Get your own personal BnB BF Champion and one-on-one BF support here!

[roni_75]

Yes, I "quit" breastfeeding every other day for the first two months, and I just could not do it!! I kept telling myself this is the last feed, then I would find myself bf baby again the next time. It felt like I "had" to keep going and it's a good thing too b/c when I tried formula, it made her sick! I am so grateful I kept it up. You will be too.

 

[Katt]

I really need a Champion's support right now.

My baby was 6 weeks yesterday and I had been so looking forward to this point as it's supposed to get easier. For us the opposite has happened due to thrush Aidie has Nystatin, I have Canesten cream and I got some Acidophilus today. I am cutting out cows milk, have reduced my sugar intake (I have a major sweet tooth) and will get some white vinegar to wash my nipples. Is this enough to rid the thrush? It is not severe enough to give me pain in my milk ducts, just slightly sore nipples.
My biggest issue with the thrush is latch. It is off. I have to take him off several times to re-latch and sometimes it just does not help. We both get very frustrated. He clicks lots, takes in a lot of air, is hard to wind and is sometimes sick. I have tried cradle hold, cross cradle, lying down, exaggerated latch and biological nursing. None help.
We've got through severe tongue tie, very sore breasts and nipples, bleeding nipples, major cluster feeding and now this. I want it to fall into place like it should. He still feeds a lot, there's no routine to his feeding and doesn't sleep through the night. It's hard to see light at the end of the tunnel.
I hired a pump yesterday but can't bring myself to use it. I'd rather things get better but so scared they won't

Acidophilus should help, break open a capsule and give some to lo too.

Nystatin is not the best treatment for lo as it is only effective in about 40% of cases. Daktarin gel is much better and you can get it over the counter. For you, go to the docs and get some fluconazole. You might not feel too bad now, but it might be better to wage an all out attack on the thrush rather than drag out treatment.

Thrush can cause bad wind in lo too, so as you treat the thrush, the wind should improve. It sounds like you are doing all the right things in the meantime.

Finally, try to remember that this is only temporary. Every day means lo gets more used to the new tongue, the thrush gets a little better, lo gets a bit more practiced at feeding.

Thrush is very disheartening, but stick in there. It will get better. Feel free to PM me if you like

 

[Katt]

To the champions, I am trying to set up a buddy system for 3rd tri. Please sign up!
https://www.babyandbump.com/breastfeeding/720593-calling-all-champions-3rd-tri-buddies.html

Sorry for the shameless advertising, but I would really like to get this up and running and need more people!

 

[Lawhra]

Thank you roni_75. Knowing I'll be glad I stuck at it keeps me going. That and and despite the issues, loving feeding him. I can't bring myself to express as I enjoy feeding him too much and am terrified he'd prefer a bottle!

Katt - PM on it's way thank you

 

[Nervous_1]

Argh thrush is a nightmare! I battled it for the first 4 months it was awful! For me, bfing didn't "click" til we finally beat the beastie, so hang in there cos it really does get better, promise!

 

[MamaBird]

Same here. We had 3 or 4 rounds of thrush So so frustrating! Only thing I have to add to the already wonderful advice given...we also started giving our baby some probiotic powder. You can mix it in with breastmilk, formula, food etc. We went to our local naturopathic Dr. when the prescribed meds didn't seem to do the trick.

Good luck!!!

 

[Lawhra]

Thank you both and sorry you both suffered with it so badly, you did amazingly well to persevere. What a horrible thing it is. I'm hoping to beat it asap.

 

[Katt]

We need more people to sign up for the buddy thread

https://www.babyandbump.com/breastfeeding/720593-calling-all-champions-3rd-tri-buddies.html

Even if you're not a chamion but have some experience!

