital at 7 days with jaundice; not due to not getting enough but its a genetic family problem; they gave him formula when I wasn't there thinking it would help; and he didn't poo for 36 hours whereas previously he had poo'ed at least twice in every 24 hours. And that formula was just a one off. I'm not a doctor but after seeking advice from medical professionals it seems my son is likely to have a dairy allergy, especially since we found that if I eat dairy products he also stops pooing for a few days and when he does poo he has mucusy, even bloody very very dark green poo which is also the sign of a dairy allergy. I have had to cut out all dairy but it is worth it for him; and if he went onto formula it would have to be a prescription only formula which many GPs are very reluctant to prescribe due to them being so costly.

Anyway I'd seek advice from a breastfeeding counsellor or other health professional who specialises in breastfeeding; if your LO isn't getting enough there are ways to increase your supply which take very little effort; also it could be that your baby's latch is inefficient, you have a great supply as indicated by you leaking etc; but the transfer of milk from you to the baby is not optimum. Probably its 'ok' but not the best it can be. This is something that is very, very easy to correct with the right help and then you can BF successfully. Also have your baby checked for tongue tie as this is very common but can easily be missed by medical professionals; this can also cause problems with latch and the baby taking in enough milk from your supply; sometimes a minor operation is needed to fix this but if its a fairly mild case all that is needed is a change of position, how you latch the baby, etc. I hope this article helps as well

https://www.llli.org/FAQ/enough.html

 

[kaylz]

I agree with what the others have said.

It's worth having your latch checked by someone who knows what they're talking about (not your midwife by the sounds of it!) though, just to make sure that your baby is 'actively' feeding for the whole time (can you hear LO sucking but more importantly swallowing?) Many babies suck for comfort but don't actually swallow - however, sucking in itself is really important in the early days to stimulate your supply

 

[BunMum]

I really struggled in the first few weeks too. Ollie was constantly feeding and I felt like I was nothing more than a milk producer. As they grow they feed less as they are stronger and can take more milk, and they build your supply by feeding lots. I'd stop the top ups too and just enjoy the closeness with your new bundle, it will settle down soon and you can start enjoying feeding.

My little boy is almost 13 months now and we're still feeding. I never thought I'd get past the first week...so keep going!!!

 

[flubdub]

Hi, my LO is two weeks old and is still on my breast 24 hours a day. As I have mentioned in another post, you can count on one hand how many times I have put him down since he was born, and if I am just running for a shower or something, he is crying and starving by the time I get out. Its just the way it is Im afraid, but does get better.
Your MW doesnt seem to know much about BFing and maybe wants you to go onto formula so that she can discharge you into the health visitors care sooner?
As someone else said - babies tummy is the size of a marble and doesnt stretch. And as breastmilk is so easily digested, their tummy is filling and emptying constantly.

 

[hispanomum]

Have you checked whether he has a tongue-tie, or else his latch is inefficient? My lo had a tongue tie which we had snipped at week 5 and has dramatically improved his feeding. If you're leaking milk then your milk supply must be great. Stick at it my lovely, it will get easier x

 

[tuesday]

My bubz didn't poo till she was 5 days old (apart from the one she did in the pool when she was born) and its normal as long as he is doing enough wet nappies. You will soon have some sort of feeding routine and now my bub only feeds for 5 mins a time or plays pulls on and off all the time, I miss long feeds now

 

[aurora]

You're doing everything right hun, its normal for baby to be on the boob non stop for a while. Autumn's record cluster feed was 9 hours... I was in tears. I promise it gets so much better!

 

[punk_pig]

I agree with what everyone else has said, a low milk supply that can't be stimulated to increase is actually quite rare but often other problems make us Mums feel like we aren't producing enough when actually we are.

 

[Bellatrix]

Your MW should be reported for giving you such bad advice. I agree with what everyone else here has said. You can do this. x

 

[ellie]

just what everyone else said really!
Im afraid your MW is really inaccurate in what she said (and you can feel free to challenge her on this even if you respect her opinion on other things). What's her evidence that 'you dont have enough'? It certainly doesnt sound like it to me. Women genuinely 'not having enough' is fairly rare it seems and usually due to hormonal/health factors I think. Poor latch though is quite common. we struggled with this for the first few weeks and to the MW and HV it looked 'fine' but I could tell it wasnt. All it took was a tiny tweak advised by a trained BF peer counsellor (a friend of mine but she runs a local sure start BF group, if there are anything like that in your area it'd be worth getting in touch) - she told me to squeeze my boob so it was flattened a bit (i have quite big boobs!) and point my nipple upwards so it aimed at the roof of his mouth. He wouldnt really open his mouth properly so she showed me to angle his head when I positioned him so that I could get more boob in lol. Worked really well
Anyway, do get it checked and a bit of face to face support if you can find it - ask your MW if she has details of any local groups of people who know more about bf'ing than she does
good luck! you'll be fine!