For ladies who hope to breastfeed-I wish somebody told me!

[satine51]

Hello All Expectant Mummies

I just thought I'd post this here, because I wish I had known about this before I started breastfeeding! Nobody told me that babies have growth spurts during which they cluster feed- this may feel like your milk supply has suddenly diminished or you haven't got enough milk. This is very rarely the case! For a few days it may feel like your baby is on the boob constantly and is never satisfied. Just be patient, relax, get yourself some entertaitment (magazines, books, dvds) and feed It will get better and your baby will get enough milk from you, that's just their way of increasing your supply. the more you feed, the more milk there will be.
Don't give up, even wen they are incredibly fussy, this will pass!

Also, I found this website which was incredibly helpful:
https://kellymom.com/

I hope it helps somebody! BF is great

 

[Blah11]

& Just to add, it's not unusual for baby to be on the boob for an hour, off for 30 minutes and want back on again when they're very small (first couple of months). Their stomachs are the size of a thimble at birth, they need filling lots.

 

[Kimmi82]

Great advice! Thanks!

 

[missmayhem]

thanks ladies, my research has taught me this but not many other seems to be aware of it....


can you also suggest a good bra for largers busts if possible??

 

[allaboard]

I wish someone had helped me latch on correctly, it was day 4 before i got a decent Community MW to show me the horizontal, face-on, tummy-to-mummy, nose-to-nipple position, rather than just craddling baby and stuffing it in. By then my nipples were raw and bleeding. We made it to 16 months though so you CAN overcome difficulties!

Also, Lansinoh, amazing!

Also, BM helps rid a baby of sticky eye, it's actually miraculous! Squirt it in!

Also, not to worry about baby feeding lots, open access is the only way - it'll all regulate itself over the weeks and months.

Also, the pain does go, eventually.

I'm glad i know that tongue tie can impair BFing, and i have numbers on hand to get the frenulum snipped if need be.

 

[satine51]

thanks ladies, my research has taught me this but not many other seems to be aware of it....


can you also suggest a good bra for largers busts if possible??

I am small busted myself, so cannot recommend anything Hun. I am using mothercare nursing bras, I find them very comfy but I like padded bras.

 

[missmayhem]

i've a MC nursing bra on atm, been living in them for months now, i had a hormone imbalance in 2009 which lead to pregnancy symptoms such as killer boobs for 4 months non stop and their were a god send, can easily slip a cooling pad in!!!

 

[CatherineK]

Another thing most people don't know is that it is totally normal for your milk not to come in for several days, and that your baby DOES NOT NEED to be supplemented during that time. Their little stomachs are the size of a small marble when born, and will not stretch out until your milk is in. Even doctors and MWs will often push supplementing this early, it really makes me mad.
It is completely normal for the baby to want to nurse extremely often during this time, and does not mean your supply is bad...its just how nature stimulates your supply....

 

[bther]

How old are babies when they need to cluster feed? Or is it individual to each baby? I'm predicted to have a larger than average size baby and I've already been hearing that I may have to supplement to keep up with him. I really don't want to. I'll keep him on my boobs 24/7 if I have to!!

 

[mummyflanagan]

thank you for this post! im planning on breastfeeding and found it useful x

 

[allaboard]

Another thing most people don't know is that it is totally normal for your milk not to come in for several days, and that your baby DOES NOT NEED to be supplemented during that time. Their little stomachs are the size of a small marble when born, and will not stretch out until your milk is in. Even doctors and MWs will often push supplementing this early, it really makes me mad.
It is completely normal for the baby to want to nurse extremely often during this time, and does not mean your supply is bad...its just how nature stimulates your supply....

Totally agree. Supplementing is unnecessary as long as the pregnancy and birth have been normal. GD babies are slightly different. Health practitioners (paediatricians, MWs) who arn't confident in making judgement calls always fall back onto this and it drives me insane too. Such a lack of understanding of the process of breastfeeding and it just starts the cycle of doubt in the mother's ability to provide that continues when she's home. Supplementation leads to expanding the tummy, so the baby needs more in quantity to feel full, so another bottle is needed, and on it goes if the Mother's milk takes some time to come in.

 

[wigglywoo]

How old are babies when they need to cluster feed? Or is it individual to each baby? I'm predicted to have a larger than average size baby and I've already been hearing that I may have to supplement to keep up with him. I really don't want to. I'll keep him on my boobs 24/7 if I have to!!

It is quite individual. If you want breastfeeding to be successful, DO NOT supplement it is the worst thing you can do for your supply. Breastmilk is made on a supply and demand basis and supplementing will effect the amount of demand and therefore the supply. Just keep feeding as much as the baby wants to, even if it seems constant in the early days, do not try to schedule feeds, this will also affect your supply as there will be less demand

 

[missmayhem]

oh one thing i learnt at my ante natal class, we have cells in our boobs need stimulating within 6hrs of bubs being born or they start to die, try to get LO onto each breast at least once within 6hrs of birth or hand express....

 

[Finsmummy]

I also didnt realise how your breast shape changes, particularly as I am small in that dept anyway, but I am completely for anything natural and would never put my vanity before my baby's health! x

 

[Pielette]

This is all really useful, thank you!
Going back to something that was mentioned earlier, are there positions for baby to feed in that are better than others?

 

[sam1984]

baby to belly is a nice hold as you are cuddling at the same time-you may want a pillow to rest baby on especially when they get a bit bigger, DO NOT STOOP TO BABY
if you are led in bad it is comfy to lie baby next to you and almost feed from above.
if you have bigger boobs then the rugby hold-baby is at the side under your arm and feeds from the other side.

you just need to try them out and see what feels most comfy.
and cluster feeding will happen more than once, my lo cluster fed about every 3 months

 

[lynnikins]

How old are babies when they need to cluster feed? Or is it individual to each baby? I'm predicted to have a larger than average size baby and I've already been hearing that I may have to supplement to keep up with him. I really don't want to. I'll keep him on my boobs 24/7 if I have to!!

It is quite individual. If you want breastfeeding to be successful, DO NOT supplement it is the worst thing you can do for your supply. Breastmilk is made on a supply and demand basis and supplementing will effect the amount of demand and therefore the supply. Just keep feeding as much as the baby wants to, even if it seems constant in the early days, do not try to schedule feeds, this will also affect your supply as there will be less demand

Bigger babies are better feeders on the whole than smaller babies and if your body can grow a big baby it can definately feed one, bigger babies do tend to have slightly larger tummies and they feed quicker and tend to go longer between feeds than smaller babies they gain weight better too

https://www.bigbaby.org.uk/breastfeeding_big_babies.html

 

[mum2liam]

yup, im with you on this one, breastfeeding can be very very demanding at times, but there is always an end xx

 

[jojolou1981]

Just a couple of questions on demand feeding / schedual feeding?

i agree thanks soo much for all the advice i think its very important in the early stages that you just go of what baby wants and needs and to not schedual feed. Schedual feeding is something that i may consider when baby is older or id never get anything done in life? im wondering how women who dont schedual feed when the baby is older gets on with there normal day to day lives without having a baby constantly attached to the breast? Do they eventually get into there own pattern and go soo many hours between feeds? i presume this would happen eventually anyway but it would be good to hear off the ladies that dont schedual feed so i can compare the difference xx

 

[sam1984]

my lo knew after a couple of weeks not to even bother crying for food between 745 and 945.
almost instinctively knew that i was doing school stuff and would always cry for food about 715, use to make me wonder how she knew