I promise this is the last time I will spam this thread

 

[roni_75]

ProudMomOfOne: Anytime

 

[HungryHippo]

Back with a few BF questions...
-How do you know if your supply is low? My breasts never feel full unless I go 7 hrs (which has only happened 2x due to family letting me STTN.) And when I squeeze on them I get beads on the nipple but is there supposed to be more? LO will suck for 10 min and I hear her swallow - but not the greedy/hungry feeds she did the first few weeks. She feeds every 2 hours and it just seems like there's not enough as she will sometimes fuss about the nipple. :/
For perspective LO was born 6 weeks ago at 8.8 and is now 11.3lbs.
Thank you!!!

 

[MamaBird]

Back with a few BF questions...
-How do you know if your supply is low? My breasts never feel full unless I go 7 hrs (which has only happened 2x due to family letting me STTN.) And when I squeeze on them I get beads on the nipple but is there supposed to be more? LO will suck for 10 min and I hear her swallow - but not the greedy/hungry feeds she did the first few weeks. She feeds every 2 hours and it just seems like there's not enough as she will sometimes fuss about the nipple. :/
For perspective LO was born 6 weeks ago at 8.8 and is now 11.3lbs.
Thank you!!!

Hi hun!

First of all Congrats on making it this far!!!

So speaking from personal experience, my breasts never felt full either and I found out that it's quite normal for some women. I did have supply issues, but from everything you have described you seem to be doing just fine. I think the sucking and swollowing for 10 minutes is great, my baby only ever did about 3-5 minutes.
Also, your baby's weight gain is significant!! Maybe this will help you feel better: My daughter was born at 6.11lbs, went down to 6.3lbs and at 6 weeks she weighed 7.10lbs.
Your LO has gained almost 3lbs!!! great job mama!!

 

[MumToOllie]

Back with a few BF questions...
-How do you know if your supply is low? My breasts never feel full unless I go 7 hrs (which has only happened 2x due to family letting me STTN.) And when I squeeze on them I get beads on the nipple but is there supposed to be more? LO will suck for 10 min and I hear her swallow - but not the greedy/hungry feeds she did the first few weeks. She feeds every 2 hours and it just seems like there's not enough as she will sometimes fuss about the nipple. :/
For perspective LO was born 6 weeks ago at 8.8 and is now 11.3lbs.
Thank you!!!

Hi hun!

First of all Congrats on making it this far!!!

So speaking from personal experience, my breasts never felt full either and I found out that it's quite normal for some women. I did have supply issues, but from everything you have described you seem to be doing just fine. I think the sucking and swollowing for 10 minutes is great, my baby only ever did about 3-5 minutes.
Also, your baby's weight gain is significant!! Maybe this will help you feel better: My daughter was born at 6.11lbs, went down to 6.3lbs and at 6 weeks she weighed 7.10lbs.
Your LO has gained almost 3lbs!!! great job mama!!

I'm the same, my breasts never feel full unless I've missed a few feeds! It sounds like you are doing a great job and the weight gain is fab, well done

 

[sossypops]

Back with a few BF questions...
-How do you know if your supply is low? My breasts never feel full unless I go 7 hrs (which has only happened 2x due to family letting me STTN.) And when I squeeze on them I get beads on the nipple but is there supposed to be more? LO will suck for 10 min and I hear her swallow - but not the greedy/hungry feeds she did the first few weeks. She feeds every 2 hours and it just seems like there's not enough as she will sometimes fuss about the nipple. :/
For perspective LO was born 6 weeks ago at 8.8 and is now 11.3lbs.
Thank you!!!

You are doing so well! My boobs never felt full either unless like you I had gone more than 7 or 8 hours without a feed. And when I squeezed them not much came out but that's perfectly normal hun and certainly doesn't mean your supply is low. I still to this day can't express much milk even though I have fed my baby for 8 months!

The main thing to keep an eye on is weight gain (it sounds like your LO is doing brilliantly though!). As long as she is happy and is gaining enough weight then all is well!

