Is baby getting enough?

InesCH

My baby is 5 days old and I'm so not sure she's getting enough milk-sometimes I feel her latch is good and she sucks deeply for a while, but other times she starts to fall asleep which makes me think she's not getting any.

Feeding can take anywhere from 30 mins to an hour with her going back and forth, and she doesn't stay on for longer than 5-10 mins max.

Out of desperation we've given her bottle a few times with a friends milk because I was told not to start pumping till 3 weeks in?

Can I start pumping as early as now? I feel so bad introducing the bottle this early for some reason...

Any advice?

klirwin82

I started pumping in the hospital, LCs there recommended that and brought the pump to my room to have me pump after feedings to encourage my milk to come in quickly and to add the amount to high calorie formula (LO was 5 lbs and had issues with blood sugar for the first 24 hours). Never heard of not pumping for the first 3 weeks...

I'm glad we started using a bottle from Day 1, after 3 days we didn't need to supplement any more but I still pump at night so my husband can feed LO. He enjoys the bonding, it gives my nips an 8-hr reprieve and now when I go back to work at 12 wks PP we don't have the stress of trying to introduce a bottle now. LO switches easily from bottle to breast. I personally don't see any downside to introducing a bottle from the start.

MyCousinVinny

InesCH said:

My baby is 5 days old and I'm so not sure she's getting enough milk-sometimes I feel her latch is good and she sucks deeply for a while, but other times she starts to fall asleep which makes me think she's not getting any. Feeding can take anywhere from 30 mins to an hour with her going back and forth, and she doesn't stay on for longer than 5-10 mins max. Out of desperation we've given her bottle a few times with a friends milk because I was told not to start pumping till 3 weeks in? Can I start pumping as early as now? I feel so bad introducing the bottle this early for some reason... Any advice?

First, it is extremely normal for nursing to take at least 30 minutes for new babes.  Sometimes, it takes up to an hour.  At this age, they are still learning and as they get older, will become much more efficient at removing milk from the breast.

It's advised to start pumping at 6 weeks because any earlier and it could result in any oversupply of milk.  However (and this was just my personal experience), I began pumping when she was about 2 weeks old.  My reasoning was that I wasn't very prepared when I had DD1 and I didn't care if I had an oversupply.  I was able to create quite a nice freezer stash while I was on maternity leave.  

If you can refrain from giving bottles, I would stop doing so.  Milk supply is based on supply and demand so the more you give your baby a bottle, the less the baby is suckling at the breast, which tells your body to make less milk.  Offer her the breast every time she seems hungry, this is the absolute best way to boost your supply.  

The first few weeks is tough because it seems like they are constantly hungry or fussy.  They go through several big growth spurts, which can make them very hungry and very fussy.  DD2 was like this and the only thing that would calm her down was to nurse her, even if I just nursed her 20 minutes earlier.  

As long as she has 6-8 wet diapers a day, she's getting enough.  

Birthinrox

If you're giving supplemental milk you need to pump so your breasts are getting that stimulation. Look at your baby's output, 3 poops and 6 pees in 24 hrs means he's getting enough.