March Mummies 2011

[roonsma]

Beautiful pictures Susan, you both look wonderful

 

[MumtoJ]

those are lovely, how are you doing?

 

[blessedmomma]

susan- looooove the pics. he is stinking adorable!

 

[braijackava]

Congrats Blessed!
Cute pics Chimpette!
Here are my little ones and me and hubby in costume. Happy Halloween!

 

[membas#1]

cute halloween pics brai!
O was a dragon

 

[blessedmomma]

sooooocute brai! alyana was a character named gir, some cartoon she watches. felicia was an alien, peyton was buzz lightyear, jaxon was elmo, and nathon was clifford the dog- he had a little tail lol. DH took some pics, i will get him to send them to me and try to get them on here.

 

[Chimpette]

Ahhhhh Brai how cute is your little LO dressed as a monster... gorgeous!

Doing good here, Logan has started his assessments at the local hospital, he had a one on one session today and the doctor said that although this speech and communication skills have come on, they still think that he will be diagnosed with autism, to be honest I always knew there was something alittle different about my monster... they have also said though that they think he will be just above the line, so very mid.

Brody has started to stand on his own with no hands.... he stands there for about 20 seconds then suddenly realises what he's doing and falls down.. haha He'e so comical. He is also crusing to anyone along the sofa that is eating.. he is such a little piggy... we've nicknamed his shredder at the moment because he can find any bit of paper and try to eat it.... LOL

How's everyone else doing, did everyone enjoy Halloween..? It was Logan's 1st Halloween which he kinda of understood and he loved trick or treating thought it was great that he was getting all these free sweets.. haha

 

[blessedmomma]

i have a couple questions for bf moms. we are gonna try to bf this next one. i am getting a pump to take to the hospital and bottles too, both for in case i have problems. im bringing formula too for in case the pump idea doesnt work. baby will have to eat and our hospitals dont supply the formula we normally use.

what im wanting to know is did anyone have to use bottles for one reason or another and went back to bf later? what bottles did you use? if i have to switch back and forth i dont want to have any issues for baby, or as few as possible, but dont know what bottles to take with me just in case.

also, are there any tips to help baby bf comfortably (and me too)?? i want this to go as smooth as posible, but am not too comfortable with trying it while someone stands over me.

 

[Tanikit]

Blessed you are actually less likely to have people standing over you than a first time Mom especially if you only mention its your first one being breastfed if there are problems - they leave Moms who are experienced more to their own devices.

I wouldn't use bottles in the hospital - your baby will not starve as there is very little colostrum for the first few days until your milk comes in. It is only after the milk comes in that you might need a pump.

As for going back and forth my babies were in the ICU with low sugar levels and they needed formula at first - they were given this both by tube and bottle and syringe. They used a few different bottles and teats too. I struggled with the first to get her breastfeeding after all that but my second took to it fine and I am still breastfeeding her and breastfed my first for two years so it can be done. The most important thing is to get the latch right - maybe try reading a book about breastfeeding which shows you how to hold your baby so your nipple is in line with his mouth. You are supposed to bring the baby to you not your nipple to the baby.

Maybe tell the nurses you want to try it by yourself and will call them if you have any problems. I'm sure you'll be fine though.

 

[blessedmomma]

tanikit- thank you for the info! im going to a new hospital that just openned in august, so i didnt know what to expect. the other hospitals i have went to dont have a lactation dept, but this one does. so i didnt know if they are gonna be all over me or what. i didnt know about the bringing baby to you thing. i have been reading about getting them to latch and one guy who is some expert said to make sure their bottom lip is not sucked inward, but on the outside. there is so much conflicting info on the internet its hard to know what to do. someone said to start pumping before labor so the milk comes in when it needs to. i know the hospitals here wont let the baby leave til they are eating properly though and i want to come home as soon as possible. i also saw that some babies it really doesnt matter if you go between breast and bottle, but some are very sensitive to it. some of my kids could use any nipple from a bottle, but some have been very picky.

how long about does it take milk to come in?

 

[roonsma]

Hi Blessed! Yes what Tanikit said is all right and yes the bottom lip needs to be out. My MW taught me- Tummy to Mummy(so baby on their side facing you), nose to nipple(line your nipple up with baby's nose) then you need them to open their mouth as wide as you can(they need as big a mouthful of nipple and areola as possible) You can get them to open their mouths by stroking their cheek. As soon as they open their mouth wide push their head straight onto your boob. You can tell if their feeding right as you should see their jaw moving next to their ear and you should listen for them swallowing too. Your milk will come in anywhere from 2-4 days after birth, i think it depends on how much they feed. You'll need lots of cushions to be comfy. Hope this helps

 

[blessedmomma]

rachael- wow thats awesome info! thank you! did you have to use shields ever? not sure if i should buy some right away. i keep hearing how much it hurts and not looking forward to that. so do you just keep trying over and over like every two or three hours til the milk comes in?

 

[MumtoJ]

Blessed, both my boys instinctively knew what to do and I just followed their lead. The biggest thing is - it shouldn't hurt and if it does then the latch isn't right.

You may find that at the time the thought of someone helping less of an issue a bit like having the dr staring at your bits when you give birth IYKWIM.