 

[HungryHippo]

Thanks, Ladies! And I also can't express much...only 2 oz each side after a 7 hr stretch with no feeds. I have my 6-week check-up here in a few days and I know the doctor will look at my breasts so that will probably help me feel better, too. I'm a worrier - guess it comes with being a mom!

 

[goddess25]

It sounds like your doing really well. There are so many women who cannot express anything after any length of time so even 2oz from each site is pretty good. My breasts are never full either if I miss a few feeds. Babies also tend to slow down in terms of feeding after the initial few weeks when your milk has come in. I know its a worry but it sounds like your doing just fine.

Congratulations on the birth of your baby.

 

[MamaBird]

For a few months I tried pumping a couple of times a day and I would get several DROPS The most I ever got was 1oz (both breats combined) and that was a miracle for me. I was then really worried my LO wasn't getting enough but I saw my lactation consultant and we weighed her before and after a feed and she was getting 2-3oz so what you can express by no means reflects what your baby gets

 

[violetsky]

I don't know how ladies who pump manage it - my lo was putting on 20 ounces of weight in a week just with breastfeeding in the early days which is an insane amount, yet I barely got 2 ounces of milk if I tried to express - yet there was clearly milk and then some coming out!!

 

[bky]

Back with a few BF questions...
-How do you know if your supply is low? My breasts never feel full unless I go 7 hrs (which has only happened 2x due to family letting me STTN.) And when I squeeze on them I get beads on the nipple but is there supposed to be more? LO will suck for 10 min and I hear her swallow - but not the greedy/hungry feeds she did the first few weeks. She feeds every 2 hours and it just seems like there's not enough as she will sometimes fuss about the nipple. :/
For perspective LO was born 6 weeks ago at 8.8 and is now 11.3lbs.
Thank you!!!

Low supply (not related to top ups/bottle use/being away from baby) usually presents in the first 6 weeks, so you would have seen no weight gain. After you get to 6 weeks your milk has reached peak volume and while you will have the odd growth spurt (or more than that ) from now on your milk will change quality rather than quantity.

 

[DarlingMe]

Hi girls! This is a great idea thanks everyone!

I have a couple questions. First, my LO nurses for 20 minutes on one side, and usually another 10-15 on the other side. I know he isnt getting milk the whole time. I have tried to pay attention to swallowing cues to see if he is still drinking or just suckling and I dont notice a difference. Is it possible he is still getting milk? Or just comfort nursing? I would like to tell so I can switch him to the other side if he is still hungry! I would like a more "productive" feed sometimes. I dont mind him taking his time but when I want to go back to sleep or we have visitors I wish I could hurry him up without taking away his milk supply!

Second, I feel like he doesnt quite open his mouth enough. His lower lip doesnt seem to be open as much as it should. I am wondering if this is another reason why he takes a longer time to nurse sometimes. I have tried pulling the lower jaw & lip down, and tickling both his upper and lower lip to get him to open wider and it just doesnt seem to work.

He is gaining weight well about 10-12 oz a week the past 2 weeks! So I know he is doing well. And I dont have an extreme amount of pain when nursing but I know the latch could be a little better. Hope that all makes sense!

 

[Katt]

Hello DarlingMe! Congrats in your lo, and congrats on that weight gain! That is brilliant

Firstly, try not to worry about the length of feeds. They might not be getting milk all the time but they are stimulating milk production. It might be that he is waiting for the next let down. It takes a while to work out their sucks. All the books say shorter sucks follwed by longer sucks with swallowing blah blah, it made no sense to me for quite a while!

My lo used to take power naps while feeding. Suck for a bit, then sleep for a bit, and it used to drive me crackers at 3am! I used ti gently try and unlatch her- if she unlatched, she was ready to finish, if nit it woke her up a little so she would start feeding properly again. I also used to tickle her toes, remove items of clothing, etc just if to keep her awake!

As babies get bigger they get more efficient at feeding and the times will drop, so just hang in there.

As for the latch, I am no expert so hopefully one of the other ladies has some advice