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[misslissa]

Originally my GP only prescribed me with the Daktarin until my midwife called him and told him I needed the Fluconazole too. Is there an understanding midwife or health visitor who could back you up?

I would get separate treatment for the vaginal thrush and double hit it to be honest.

As soon as you tell your pads are damp I'd change them. Airing is the correct thing to do as much as possible.

I had ductal thrush in both breasts but I don't see why it's not possible to only be in one.

The toe curling pain upon latching is typical of thrush.

I would stop using the lansinoh whilst you're treating the thrush. Personally I'd say the better option would be to let your nipples air dry and ensure a perfect latch upon every feeding.

I've left a msg for my HV today saying I may need backup so I'm hoping they can help me. Can they prescribe or could a LC if the Dr refuses still?

Good idea. May aswell hit the vaginal thrush hard hasn't I.

So you think what I'm describing sounds like thrush. It's mad, I know it is but I'm doubting myself.

I'll ease off the lansinoh then, that scares me, my nipple feels dry. Even read not to use breast milk on them whilst you have thrush. I thought that would be a good thing.

Perfect latch, sounds like the holy grail! I perhaps do need to be more vigilant with his latching on that side.

Poor you, sounds like it was rough. One bad boob is hard enough. How long till you got rid? I so want to bf for at least 6mths and this is making it v hard.

 

[Lownthwaite]

Originally my GP only prescribed me with the Daktarin until my midwife called him and told him I needed the Fluconazole too. Is there an understanding midwife or health visitor who could back you up?

I would get separate treatment for the vaginal thrush and double hit it to be honest.

As soon as you tell your pads are damp I'd change them. Airing is the correct thing to do as much as possible.

I had ductal thrush in both breasts but I don't see why it's not possible to only be in one.

The toe curling pain upon latching is typical of thrush.

I would stop using the lansinoh whilst you're treating the thrush. Personally I'd say the better option would be to let your nipples air dry and ensure a perfect latch upon every feeding.

I've left a msg for my HV today saying I may need backup so I'm hoping they can help me. Can they prescribe or could a LC if the Dr refuses still?

Good idea. May aswell hit the vaginal thrush hard hasn't I.

So you think what I'm describing sounds like thrush. It's mad, I know it is but I'm doubting myself.

I'll ease off the lansinoh then, that scares me, my nipple feels dry. Even read not to use breast milk on them whilst you have thrush. I thought that would be a good thing.

Perfect latch, sounds like the holy grail! I perhaps do need to be more vigilant with his latching on that side.

Poor you, sounds like it was rough. One bad boob is hard enough. How long till you got rid? I so want to bf for at least 6mths and this is making it v hard.

I'm not too sure if HV or LC can prescribe but it's worth asking.

It was a rough ride for a week or so, the pain upon latching was awful but once I was on the treatment the pain reduced significantly within 48 hours and I was feeding totally pain free within about 1.5 - 2 weeks.

 

[HHenderson]

OMG!! I just found this thread. I need HELP.

Info on me. Breastfed 1 minute after the birth of my daughter while still getting worked on from my planned c-section. She latched on perfectly from the very first moment. I had tons of help and LLC members come to me daily, nurses and doctors also helped. She always latched on and we had no problem. My breasts of course got very sore, full, red and raw nipples. I used cream and the nipples slowly healed over two weeks. The past two weeks (1 month today) my breasts have been over supplying with milk. My daughter chokes and gets extreme gas from the air when she gets angry and sucks like a monster. I thought pumping might help. I also pumped to drain my breasts when they got engorged which they do ALL the time. My daughter cannot fully drain my breast ever. I can pump anywhere from 5-9 oz each breast. I tried switching breasts, block feeding, pumping and then feeding and Im constantly struggling with cement feeling breasts. Now I have developed a raw very sore left nipple and a large bump Im going to assume clogged duct and it is so painful it makes me cry when I have her feed off of it. My left breast is red underneath but I have no fever and have been taking advil. I even try warm compress' and hand expressing for a few seconds. The duct has been clogged for two days now. I dont know what to do besides keep trying to feed her on it. My right breast is very sore for no reason at all. There is nothing wrong with it at the moment. Not engorged currently and my nipple is fine. I read and was told to feed every two hours but my daughter will go from 3-5 hours at night sleeping. I let her sleep since my breasts choke her and she ends up puking each time. I dont want to fully wake her up. I co-sleep/feed as well.

