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[wishingonastar]

hey tiggercats that was lovely...i caught up with this thread and saw you have turned things round for yourself quickly glad you went to the group and had things click some more...thats definately the way forward and a big step

hope things clear up soon...and stay away dreaded thrush!!!!!

 

[mrs mcgrath]

My LO is just over 3 months old & I breastfed him exclusively fron he was 2 days old until NYE when hubby & I decided to change to formula as I was strugglibg to keep up with the feeding on demand. However I still BF 1st thing every morning & last thing at night & give him bottles of formula during the day. He used to feed for anything up to an hour, sometimes an hour sand a half but lately he has only been BFing for around 20-30 minutres & I'm worried that as I'm combing formula & breast milk that my milk supply is reducing so was wondering if I could get advice on increasing my supply

thanx

 

[wishingonastar]

hey mrs mcgrath, i found with isabel that around the 12 week mark after her growth spurt she became much more efficient at pulling off the milk so fed for less time...this is a possibility with your LO if he seems satisfied after a feed...

however, if you're concerned its your supply some of the ways to increase are:
- skin to skin contact (you and LO bare chested having cuddle time once/twice a day)
- drink plenty
- eat plenty and well
- stimulate nipples when in shower/bath to trigger letdown and make body think LO is demanding milk and massage breasts as well
- express once or twice at other times in the day so body produces more milk than LO is demanding

 

[im_mi]

^yes, this is fab advice! When my son hit about 3-4 months (i cant remember exactly) he went from feeding for 30 minutes to 10 minutes, of course i freaked out and called La Leche League immediately lol, and they told me that it was just that he was getting more efficient at feeding This was around the time we introduced a bottle for every now and then which is why i panicked. your supply does adjust to demand, so like wishing said there are plenty of things you can do to increase your supply. Also, put your little one to the breast as often as you feel comfortable with and that will definitely help too

 

[mrs mcgrath]

Thanks for the advice wishingonastar x

 

[LoobyLou75]

I am finding Breastfeeding a struggle in the fact that I am not sure I can get my LO to latch on properly as it hurts everytime. I know she's getting some milk as she is filling her nappies regularly.
Any advice would be gratefully received!

 

[FemmeEnceinte]

How old is your LO? It does hurt at first, regardless, until your nipples toughen up. Latch should look like so:

Top lip curled up, bottom lip curled down, rounded cheeks, more upper areola visible than lower.

 

[LoobyLou75]

She's just 3 days old. If it hurts at first that's ok. Was a bit worried I wasn't able to get her to latch on ok.

 

[FemmeEnceinte]

I cried for about a week almost every feed, made me grit my teeth and my toes curl... after that, it just got better gradually x

 

[wishingonastar]

hey loobylou, it doesn't hurt everyone, but probably hurts the majority to begin with! however, the best thing to do is ring your midwife/HV/local children's centre and ask where the local BFing support group is...then pop along and they'll very quickly be able to check your latch and give you the thumbs up or alter what you're doing so you can be sure you're not gonna hurt your nips and that LO is able to latch properly and therefore pull off plenty of milk (a poor latch means LO draws less milk and has to feed more frequently)

i could help with latch if needed as i had problems with this so studied it intensely!!! but really as its such a physical thing its a lot easier and better for you to get someone in a support group to actually show you

 

[bubbles_cymru]

hi girls could do with some support myself - i am 28 and have been bf for 3 weeks n0w - i've also given the occasional bottle of sma and have been expressing since her birth as i suffered with a flat left nipple so was told manual pumping would pull it out but am still suffering with engorgement so i need to express to empty a bit. Abigail has no set routines as far as feeding is concerned - she can go from 2 -6 hours between feeds and varies from 10mins to 1 hour - she can be very fussy at the breast and tug on occasions - her latch is good and she definately is swollowing milk! She never really empties the boob but i discovered earlier that this is impossible. I guess I just still feel really clueless - my boobs are forever throbbing and my nipples forever sore - esp when they stick to the pad. I use lasinoh but i tried to latch her on to the left side earlier and it stung as she sucked - the right side was fine and she stayed there for approx 15 mins, and seemed full after.

I could just do with support - are my boobs still meant to throb and nipples feel really sore? How do I really know when she's had enough. Breastfeeding is meant to feel convenient but I dread feeds as the pain and the length of time she can take drains me?

am i on the right path??

