L is 13 days old and did a 5 hour strech of sleep last night. Is that okay? He nursed pretty much from 1215 to 2 before thay so I'm thinking it's fine, but I'm still freaking out.
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@ErikandAfton I don't see why that wouldn't be ok. We had a couple random long stretches of sleep that early too. As long as your little guy is eating enough and gaining weight, I don't see a problem having one or two of those spells every so often.
Tess is 10 days old and has had several 5 hour sleep stretches. She's already surpassed her birth weight so our ped said let her sleep. You may want to ask yourself though just to be sure!
@ErikandAfton Max slept for a 5 hour stretch for the first time last night, and at hour 4 I woke up so freaked out and disoriented because he hadn't woken up yet.
Does anyone else wake up freaked out about where your baby is? Every other night or so I wake up totally disoriented because I think that I fell asleep feeding Max, and then I search the covers for a couple seconds, only to realize that I'm insane. I did this to my boyfriend last night - I could've sworn he fell asleep feeding him.
@Lisa3379 yes!!! One of the first days we brought her home I woke up and said "Where's Steggy?!" Which made DH jump out of bed freaked out. Yeah, she was in the rock and play about 2 feet from me...
@ErikandAfton: mine is a long sleeper too. I asked my ped at her 1 week appointment and he told us as long as she is growing it is fine but don't let her have more than 1 really long (6+ hours) in a day
Does anyone have any experience with donated breast milk? My back freezer is now all breast milk and my kitchen freezer has it in every available space. Do I reduce my pumps again? I already eliminated one overnight but I pump his daily intake in 2 pumping sessions. I don't know what to do with the excess and rather not dump
Does anyone have any experience with donated breast milk? My back freezer is now all breast milk and my kitchen freezer has it in every available space. Do I reduce my pumps again? I already eliminated one overnight but I pump his daily intake in 2 pumping sessions. I don't know what to do with the excess and rather not dump
Personally, I know that I would wait until baby is around 6 months before I donated. Just in case something happened.
However, there are Facebook pages/groups that allow donations and some hospitals also take it.
Formerly known as Kate08young August '18 Siggy April Showers:
Me: 28 H: 24 Married: 7/22/14 Baby L: 8/4/2015 August 2015 Moms Baby E: 11/18/2016 December 2016 Moms TTC #3 08/2017 BFP 11/27/2017. Twin B lost 11/22/2017, Twin A doing well.
I have had a lot of issues...I have given up on nursing, my little boy just would not latch and would spend 20-30 minutes fussing so I have moved to pumping and bottle feeding. But I just am not producing a lot, so I have had to supplement formula. I feel like less of a women for not being able to give my baby all breast milk and nurse him. I cry everyday. Is there anyone else going through this? Has gone through this?? I hope I am not alone.
Thanks @Kate08Young and @BabyRobbinsAdventure I just have no space to store my overage anymore. I will have to start pumping and dumping very soon. My garage freezer is completely full of milk and I have it stuffed in every available space in my kitchen freezer.
The pediatrician switched DS's formula due to his reflux and colic. He is now on alimentum, and is doing so much better. However, ut stinks really bad. It makes your breath and burps smell horrible, and the poops stink worse as well. I told DH that I can deal with the stinkiness of it, since it's working. DH, on the other hand, has nicknamed Michael "Alpo" because he said he constantly smells like dog food.
@LandJ13 that's awesome that you've built such a stash already and great that you are willing to help others. I have done several donations with my last two with peer to peer donations. Hospitals nearby used the milk banks and there isn't a milk bank nearby me. Plus there is something much more satisfying with establishing long term donees, you get to see their baby thrive over time. I have used milkshare and hmhb (human milk for human babies) to find local and nearby moms. Most are willing to reimburse the cost of bags. https://milkshare.birthingforlife.com https://hm4hb.net i don't know how much the kiinde bags are but I bet they are too costly to just give away and probably take up more space. Fwiw, I always got the best use of my deep freeze space by packing in 6oz portions in the lansinoh/honeysuckle/up&up bags and freezing flat, then putting those in groups of ten stacked horizontal in a gallon size zip lock bag. they fit better in the freezer that way. sorry for the novel!
Ok maybe file this under stupid questions, but should I be pumping/building a stash? LO is 5wo and going to daycare at 3 mo. I figured I could start to pump closer to 2 mo to get her used to taking a bottle at least once a day. I have a few bags in the freezer, but how much do I really need?
I have had a lot of issues...I have given up on nursing, my little boy just would not latch and would spend 20-30 minutes fussing so I have moved to pumping and bottle feeding. But I just am not producing a lot, so I have had to supplement formula. I feel like less of a women for not being able to give my baby all breast milk and nurse him. I cry everyday. Is there anyone else going through this? Has gone through this?? I hope I am not alone.
I am basically exclusively pumping. My lo will latch once every few days, usually only for comfort and not a real feeding. In the beginning I HAD to supplement with formula until I was producing enough. Now I choose to add a ounce to each night bottle to help her sleep. Nothing wrong with formula! My first kid was 100% formula fed. I'm not less of a woman/mom for it. Don't beat yourself up.