Does anyone have any advice or help? How long does it normally take for my breasts to get the hint I dont need this much milk? When does breastfeed not become such a hard issue? I cry daily because of this and want to stop all together but cannot afford formula.

OK scratch that- I thought I was just tired and had a headache and it was cool outside thats why I was so cold today. Just took my temp and its 101. My eyes hurt and burn, I have a headache, slightly congested and cold on top of my breast red and very painful.

 

[Lownthwaite]

OMG!! I just found this thread. I need HELP.

Info on me. Breastfed 1 minute after the birth of my daughter while still getting worked on from my planned c-section. She latched on perfectly from the very first moment. I had tons of help and LLC members come to me daily, nurses and doctors also helped. She always latched on and we had no problem. My breasts of course got very sore, full, red and raw nipples. I used cream and the nipples slowly healed over two weeks. The past two weeks (1 month today) my breasts have been over supplying with milk. My daughter chokes and gets extreme gas from the air when she gets angry and sucks like a monster. I thought pumping might help. I also pumped to drain my breasts when they got engorged which they do ALL the time. My daughter cannot fully drain my breast ever. I can pump anywhere from 5-9 oz each breast. I tried switching breasts, block feeding, pumping and then feeding and Im constantly struggling with cement feeling breasts. Now I have developed a raw very sore left nipple and a large bump Im going to assume clogged duct and it is so painful it makes me cry when I have her feed off of it. My left breast is red underneath but I have no fever and have been taking advil. I even try warm compress' and hand expressing for a few seconds. The duct has been clogged for two days now. I dont know what to do besides keep trying to feed her on it. My right breast is very sore for no reason at all. There is nothing wrong with it at the moment. Not engorged currently and my nipple is fine. I read and was told to feed every two hours but my daughter will go from 3-5 hours at night sleeping. I let her sleep since my breasts choke her and she ends up puking each time. I dont want to fully wake her up. I co-sleep/feed as well.

Does anyone have any advice or help? How long does it normally take for my breasts to get the hint I dont need this much milk? When does breastfeed not become such a hard issue? I cry daily because of this and want to stop all together but cannot afford formula.

OK scratch that- I thought I was just tired and had a headache and it was cool outside thats why I was so cold today. Just took my temp and its 101. My eyes hurt and burn, I have a headache, slightly congested and cold on top of my breast red and very painful.

I'm sorry to hear you're struggling with feeding - but I'm sure we'll be able to get you back on track.

First off - stop feeding every 2 hours. This isn't needed and is undoubtedly adding to your oversupply problem. Baby only needs to be fed on demand. If you're very sore and full at a time when baby is not needing a feed you can slightly hand express off just enough to ease the engorgement. Do NOT drain the breast as this will only signal to your body that you want more milk.

Unless you need a freezer stash to return to work imminently / for an occasion then stop expressing. It's recommended you don't express until your supply is established - or there is a chance of oversupply issues - as you've experienced. Put the pump away.

If baby is choking at the breast it may not only be that you have an oversupply but also a forceful let down that baby is struggling to cope with - the best way to counteract this is to hand express until let down occurs (let the milk into a muslin or cloth) and then latch baby on after the initial flow of milk. That way it's not so much a shock of a mouth full of milk. Hopefully once you've corrected the over supply issue the overactive let down will also become less.

It sounds like you're dealing with blocked ducts - probably as a result of the oversupply. Ensure baby is feeding well at the breast - that the latch is good. If needs be you can hand express in a hot shower to manually remove the blockage. I always find this works. If you're struggling to get rid of it or you're still feeling feverish / there is redness on the breast tissue then see your doctor as it may have developed into mastitis.

Usually your milk supply regulates at approx 6 - 8 weeks; however if you've got these problems it may take slightly longer once you've worked through them. There are lots of women who've had the same issues though and have successfully gone on to breastfeed their babies. Try not to worry and always feel free to come back here for support.