 

[roonsma]

It wouldn't hurt to have the sheilds but i wouldn't use them unless you really needed to. Babies get used to them and then struggle to latch back onto boob. It shouldn't be really painful but your niplles will be a bit tender, mine were with both mine. They're just not used to being "rubbed" all the time. I fed as often as i could, neither of mine lost any weight infact they both gained in the first couple of days. I really hope it works out for you hun, anything else you want to know, just ask and i'll help if i can xxx

 

[blessedmomma]

thanks cathryn! i have heard that too. what do you do if the milk isnt in? just pop them off and try again later? how long do you wait while they are trying to eat?

i have thought about that i have to lay there legs spread for my dr which also makes me very uncomfortable too. but unless i thought i could do a home birth, i cant get away from that. i guess in my head its like i HAVE to get over that so my baby will be delivered safely. but with bf i actually have a chance at figuring it out myself and not needing anyone. if i could have a friend there that had bf before i dont think it would bug me at all. im sure it wont be as uncomfortable a thought to me while i have just had to show all to birth the baby, but rght now i really want to collect as much info as possible so maybe i can get away with it on my own

 

[roonsma]

Your colostrum will nourish the baby until your milk comes in. It's a thick yellowy liquid and excellent stuff. It's made in your boobs from quite early on in pregnancy, i think it's around the 24th week? I may be wrong though

 

[MumtoJ]

yeah colostrum (sp?) is magic, babies only have tiny tummies and the calories in colostrum and Breast Milk is really high and they only need very small amounts (but very frequently) in the beginning and the 1st 8 - 12 weeks can be really tough due to the frequency. Often you will feel that they are just not getting enough cause the seem to be attached permanently, but this is how baby increases your supply. The more you get him to feed the better your supply will be.

It works on a supply and demand process and there is roughly a 3 day delay which is why it can feel like your not providing enough. The other big thing is boobs are NEVER empty, even though it may be slow they will be getting something when sucking even if you "feel" empty.

Have a good stalk of the BF forum.

 

[readynwilling]

Melissa (blessed) - here is the #1 thing in breastfeeding - its really important... HAVE FAITH IN YOUR BODY'S ABILITY TO NOURISH YOUR CHILD. i am not anti - formula, in fact i think about giving J formula every single day for one reason or another (but i haven't) but it pains me when i read about these women who "think" they don't have enough milk because their milk didn't come in day one and the baby was crying... In the first 24 hours if a baby will likely on get a tsp of colostrum. and newborns cry (but you know that, you've had 5)

As for watching video's on latching and stuff - i did it too... and you know what J never latched correctly - her nose is stuffed into my boob all the time, and i have to hold it out of the way, and it wasn't painful and she was nursing so i never did anything about it.

I will never pressure someone into breastfeeding (although i am pro breastfeeding all the way) but i will ALWAYS ALWAYS encourage someone who is trying and struggling to keep with it. So should you try, and it goes well and you continue and you need anything (advice, an ear to vent whatever) PM me and i'll send you my email addy

Also, if you have a chance, read the breastfeeding guide by Ina May Gaskin - its EXCELLENT!

It really is a trust thing - you have to trust that until you have evidence of it not working (baby looses more than 10% of their weight or becomes jaundice or dehydrated) that its working. And its not a science - as much as it seems like it.... if you get a chance see the lactation consultant, but i found ours to be pushy... and told me i wasn't doing it right, but when i got time alone with J to practise (because both you and baby need to learn what you are doing) you find a position that works for you (j and i can't do cross-cradle, which is what the lactation people push... we laid down and that worked for us) and a method that works for you

 

[blessedmomma]

thank you so much ladies. you are all such a wealth of knowledge for me. i am gonna peek through the bf section. i will check out that book too and will def be pm'ing you for help!

sara- im actually nervous about the baby crying a lot til my mllk comes in. hopefully this one will be content on the colostrum til it comes in. my babies usually start eating 1-2 oz every 2 hours or so and sleep very contently from the time they are born. i know if he is crying a lot it will be hard for me to not give him a little formula to tide him over til it comes in. i dont want to ruin my chances of bf either though. its gonna take a lot of prayer, thats for sure!

i have also been thinking of switching nathon to breast milk when the baby comes. dont have a clue how that will go. if it doesnt work out, its ok. i will have to pump for him, but im gonna try still. he will be a year old, so he may be stubborn and not switch.

 

[readynwilling]

Melissa - i love the fact you are willing to try. that's all i ever say to anyone who is wanting to formula feed and asks my opinion... you're in the hospital, you have support to help you get going... try - whats the worse thing that's gonna happen?? if it doesn't work out, it doesn't work out.

more bf'ing stuff - so others can skip

Spoiler

You will find if baby cries and you put him on the breast, he will suckle... he is stimulating your milk production, even if he doesn't get much milk, it will settle him... and the more/longer he sucks is best for your body to get that "make milk" signal. so if he cries and you feel like formula will help, put him at the breast and see if that settles him.

As long as you give him pretty much unrestricted access to your boobs for the first few weeks, giving a little formula if he really isn't settling, wont hurt. what hurts is if you give formula but don't allow for him to suckle. because then you hurt your potential supply. also if you give him a little formula and find it puts him to sleep so he doesn't go on the breast, you could then pump.

My pump has a 2 min start cycle where it pumps quick little pumps, then it goes to longer slower pumps. this mimicks how a baby feeds, they start fast and furious to get the let down, then they can do long sucks and you will see/hear them start to swallow...

also - let down... mine was super powerful and quick.. and sometimes J would pop off sputtering because she got to much... thats ok, they learn how to control the volume of milk eventually. i found that laying down nursing - it was easier for her to deal with the let down, as she wasn't on her back and having the milk forced down her throat. and remember that if you can only pump a little bit and get worried, the baby is MUCH more efficient at getting milk out then the pump.

as for bottles - just make sure you have slow flow nipples. it is easier for a baby to suck milk through a nipple then out of your breast, so it causes the baby to learn he doesn't need to work as hard to feed, and then will refuse the breast because its too much work. so thats why they say no bottles for 6 weeks. i honestly think after 4 or so weeks the baby has it figured out and you should be ok, and i doubt all babies suffer from nipple confusion.