It takes time for your body to get used to the pump. How often do you pump? Have you tried fenugreek and brewers yeast? Oatmeal? Drinking lots of water? Eating enough?
It took me over a month of exclusive pumping for my supply to match LO intake. Give it time...or switch to formula if you are that unhappy. Talk to your doctor about crying everyday...may be ppd. See a LC if you want...may help with latching so you don't have to pump. Or they could make sure your pump is set up right for you.
@Mamax2 DS1 was on Alimentum bc of reflux and yes, it smells awful! When I got out DS1's baby clothes to wash for DS2 I could still faintly smell Alimentum on some of them. Gross.
And now DS2 is on it bc he was starting to show major signs of reflux a few weeks ago. I switched him to Alimentum and he is totally fine now. No crying coughing or choking during bottles. Thank goodness. DS1 has a corn allergy and the ready to feed Alimentum is corn feee (as well as dairy free) whereas the Alimentum powder is only dairy free. So we started with the RTF. I'm hoping maybe he is only dairy sensitive so we can switch to the powder soon bc the RTF costs almost $10 a day. Ugh. Highway robbery. We are going to let DS2 settle in on the RTF for a bit before trialing the powder. Poor guy has been through a lot.
I'm so glad your LO is doing better on Alimentum!!!
@zubenescamali thanks so much! The Kiinde bags are expensive but so easy to pump into. I would definately look into the cheaper bags for donation. I will check out the sites and look forward to helping someone else! Thanks again!
@PharmDMom DS was crying, coughing, and choking as well during feedings. Once we switched to Alimentum, that stopped until early this morning. I switched his bottle nipples to newborn, thinking maybe the formula was coming out too fast, but that didn't seem to help. Now I noticed that he is getting red and blotchy on his face right after a feeding. He's never gotten blotchy after a feeding before, so I'm going to call his pediatrician. It's so frustrating because we try something new and it goes great for a few days, and then things get bad again or we see new symptoms.
@LandJ13 how do you like the measuring on those bags? I tried them once and only pumped a few ounces but couldn't get it to read the same ounces know the bag as it did the bottle when going back and forth. Great job on donating that's awesome!
@temmetime if the bag is fully open I find it pretty accurate. I blow into them to open them up before connecting to pump, seemed weird to do at first but I figured hey what difference if it's my breath or my milk haha. Sometimes they fold back up and I have to open up again half way through the pump. I haven't attempted the bottle that you attach the bags to yet so the measurement hasn't really mattered because I would just dump into a reg bottle.
@Mamax2 Oh no! I'm sorry to hear that. Are you using powder or RTF? It wouldn't hurt to try whichever one you arent currently using to see how he does, since they definitely have different ingredients. Just a thought.
For kids who are extremely sensitive to a lot of things, DS1's allergy pediatrician has actually recommended goats milk formula. Now, it is not FDA approved for infants in the United States. But it is approved for infants in other countries. What his doctor said is that it's too expensive to go through the US FDA approval process to get labeling for infants here. So that's why the company didn't do it. But she says it is safe for infants. They market here it as a toddler formula, and it is available on Amazon and at certain organic food stores- it's called Kabrita. Just another idea in case you get desperate.
Again, I'm so sorry you're going through this. I remember how awful all the guessing and checking was with DS1. You just want them to feel better and be able to eat without so many complications. I really hope you figure out the best combo of things soon. Hugs!
My mother had to wean me very early and I was allergic to both cow's milk and soy based formulas, to the point that my pediatrician was recommending hospitalization because I wasn't putting on any weight. My mom's crunchy yoga teacher recommended goats milk and it worked like a charm. She got it at a natural foods store.
Ugg...I seriously think feeding this little man is one of the hardest/most stressful things I've done. We seem to get things worked out and then it all changes and we have a whole new set of problems. I'm seriously debating buying and infant scale to calm my stress level. I'm never sure if he's getting enough food. He sucks and sucks, but doesn't swallow much. Or he sleeps at the breast. Or squirms like crazy, pulls off, then freaks out trying to relatch. I'm convinced he's starving all the time.
@tinattt23 Have you done a weighed feeding with lactation? Is he peeing and pooping ok? I bought a baby scale with my first LO bc I had extremely low milk supply- I wanted to keep an eye on her weight when I found out she was basically starving and we started supplementing. The one I got is now only $39.99 on amazon. It may be worth the investment for the peace of mind. And you can always resell it and hopefully make some of the cost back! Sorry it's so stressful for you- I definitely understand and hope things improve soon.
@PharmDMom We've done weighted deeds twice. And both times he's eaten like a champ. Way better than an average feeding at home. So then of course I worry what he really gets at a normal feeding. Plus our "issues" keep changing. So even once I'm reassured he's gaining, I convince myself the new issues are going to make him lose again. I know logically he's probably fine, but after his rough start with weight loss it all worries me.