 

[HHenderson]

Thank you. I ended up getting the red lines on my breast, pain and a REALLY high fever on top of the Advil. Last night was so miserable. My fever actually reached 104.9! I called my doctors office and they are calling in antibiotics for me. I will stop pumping. I was using it to help relieve the swollen HUGE cement feeling breasts. Last night I took a really hot bath and massaged my clogged duct for 40 minutes and it didnt help. Also today in the shower I did the same thing and its still there. Of course Im going to try to keep doing it and putting babys chin on it to help squeeze it out. Thanks for your reply.

 

[Lownthwaite]

Thank you. I ended up getting the red lines on my breast, pain and a REALLY high fever on top of the Advil. Last night was so miserable. My fever actually reached 104.9! I called my doctors office and they are calling in antibiotics for me. I will stop pumping. I was using it to help relieve the swollen HUGE cement feeling breasts. Last night I took a really hot bath and massaged my clogged duct for 40 minutes and it didnt help. Also today in the shower I did the same thing and its still there. Of course Im going to try to keep doing it and putting babys chin on it to help squeeze it out. Thanks for your reply.

If you're going to be taking antibiotics then make sure you start taking acidophilus - it's a probiotics which will help reduce the chance of you developing thrush due to the antibiotics.

Keep trying to get rid of the blockage - like you've said - pointing babys chin to the lump can also help.

If needs be you can put some cold (chilled in the fridge) cabbage on your breasts to relieve discomfort - I would advise no longer than 30 mins or so at a time though as it can also reduce milk supply. (I know this is what you want to do but you don't want to go too far the other way).

 

[HHenderson]

Thank you. I ended up getting the red lines on my breast, pain and a REALLY high fever on top of the Advil. Last night was so miserable. My fever actually reached 104.9! I called my doctors office and they are calling in antibiotics for me. I will stop pumping. I was using it to help relieve the swollen HUGE cement feeling breasts. Last night I took a really hot bath and massaged my clogged duct for 40 minutes and it didnt help. Also today in the shower I did the same thing and its still there. Of course Im going to try to keep doing it and putting babys chin on it to help squeeze it out. Thanks for your reply.

If you're going to be taking antibiotics then make sure you start taking acidophilus - it's a probiotics which will help reduce the chance of you developing thrush due to the antibiotics.

Keep trying to get rid of the blockage - like you've said - pointing babys chin to the lump can also help.

If needs be you can put some cold (chilled in the fridge) cabbage on your breasts to relieve discomfort - I would advise no longer than 30 mins or so at a time though as it can also reduce milk supply. (I know this is what you want to do but you don't want to go too far the other way).

I want to say thank you for your advice!!! After I started my antibiotics a couple days later my breasts got better. It took several days for my bloct duct to go away too. But I completely stopped pumping and have been offering one breast per feeding every other time. My supply has started getting much better.

 

[Lownthwaite]

Thank you. I ended up getting the red lines on my breast, pain and a REALLY high fever on top of the Advil. Last night was so miserable. My fever actually reached 104.9! I called my doctors office and they are calling in antibiotics for me. I will stop pumping. I was using it to help relieve the swollen HUGE cement feeling breasts. Last night I took a really hot bath and massaged my clogged duct for 40 minutes and it didnt help. Also today in the shower I did the same thing and its still there. Of course Im going to try to keep doing it and putting babys chin on it to help squeeze it out. Thanks for your reply.

If you're going to be taking antibiotics then make sure you start taking acidophilus - it's a probiotics which will help reduce the chance of you developing thrush due to the antibiotics.

Keep trying to get rid of the blockage - like you've said - pointing babys chin to the lump can also help.

If needs be you can put some cold (chilled in the fridge) cabbage on your breasts to relieve discomfort - I would advise no longer than 30 mins or so at a time though as it can also reduce milk supply. (I know this is what you want to do but you don't want to go too far the other way).

I want to say thank you for your advice!!! After I started my antibiotics a couple days later my breasts got better. It took several days for my bloct duct to go away too. But I completely stopped pumping and have been offering one breast per feeding every other time. My supply has started getting much better.

