New to bf, couple of questions :)

[meow951]

I had my little girl 11 days ago. I breast fed for the first 12 hours, decided to stop and then on day 5 regretted it so started again. I have been feeding her as often as possible but she has been having formula top ups when not satisfied. I have been expressing when she does this to help my supply catch up with her needs. She slowly seems to be needing less top ups. I've been expressing for 3 days now and i managed to express 3 ounces in 20 minutes this evening which i assume is good?

- Can i over stimulate my supply by expressing? How long should i express for?

- When breast feeding baby how long should she feed for before offering the other side? She sometimes pops on and off a lot so this is when i'm not sure and i have read about the fore and hind milk so want to make sure i'm doing it right. She seems to feed on and off for about an hour.

- She seems to be struggling with wind, especially from the bum end and seems to have a lot of small windy poos, is this normal? Could the combination of breast milk and formula be doing this?

- I don't drink so that's not a problem for me but do i need to avoid certain foods while breast feeding?

Sorry for all the questions but i'm completely new to this!

 

[seaweed eater]

Congrats on your little girl and well done getting her back to the breast!! That is fantastic.

Yes, you can overstimulate your supply by expressing. 3 oz in 20 min is plenty, especially if she'd just nursed right beforehand. It's a bit tricky though since you are still giving formula. How much formula is she taking? I would not exceed the amount of formula she is taking and maybe even aim for a little below it -- BM is digested more completely than formula so babies need less of it by volume.

Feeding on and off for about an hour sounds very normal. Again, the question of how often to switch is complicated a bit by the fact that you're trying to wean off formula. In general you should be trying to empty one side before offering the other, and go by feel -- if the first side starts to feel soft and light then it's time to switch. But you may want to err on the side of switching a little more often since that will stimulate your supply more. Watch for green poop -- that will tell you that she is getting too much foremilk.

Wind is pretty normal, yes. Are you able to burp her easily? Just keep doing that whenever she comes off the breast, if it doesn't bother her, and that should help her struggle less.

There are no foods you absolutely must avoid while BF, but sage and peppermint are herbs that decrease supply so I would try not to consume huge quantities of those.

HTH

 

[seaweed eater]

Oh one more thing I forgot to mention/ask -- do you ever use your EBM for top ups instead of formula? That will help you wean off the formula more quickly and also help you know when it's ok to stop pumping.

 

[ourfate]

I would try to cut out the formula and just bf (just monitor wet diapers and if she is having lots then your good) it's always hard to say how much milk you have when you pump as baby can always get more out than any pump can.
My lil guy is very windy, so don't worry about that lol a good trick we did was put him on his back and bring his knees to his chest and gently rock, and if it was realllllly bad (painful) gripe water to the rescue
My guy onlyyyy eat from one side a feeding, and only about 5 mins. She will let you know when she is done. My guy will just start to come on and off frequently. When he was smaller would fall asleep.
As for foods to avoid I'm not that sure, avoid lots of Coffee is all I know lol

Good luck!!!

 

[lily28]

My LC only told me to avoid cow's milk (because it can cause serious allergies). I'm not a milk fun anyway so it was not hard to follow, and yogurt is ok to eat. Other than that eat whatever you like.
I'm convinced that the theory of what we eat makes a baby gassy is a myth created to deter women from BF.
Help baby fart by doing gentle cycling moves with his legs. It will just resolve it self out though, sooner than you think. Small windy poos is normal at this age, they are triggered by feeding, every time the baby eats he poos and farts.
Burp the baby really well!

also read this https://kellymom.com/parenting/parenting-faq/gassybaby/