PP C-section at 36 wks and breastfeeding....

[Mrs. Love]

I'm 27 weeks, I have placenta previa so they want to do a c section at 36 weeks. Here are my concerns, maybe some of you mama's have been through this personally?

I haven't gotten any milk in during the pregnancy so far and i know i still could but maybe not since it's my first pregnancy. I'm worried that if I have no milk at 36 weeks, and they do a c section that my body wont know to make milk (because it didn't go through labor) AND that he will be so little/young he'll have trouble nursing anyway.

I feel like there will be a lot of strikes against me for BFing. What do you think?

I guess i can give him formula until my milk starts but i worry that will keep him from nursing.

 

[AnonymousCAT]

Hello. I had a c section at 35 weeks planned for vasa previa. I too was really afraid I would have trouble nursing as well. Milk production doesn't happen until after you've given birth as it's triggered by the hormonal change that happens after having a baby, not the labor itself. So it's normal not to have any milk right now. Some women leak colostrum before giving birth, but I never saw any for me. After the birth, regardless of if it's vaginal or section, the hormonal change triggers the production of milk. But milk doesn't come in right away, it takes 3-5 days normally. Sometimes with a c section I've heard it takes on the longer end... mine came in on day 3. Newborn babies have very small stomachs so colostrum is enough to sustain them until the milk comes in and you shouldn't have to supplement with formula if the baby will latch right away. At 36 weeks this should be possible, but some babies have a harder time. At 35 weeks, my lo had quite a bit of trouble breathing at birth despite steroid shots and needed to be in the NICU for a few days before attempting to breastfeed. He had a NG tube that he received formula through and then later pumped breast milk once my milk came in. I was pumping every 3 hrs night and day after surgery to bring my milk in as lo was not able to attempt being at the breast. The colostrum I collected was also given to lo. My lo had some trouble latching but eventually we got it. If you really want to breastfeed, I would suggest avoiding the use of a bottle if you can as the more lo is at the breast the faster your milk supply will increase and become established. My lo never had a bottle despite receiving formula through a tube in the early days and having difficulty latching. Also, if you use a bottle early on lo may prefer the faster flow of the bottle vs the breast as it's less work to get the milk out and this could cause trouble with your supply. Usually they say to wait at least 6 weeks before introducing a bottle if you can. Although I'm sure some people introduce a bottle early with no problems. If you need to supplement you could try syringe feeding to avoid nipple confusion. Anyways, what I wanted to tell you is that I am successfully exclusively BF for 4 months now despite all of our hurdles. Persistence is key. It was REALLY hard for 2 months, but now I really enjoy it and it is super easy. Good luck!

 

[justplay91]

Mrs.Love, don't worry, you'll be able to breastfeed! As the pp said, your milk production is triggered by hormonal change of going from being pregnant to not pregnant all of a sudden. Even women who have had extremely early preemies have been able to pump breast milk for their babies, despite not being full term.

And I was born by c-section at 36 weeks, latched like a pro and apparently breastfed until I was 2 (thanks for the info, mom ). Be aware, it does take a few days for your milk to come in. Mine took at least 5 with my son, but I had gestational diabetes and that delays it.

 

[Swtpinkbabi]

My baby was born via c-section at 36 weeks, was in NiCU and had a bottle from day one. They gave him formula and my pumped colostrum for the first two days and after that he had my breastmilk in a bottle. He couldn't hold his body temp so we weren't able to exclusively breastfeed at first. Once we were able to, he wouldn't latch without a nipple shield, so we used that and still did bottles at home. By week 3 I decided I didn't want to use the shield anymore so I stopped. He fussed at the breast but he eventually latched. Now 9 weeks in and he still goes back and forth between breast and bottle just fine. Still prefers breast!!!