Glad to be of service!

 

[Grateful365]

Hi ladies - I am a new first time mom and looking for some advise.

My son is 2 months old today. I have been exclusively breastfeeding him. We have had a rocky road dealing with Mastitis and Thrush both. Things have gotten much better and I recently went back to work full time 2 weeks ago. I am pumping twice while at work. I am gone from the baby for approximately 9 hours.

I have kept increasing the amount of milk I am leaving for the baby as my mother-in-law keeps telling me the baby needs more and is very hungry. I am currently sending three 5.5 oz bottles for while I am at work each day.

The other day my mother-in-law told me she used the 'emergency' formula because the baby was "so so hungry" and was crying. I felt very annoyed by this and upset. She fed her kids with formula and I feel like she wants him to have formula to keep him more quiet. I may be over exaggerating but I've worked so hard to try to exclusively breastfeed.

I've read that babies on breast milk take an average of 2-4 oz per 2-3 hour feeds, so I figured that 5.5 oz x 3 would be enough. I also breastfeed him three times a day so he eats a total of 6 times.

His weight gain for the first week I went back to work was very minimal, so that is also why I increased the bottles to 5.5 oz. My mother-in-law is still insisting that the baby is hungry and needs more. I don't think I can pump enough to fulfill that.

Baby has a weight check on Monday and I pray he is now gaining good on 5.5 oz. I wanted to get you ladies opinion on whether you think he could truly be hungry with what I am leaving for him while I am at work.....

Sorry this is so lengthy!

Very much appreciate any input

 

[Lownthwaite]

Hi ladies - I am a new first time mom and looking for some advise.

My son is 2 months old today. I have been exclusively breastfeeding him. We have had a rocky road dealing with Mastitis and Thrush both. Things have gotten much better and I recently went back to work full time 2 weeks ago. I am pumping twice while at work. I am gone from the baby for approximately 9 hours.

I have kept increasing the amount of milk I am leaving for the baby as my mother-in-law keeps telling me the baby needs more and is very hungry. I am currently sending three 5.5 oz bottles for while I am at work each day.

The other day my mother-in-law told me she used the 'emergency' formula because the baby was "so so hungry" and was crying. I felt very annoyed by this and upset. She fed her kids with formula and I feel like she wants him to have formula to keep him more quiet. I may be over exaggerating but I've worked so hard to try to exclusively breastfeed.

I've read that babies on breast milk take an average of 2-4 oz per 2-3 hour feeds, so I figured that 5.5 oz x 3 would be enough. I also breastfeed him three times a day so he eats a total of 6 times.

His weight gain for the first week I went back to work was very minimal, so that is also why I increased the bottles to 5.5 oz. My mother-in-law is still insisting that the baby is hungry and needs more. I don't think I can pump enough to fulfill that.

Baby has a weight check on Monday and I pray he is now gaining good on 5.5 oz. I wanted to get you ladies opinion on whether you think he could truly be hungry with what I am leaving for him while I am at work.....

Sorry this is so lengthy!

Very much appreciate any input

It really is hard to say as each baby is different.

I can totally see why you're annoyed with her giving baby formula though - I would be fuming!!

As far as weight gain goes - some babies do gain slowly - my daughter never had a massive weight gain - the fact that baby is gaining is the important thing.

The thing that is hard is that you don't really know how baby is behaving when you're not there. Your MIL may say baby is hungry but he may be tired, overstimulated, wet, have wind - a baby being unsettled isn't always because it's hungry.

If I was you I'd discuss the formula issue with her - explain you do not want him being given formula - especially without asking you first!
I'd also introduce an extra pumping session to increase your supply and stash.

 

[Grateful365]

Thanks for your input on this

I did tell her the formula was for "emergency situations" such as milk was spilled, etc. I now told her "no more formula" unless she calls me. She agreed. I'm getting so tired of people saying "Well....formula won't HURT him." I know it won't hurt him...lol...I just don't understand why people want to push it so much...? If it ends up being needed then that's fine, but until then...