 

[im_mi]

Hun, you're doing great If you are experiencing pain i would highly reccommend finding a breastfeeding group nearby and have somebody check your latch. however, it is fairly normal for most people to suffer from pain in the early days; this could be because the latch was wrong once or twice in the beginning and it damaged the nipple, or it could just be your boobs adjusting. one thing i can say for sure is - you're doing really well and i PROMISE it will get a lot, lot, lot better. One day it will click and it really will feel convenient and easy.

It is normal for her to feed for a long time - babies breastfeed for lots of reasons other than hunger, and each reason is just as valid as hunger. As baby gets older, she will learn to be more efficient in her feeds and she will only feed for maybe 5-10 minutes at a time! I know its really hard to see now but trust me, when she is climbing up on your lap for a 2 minute top-up, you will really miss the lovely long nursing sessions. Its so wonderful when it works, and when it doesnt hurt!

You really are doing great and you are doing the right thing in seeking support. Go to the La Leche League website (https://www.llli.org) and locate a nearby la leche league group. Also, your health visitor may know of a local breastfeeding support group you can go to. I go to one every week, its amazing to have that kind of support from people who have been through and are going through the same struggles as you. Its vital to have people 'on-side', as it were, as lots of people will rejoice in telling you to "put her on the bottle".

I promise this will all be worth it, it really will. Breastfeeding is the most valuable, amazing thing i have ever done and i will go through the pain of the start a thousand times to ensure i have the relationship with my new baby that i have with my toddler.

 

[im_mi]

Also, if you are getting localised pain, it could be due to a plugged duct. Are your breasts lumpy in any parts, or is the pain very obviously from a sore nipple?

 

[bubbles_cymru]

thanks hun - will look into support groups - the nipple is sore but the boob feels bruised - i had mastitis my first week, cleared up with antibiotics, now they just feel heavy and achy x

 

[wishingonastar]

im im has given you fab advice

just to add to it, your supply takes 6-9 weeks to regulate (your body needs this time to work out how much to produce) and until then you'll probably find some times you're engorged and others you're fine...it does sort itself out before you know it

in answer to your query of how do you know if LO is satisfied, so long as she's producing at least 5/6 wet nappies daily and seems content and satisfied between feeds then you know she's getting enough.

It's normal for them not to have a schedule for feeding in the early days, a newborn typically feeds every 2 hours in day, then cluster feeds in eve and goes a little longer between feeds at night (not set in stone!!) If you google 'newborn hunger cues' you'll find your LO has many different ways of showing you she's hungry and it makes it easier to feed her before she gets to being mega hungry so she's less aggressive to your nips!

 

[Dream.A.Dream]

Would it be possible for me to be paired with someone who could give me support for exclusively expressing? My LO won't latch so although I'm still trying him at the breast a couple of times per day it's really distressing for us both xx

 

[K477uk]

Katy - I have no experience with exclusively expressing, so can't help there.. but did have initial latch problems.

Firstly I know how upsetting it is when all they want is food but they won't latch.. secondly well done for persisting!

With the latch issues.. have you tried expressing for about 5 mins and then offering the breast? I found that this softened the nipple and allowed him to get a better latch.

There are people here who have exclusively expressed.. goodluck!

 

[Dream.A.Dream]

Katy - I have no experience with exclusively expressing, so can't help there.. but did have initial latch problems.

Firstly I know how upsetting it is when all they want is food but they won't latch.. secondly well done for persisting!

With the latch issues.. have you tried expressing for about 5 mins and then offering the breast? I found that this softened the nipple and allowed him to get a better latch.

There are people here who have exclusively expressed.. goodluck!

Thanks, I have tried expressing a bit off first yeah, I've also tried giving him a bit of expressed milk and then trying to latch him when he's not starving but still no luck.

I find it so upsetting when he gets himself so worked up because it's not happening xx

 

[wishingonastar]

hey katy, on the front page are the specialisations, so may be worth you PMing one or two of the girls incase they don't check this often...?

good luck hun (i express and can help with basics, maintaining supply and so on, but not with specialised problems)

 

[im_mi]

one thing that is often very helpful with babies who wont latch is this: try latching him on when he is asleep. When Jack had a nursing strike (well he's had several actually), he would only latch on if he was asleep. i would cuddle him until he was asleep and then tickle his top lip with my nipple, and he would latch on and feed. Often it works better at night time, too. Lots of skin to skin contact will help. Its so frustrating when they wont feed, but he will come back to the breast eventually hun. xxx