New Mummy - Need abit of advise please!?!

[SarTheBear]

This is LONG, SORRY!!

Hi Ladies,

I had my little girl Phoebe on Saturday via emergency C-Section due to a number of problems and have been breast feeding her since I came out of theatre.

All was going really well until yesterday just before i was discharged from hospital. I was advised by a number of different doctors/midwives/breastfeeding people on latching and positioning and found so much conflicting advise, that Phoebe is now not latching on properly, i don't think.
I am now in alot of pain due to cracked nipples and feeling quite alot of tenderness in the rest of my boobs.
I should see the community midwife today (fingers crossed) so, will definately get her to help me with her latch etc but, while i wait for her i was just wondering if this is quite normal or if i have done something monumentally wrong! (Rephrased, is it reasonably normal to have tenderness at this stage? As anything that i have read or have been told has said that it shouldn't be painful.)

Also, second question (Sorry!) due to a suspected infection and the c-section itself, i am on three sets of anti-biotics and two sets of painkillers (like 13 pills a day!! ) and although they are all safe to take while breastfeeding (apparently, according to the midwives) i was wondering if it could be slowing down my milk coming in? My LO is a little chubber and is constantly feeding (which i am told is her trying to speed up the milk coming in) and i am a little concerned that she isn't getting enough!

And, Lastly, (honestly, it is, i promise!) My boobies feel really hot to me, is this a sign of anything? (Sorry, abit vague, i am just really new to all of this!)

Thank you in advance for any info or advise anyone can give, I am the first person of all of my friends to want to breastfeed and therefore have no-one to ask stupid questions to!!

Thanks again Ladies

Sarah (and Phoebe!) xx

 

[Maffie]

Hi

Congrats on having your little girl..... I too found everyone gave conflicting advise and over a little time have found what works best for me and Noah. I would say the frequent feeding is normal in the early days, they only have very little tummys and breast milk is digested much quicker than formula. Your baby will increase your supply so thats why she will feed frequently, just go with what baby wants. You aren't starving her.

I would say you shouldn't be feeling lots of pain but I would say I found feeding uncomfortable at the start. I would buy some Lansinoh for your cracked nipples, it works a dream.

If you are developing any hot red patches this can be a sign of mastitis so make sure to get the midwife to check.

 

[SarTheBear]

Thank you so much for your reply Maffie.
I have actually had a really good afternoon/evening thanks to the community midwife who came to see me this afternoon, she tried different ways of positioning with me and thankfully we found one that i have got the hang of meaning that my little monkey can now eat something without me wincing in pain!
I have bought some Kamillosan which is the same sort of thing as Lansinoh (apparently), so, fingers crossed that it'll make it less painful or at least bearable in the meantime!
Again, i really appreatiate your reply, it made me feel alot more hopeful!

Sarah xx

 

[sun]

Congrats on your LO!!!
I had issues with feeding at the beginning (LO was born early and had difficulties). It was hard at first for sure - when he latched on it was complete agony!! I also had cracked and bleeding nipples because he was still learning and would latch well, but slide into a bad position, so we would have to start over. Because of the learning curve at the beginning, my nipples REALLY suffered. I agree with above - I had a few nipple creams, but the lansinoh really worked well. It was also tough since LO would eat every 2h (now he has upped that to every 3h) so my boobs never got a break. But a few things I did - I fed with one breast per feeding to give the other a bit more of a break. I also rubbed breast milk on my nipple after he fed and let it air dry for 10min (the milk has many healing properties) then put on the lansinoh. Another thing - I modified the position of bubs from cradle to football hold so he wasn't always pressing on the same sore spots. These really helped me get through the first few weeks. I still wince a bit when he latches on but after the initial pain, it is fine (his latch is soooo much stronger). It is normal to feel a bit of pain at first when he latches, but it should go away as he is feeding.
As for the feeding, my LO would sometimes feed every 1-1.5h and at other times every 2-2.5h. He is slowly taking longer intervals as he gets bigger and can eat more at one sitting.
Also - my boobs felt very hot and lumpy (LOL) when my milk was coming in and stabilizing. They also hurt and felt very engorged - but as LO fed, the supply started matching the demand.

Glad to hear things went better after the meeting with the midwife!
Hope things continue to improve!!
xx

 

[bubbles]

I use kamilosan and think it's brilliant. When DS was first born we had a couple of feeding issues, he was born on the friday and didn't feed properly until the sunday, on the saturday I had to hand express and feed him from a beaker. When he finally did latch I ended up with a blister on my nipple this is when I was advised to use kamilosan, I was also told this tends to happen as they are not completely sure how to nurse properly and gum down on you. My milk didn't come in until the monday but I think it is slightly different for everyone. As for the the frequent feeding this is normal, she will be getting plenty, just remember they only have tiny tummies so what seems very little to us will fill them. Congratulations on your LO and good luck with BFing xx

 

[misswren]

I didn't want to read and run - I'd echo what the other ladies have said that it does take a little time and frequent feeding is totally normal with breastfeeding.

My midwife also mentioned that it helps the hormones release when the milk lets down and seemed to think this helps your system get back on track more efficiently too!! Bonus!!

As you are on antibiotics I would recommend keeping your 'good bacteria' up with yoghurt or the probiotic drinks and giving your nipples plenty of air to avoid thrush (Don't want to put you off but I was totally unaware of it and just recovering from it so all about spreading the word!!)

It sounds like you are doing really really well with your daughter, many congratulations, I wish you a fabulous journey together xxx

 

[lindypops]

Re tenderness: it took weeks before I could comfortably wrap a towel round me after a shower

 

[Maffie]

Ive not tried the kamilosan but hope it works well for you. Might be worth seeing if your doc is nice enough to put it on prescription, the Lansinoh is £10 a time and getting it on prescription is really helping financially for us at the moment.

 

[Maffie]

As a comparison on how tiny there tummies are I could give breastmilk for the first feed until a pedatrician looked over the meds i'd had during surgery (they had issues intubating me when I was knocked out so I was very poorly) so first feed was formula and they gave him 10ml