I want to add one more pumping session but the only time I could possibly add an extra pump is after the evening breastfeeding session. I usually only get 1-2 oz. total if I pump right after a feed. Unfortunately I cannot add another to my work day which is what would be ideal.

I guess I am just wondering that even if I can keep increasing the amount per bottle...is there a point where its just TOO much? I don't want his little belly to be overstuffed all the time by being bottle fed.

Seeing his weight on Monday will hopefully help me know more where to go from here...

 

[Lownthwaite]

Thanks for your input on this

I did tell her the formula was for "emergency situations" such as milk was spilled, etc. I now told her "no more formula" unless she calls me. She agreed. I'm getting so tired of people saying "Well....formula won't HURT him." I know it won't hurt him...lol...I just don't understand why people want to push it so much...? If it ends up being needed then that's fine, but until then...

I want to add one more pumping session but the only time I could possibly add an extra pump is after the evening breastfeeding session. I usually only get 1-2 oz. total if I pump right after a feed. Unfortunately I cannot add another to my work day which is what would be ideal.

I guess I am just wondering that even if I can keep increasing the amount per bottle...is there a point where its just TOO much? I don't want his little belly to be overstuffed all the time by being bottle fed.

Seeing his weight on Monday will hopefully help me know more where to go from here...

I used to express 3 times a day at work (I worked 2 days a week) and fed on demand when at home. I would feed straight before I left for work and offered as soon as I came home too.

I had a daily pumping session at 10:30pm every night. The consistency ensured I had milk at that time every day and I would put it towards my freezer stash. Maybe try adding in an evening expression.

It's hard to say what is too much - babies have hungry days, growth spurts, days where they'd rather sleep than eat so there is no set amount that they "should" be eating.

The fact that it's breast milk in the bottle that is being offered will help as it's still taking the normal time to be digested as if it came from the breast - as apposed to formula taking longer to digest - if that makes sense?

 

[WannaBtheMum]

Hi, I am a FTM and my little boy is now 3 days old (today is his 4th day). He is struggling with wind after feeds, I'll wind him in various positions after his feed and he does get most out but I can still hear more inside him. When I put him down to sleep he gets very uncomfortable, grunting, squeaking and kicking his legs out until he gets very upset and starts rooting for the breast again. I feel as though I am going around in circles and the only sleep he gets is when I comfort him. I have been trying to make sure he is latching on properly but he seems to be better on my left breast than my right. On my right he sounds sniffly trying to breath and I can hear him taking in air. This doesn't happen on the left. I don't think my milk has come in yet either, apart from tender nipples when he latches on, they don't feel any different!

He has passed merconium stools each day and has wee in his nappy so I know food is getting through, I'm just worried I am not doing it right and its only going to get worse. Next MW appointment is Tuesday. Thank you for any help or advice you can give

 

[Lownthwaite]

Hi, I am a FTM and my little boy is now 3 days old (today is his 4th day). He is struggling with wind after feeds, I'll wind him in various positions after his feed and he does get most out but I can still hear more inside him. When I put him down to sleep he gets very uncomfortable, grunting, squeaking and kicking his legs out until he gets very upset and starts rooting for the breast again. I feel as though I am going around in circles and the only sleep he gets is when I comfort him. I have been trying to make sure he is latching on properly but he seems to be better on my left breast than my right. On my right he sounds sniffly trying to breath and I can hear him taking in air. This doesn't happen on the left. I don't think my milk has come in yet either, apart from tender nipples when he latches on, they don't feel any different!

He has passed merconium stools each day and has wee in his nappy so I know food is getting through, I'm just worried I am not doing it right and its only going to get worse. Next MW appointment is Tuesday. Thank you for any help or advice you can give

The best advice I can give is don't wait until Tuesday for your appointment. Ring the midwives on call and explain you're struggling with latching and feeding and ask them to come out to you today or first thing in the morning. You don't have to wait until your appointment.

It does sound like air is getting in and this is what is causing his discomfort. Have you had your latch checked?
I'd also request baby is checked for both tongue and lip ties to ensure that isn't the reason for the off latch.

