In need of support at 7.5 months

[newlywedtzh]

Hi everyone- I am very passionate about breastfeeding but have hit a little bump in the road and am just looking for encouragement/support. I am a full time working mother much to my dismay so I have a lot on my plate.

My 7.5 month old DD has been nursing SO frequently- like NB frequently. Except, I feel like its almost for play sometimes? Like she has become aware where my breasts are, what they are for, and that she can access them whenever she wants, even if its for like a second. This makes being out in public and at social gatherings stressful (Still a little shy about nursing in public) not to mention it's just really demanding again. She has also picked up on her night nursing, now just nursing at night for comfort a lot- so it's never eat and sleep, it's like she constantly wants my nipple in her mouth. We co-sleep, but I can never get comfortable enough to sleep while she nurses even while side-lying. With working, I'm feeling a little run down with the no sleep.

One more thing- nursing has become painful again! I'm not sure if she's clamping down, has a lazy latch, or what is going on. But my nipples are sore and it hurts to nurse again. I swear I'm going through the newborn phase again except this time I'm back at work!

I will always put her needs before mine and I am NOT considering weaning at ALL, but I'm feeling quite overwhelmed by it all. Any advice? Is this a phase?

 

[caitlyn2009]

My little guy is doing the same. Not so much wanting to nurse constantly all day, but at night he doesn't sleep well unless he has my nipple in his mouth. I try not to bed share, not because I don't agree with it, but because we have a small bed and i cannot get comfortable with him beside me. He gets me up almost every hour to eat and I am worn out. I don't really have advice, but you are not alone. I am curious what others will have to say or suggest.

PS.. My nipples are sore again as well. I think it is from the prolonged nursing at night time.

 

[noon_child]

Could she be teething? Whenever my LO tether she'd adjust her latch and it'd be sore.

The other thing I wondered was how long you have been working full time? Is she missing you so is making up for lost boob time while you are around?

If I were you I'd try to make a bit of a diary of when she takes a feed and when she just fiddles or sucks once and gets distracted. You might find there is a pattern that suggests what time of the day she is truly hungry and what times she is in the habit of nursing but not really interested. It may be that she is ready physically to drop a feed (depending on her food intake) but emotionally wants to keep nursing.

I too would never want to force a baby to drop a feed because there is more to bf than just nutrition but if she is hurting you and not getting much out of it, it may be that you could "help" her to nurse only when she really wants to by using slight distraction or delaying techniques when you know she's just going to mess around (like saying just a minute, or offering a snack, or distracting using a toy, or avoiding sitting in those familiar nursing places in the house) She'll soon make it clear if this is unacceptable and she needs to nurse!! These techniques are usually for older children, who Mum wants to gently wean, so I wouldn't use them with every feed. Only if you are truly comfortable with LO dropping a feed and only at a time you've identified she is prone to mess around.

The only other thing is could you be pregnant or getting period back. This could lead to sore nipples and lower supply, so she might be popping on and off and waking at night to get your supply up and the milk she wants.

 

[newlywedtzh]

No period in sight yet, and not pregnant. The soreness is definitely from nursing, I can tell but I AM wondering about my supply.... I have definitely seen a decrease in my pump output at work (but it is still enough during the day) but have been kind of attributing that to her nursing so much at night. i.e. if she only nursed once or twice at night, i would usually get a full 6-7oz at my first pump session. Now I get about 2oz out of each breast but she drained them all night! I was never one to worry about my supply, etc. I've always trusted that I've had enough plus she's always been stable on the growth charts but just recently I've started to wonder.

if she gets distracted but causes a letdown, I usually kind of redirect her to the breast so for the most part she is getting milk at every feed.

How common is it for milk supply to dip at 7.5 months? I feed on demand, and pump 3x a day from mon-thurs.

 

[newlywedtzh]

She has cut one tooth, maybe she is teething but to be honest, I've never noticed any of the "tell tale" teething signs.