@tinattt23 Ok gotcha. Well if you have the assurance of the weighed feeds then like you said, he is probably fine. But I'm a pretty anxiety prone person so the scale made me feel better. That's just what worked for me. I'm fortunate that the cost was doable in our budget. Is there a breastfeeding support group in your area? They typically have scales available whether you stay for the whole meeting or not.
@PharmDMom You actually just reminded me one of the support groups in my area meets tomorrow. I'll go to that. I've been to one other. It was nice since it's led by our normal LC but it's kind of a far drive. I still might just cave and get the scale. If 40 bucks gives me peace of mind, it's so worth it.
Maybe for the stupid questions thread but have to ask: is it normal for a 9 week old to cluster feed for 12-14 hours? LO has been begging for milk all day and my boobs are exhausted. We even gave a 4 oz bottle of breast milk around 8 or 9 thinking that it would "top her off" but she was begging again within an hour!
@tinattt23 - when my LO unlatches and then gets disorganized and can't seem to rematch I make a loud shushing noise ("Shh! Shh!) and it seems to help. Also my LC told me that if he's unlatching and relatching a lot to try burping him.
@gowenc i definitely think she's leaping! I don't think the wonder weeks app is available for android though Is it normal for cluster feeding to last that long? Ive heard for a few hours at night (5-6 hrs or so) but not all day and night!
Re: All Things Feeding
That makes me feel better. He did a 4 hour strech one night last week too.
Does anyone else wake up freaked out about where your baby is? Every other night or so I wake up totally disoriented because I think that I fell asleep feeding Max, and then I search the covers for a couple seconds, only to realize that I'm insane. I did this to my boyfriend last night - I could've sworn he fell asleep feeding him.
However, there are Facebook pages/groups that allow donations and some hospitals also take it.
Formerly known as Kate08young
August '18 Siggy April Showers:
Married: 7/22/14
Baby L: 8/4/2015 August 2015 Moms
Baby E: 11/18/2016 December 2016 Moms
TTC #3 08/2017 BFP 11/27/2017.
Twin B lost 11/22/2017, Twin A doing well.
However, I would wait at least a couple of months in case your LO needs it first
I have used milkshare and hmhb (human milk for human babies) to find local and nearby moms. Most are willing to reimburse the cost of bags.
https://milkshare.birthingforlife.com
https://hm4hb.net
i don't know how much the kiinde bags are but I bet they are too costly to just give away and probably take up more space. Fwiw, I always got the best use of my deep freeze space by packing in 6oz portions in the lansinoh/honeysuckle/up&up bags and freezing flat, then putting those in groups of ten stacked horizontal in a gallon size zip lock bag. they fit better in the freezer that way.
sorry for the novel!
My Wedding Bio!
It takes time for your body to get used to the pump. How often do you pump? Have you tried fenugreek and brewers yeast? Oatmeal? Drinking lots of water? Eating enough?
It took me over a month of exclusive pumping for my supply to match LO intake. Give it time...or switch to formula if you are that unhappy. Talk to your doctor about crying everyday...may be ppd. See a LC if you want...may help with latching so you don't have to pump. Or they could make sure your pump is set up right for you.
And now DS2 is on it bc he was starting to show major signs of reflux a few weeks ago. I switched him to Alimentum and he is totally fine now. No crying coughing or choking during bottles. Thank goodness. DS1 has a corn allergy and the ready to feed Alimentum is corn feee (as well as dairy free) whereas the Alimentum powder is only dairy free. So we started with the RTF. I'm hoping maybe he is only dairy sensitive so we can switch to the powder soon bc the RTF costs almost $10 a day. Ugh. Highway robbery. We are going to let DS2 settle in on the RTF for a bit before trialing the powder. Poor guy has been through a lot.
I'm so glad your LO is doing better on Alimentum!!!
Great job on donating that's awesome!
Eta: words
DS: 12/20/16
EDD: 11/29/18
For kids who are extremely sensitive to a lot of things, DS1's allergy pediatrician has actually recommended goats milk formula. Now, it is not FDA approved for infants in the United States. But it is approved for infants in other countries. What his doctor said is that it's too expensive to go through the US FDA approval process to get labeling for infants here. So that's why the company didn't do it. But she says it is safe for infants. They market here it as a toddler formula, and it is available on Amazon and at certain organic food stores- it's called Kabrita. Just another idea in case you get desperate.
Again, I'm so sorry you're going through this. I remember how awful all the guessing and checking was with DS1. You just want them to feel better and be able to eat without so many complications. I really hope you figure out the best combo of things soon. Hugs!
edited for added thoughts
Formerly known as Kate08young
August '18 Siggy April Showers:
Married: 7/22/14
Baby L: 8/4/2015 August 2015 Moms
Baby E: 11/18/2016 December 2016 Moms
TTC #3 08/2017 BFP 11/27/2017.
Twin B lost 11/22/2017, Twin A doing well.