 

[jinglebear]

Hi, I ebf my lo for 4 weeks after her birth. I then expressed into bottles and she began to prefer the faster flow and i found it difficult to get her back to nursing. i then couldnt keep up with expressing with a hand pump and supplmented with formula which then resulted in her being on formula the whole time. She is now almost 20weeks. i really really want to get back to nursing her. she latches on for about 20-30secs before understandably becoming frustrated. i can hand express tiny drops of milk but nothing much. the past two days i have been hand pumping on each side every 2-3hrs for about 5mins each (as its so knackering!) can anyone offer advice on relactation or am i fighting a loosing battle here?? xxx

 

[seaweed eater]

Jinglebear, I think you need a double electric pump. Manual pumping really is tiring and you need a lot more than 5 min a side in order to stimulate your supply. Renting a hospital grade pump would be best for your supply if you can access one. You may want to look into domperidone as well. Expressing every 2-3 hours is great, and hopefully with a double electric it will be easier for you -- get a hands free bra and just relax

 

[merristems]

Hi, I could do with a little help.. my baby girl is 9wks old we had an uncomplicated birth but she couldn't latch to begin with. She kept sucking her tongue up onto her palette and it took us 3 days to establish breastfeeding. By the time the hv came to see us she lost nearly 9% body weight. We were advised so many things I got so stressed! Eventually I settled for bfing and topping up with formula and pumping when I found the time. At our 7wk weight check she was following the 9th centile and I was led to feel this was unsatisfactory. I was told to feed her 2hrly and continue to top up if she seemed unsettled still. So I have been feeding 2hrly, I havent had to supplement much with formula mainly in evenings when I find my supply dips. I dont want to supplement with formula but I find it difficult to express when I feed 2hrly! I really want to extend the time between feeds can I do this easily without upsetting her slow weight gain? Is my supply low if she is only gaining approximately 4oz a week shes 9lb4oz now at 9wks I think shes ok but the hv keeps upsetting me

 

[thayet]

Hi there,

I was wondering if I could get some help. I have just about run out of things to try with my LO.. he won't stay latched and I'm so frustrated and I don't understand why. I had a lactation consultant here today and of course everything was lovely - he was full of expressed milk and formula! Now he fusses and won't try to BF regardless of how I told him or whatever.

I already hate that I have to give him formula, but I'm not producing enough yet to satisfy him and he needs to get back to his birth weight soon or they will hospitalize him.

If anyone can help I would really really appreciate it.. I don't want to give up on breastfeeding one week in.

Sorry, edited to add details:
- he was born 9lbs 1oz but didn't feed well to begin with. The midwives think he was full of mucous and he did cough up a fair amount and have a lot of really big poops, after which he had more interest in feeding
- improper latch resulted in very damaged nipples, which led to expressing and bottle feeding. Now I think he likes the faster flow of the bottle and won't tolerate the breast, even though my nipples are healing
- he lost a lot of weight (back up to 8lbs 1/2 oz) but has to keep gaining. I worry that all the fussing and crying is costing him more calories than he's getting out of BFing

 

[seaweed eater]

SNS was a lifesaver for us. See if you can get your hands on one of those and stop giving bottles.

When he does latch, is his latch better than at first? Too bad the LC came when he wasn't hungry.

How are his wet/dirty diapers?

 

[thayet]

SNS was a lifesaver for us. See if you can get your hands on one of those and stop giving bottles.

When he does latch, is his latch better than at first? Too bad the LC came when he wasn't hungry.

How are his wet/dirty diapers?

SNS = silicone nipple shield? Yeah I bought one, but was given the wrong size.. somehow I need to get back to the store and exchange my spare for a bigger one. Part of the problem is I have larger flat nipples and he struggles to elongate them when he latches. His latch *is* better than at first (the LC helped with that too).

His diapers have finally normalized. At first he pooped a LOT (like six times his first day) and then didn't poop or pee at all for a couple days. We were this close to being admitted to hospital because of the lack of peeing, but thank goodness today it has stabilized. Probably because of the formula supplementing.

Question: LC recommended feeding LO expressed milk by teaspoon? Is there a reason for this? And is there a less messy way to do it, because I tried and man, milk ended up everywhere