Breastfeeding

Needing lots of help :(

Hi! New here and have a 5 day old...

I would love to exclusively nurse but that was taken away from me when I was told my LO was jaundiced and lost more than 10% weight and due to his exhaustion would not latch. I began giving formula since I did not have any BM saved and have been building up supply and supplementing the BM I have pumped with formula. Still in transition but supply is getting better each time I pump.

Before each bottle feeding, I am still offering the breast. I was trying this for way too long and both of us becoming frustrated and in tears but found a great support friend that suggested I only try a few mins. That is going better. LO is no longer pushing me away at the attempt but he's latch has become less and he will suck for just a few seconds, pause, and then release the breast. At that point, he then gets his bottle of BM and formula. He now has bottle preference since it's less work for him to get fed! Smart little guy...

So for the time being, I need continuing using bottles. I have been using the ones with the Medela PISA and the Similac nipples that are given through the hospital. Tomorrow, I plan to purchase bottles to get us through this period of time. I would LOVE to be able to transition LO back to the breast with occasional use of bottles...

Sooooo...anyone who has had similar issues or success with transiting back to the breast, what bottles do you recommend?? Are there any bottles that make the babies do the same or similar suck as they do at the breast? Any recommendations or suggestions would be FABULOUS!!

TIA 

image image Baby Birthday Ticker Ticker Hashimoto's girl truckin' through BFAR! Working towards EBF but celebrating every ounce I can give right now! Follow my journey http://meatballsmommy.blogspot.com/

Re: Needing lots of help :(

  • Sorry you're having problems, and I wish I could help.  The bottles we've found to be the closest to the breast are The First Year's Breast Flow bottles.  There's two components to the nipple which require compression as well as suction to get the milk out.  That's supposedly closest to the actions needed to extract the milk from the breast.  DD really likes these bottles.  GL!
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  • Thanks!! I have been looking into these and have heard great things. Glad to hear another recommendation for them. Does your DD nurse at the breast and bottle feed?? Are these good for that?! What's the flow like?
    image image Baby Birthday Ticker Ticker Hashimoto's girl truckin' through BFAR! Working towards EBF but celebrating every ounce I can give right now! Follow my journey http://meatballsmommy.blogspot.com/
  • imagekymberli00:
    Thanks!! I have been looking into these and have heard great things. Glad to hear another recommendation for them. Does your DD nurse at the breast and bottle feed?? Are these good for that?! What's the flow like?

    Yes she nurses and bottle feeds.  We've had success with them so far.  I can't say that say that she doesn't have a slight preference for the bottle.  It just comes out faster(it takes a little for me to let down).  Just make sure you give her breaks when feeding from the bottle (the way there are breaks in between let downs).  Even if it is only a few seconds.  You don't want continuous milk flow.  That also helps with gas as well. 

    The trick so she doesn't have even more of a bottle preference is nurse WHENEVER YOU CAN!  Don't give her the bottle more than is necessary.  Your situation is different than mine.  But I try to never give a bottle since I have to when I'm at work.  It's the best way to keep your supply up! 

    P.S.  About the flow.  Even the slow for nipples are a little fast.  Especially for a 15 day old.  But I don't think they make premie nipples.  If you're interested in that bottle; give several breaks so they can slow down and catch their breath(mine always chugged), and make sure to burp them good.  HTH!

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  • imageAmyG*:

    at 5 days old you have plenty of time to figure this out.

    first things first.

    stop giving bottles

    give supplements with a breastfeeding friendly way, supplemental nursing system, finger feeder, syringe, eyedropper, spoon, cup.

    then take baby to bed and stay there, skin to skin and let baby see that breast is a perfect place to hang out

    many babies will eventually scootch over and latch on and give it a try.  many babies have tender/sore heads from the birth canal, so be careful grabbing head and guiding baby.

     

    how much do you pump, how often do you pump?

    how much weight did baby lose? on what day did your milk come in?  has baby regained birthweight yet? how much are you supplementing?  how many wet and poopy diapers was baby having at this time, normal is number of diapers = how many days old baby is. so at 5 days old, diapers should = 5 a day, poop counts in this total.

    it's normal for baby to lose 10%, and it may be normal for a newborn to lose more than 10% if mom was very swollen leading up to birth or was given IV fluids--if mom is full of fluids, so will baby be full of fluids. and once baby starts peeing, they'll lose that weight fast and look like a more than 10% drop. 

    Rather than pumping and giving bottles, they should have recommended nursing extra, every 2 hours around the clock, using breast massage and breast compression so baby could get a faster flow of milk once your milk was in, and giving teeny tiny amounts of supplement in a breastfeeding friendly manner.

    Although I really appreciate your input, there's more to the story than I could post here. These decisions were not made to throw in the towel but for the well being of my child.

    I knew I was going to have issues with BF due to a breast reduction. I was aware of this, took necessary precautions to prepare and speak with LC and educate myself. All of the suggestions you gave, I tried for days before I gave in to pumping and bottles. I was nursing every 1 to 2 hours, lots of skin to skin, using compression and massages. With all of these interventions, he still lost more than the 10% and has become jaundiced. I worked with a LC at the hospital before I delivered and as soon as I delivered. Now I need to work with her to get him back on the breast once he is strong and healthy again. First and foremost is the health of my baby and if that means formula and bottles for right now, I will take it. I will do whatever I can to transition him back although I know it will not be easy, it is possible. But when I do that, I know he will be a healthy little guy.

    He was not having the right number of wet or poopy diapers at the hospital and I continued to push through using other interventions besides formula and pumping. My milk still has not come in so I am having to supplement right now to meet his demand. I am able to give about an ounce of my own milk each feeding. 

    I am pumping every 2 hours and getting about 2 oz total. I am continuing to offer the breast before each feeding but now his bottle preference makes him not nurse. Although it's heartbreaking to have my DS push me away, I continue it each time. I am feeding him every 2-3 hrs, then pumping for about 45 min and sleeping when I can. Think that shows dedication and not just throwing in the towel to formula and pumping. That decision was not made to make things easier but rather for his health and well being.

    I know transitioning can be done...so while I am having to use bottles, any recommendations that will make it easy to transition?

    image image Baby Birthday Ticker Ticker Hashimoto's girl truckin' through BFAR! Working towards EBF but celebrating every ounce I can give right now! Follow my journey http://meatballsmommy.blogspot.com/
  • Kudos to you for being so devoted and working so hard to get your baby breast feeding!

    If you haven't already, you might want to look at bfar.org since it has lots of information that might be helpful in your specific situation, and also has message boards where you could get stories and advice from women with similar experience. And stick here, too, these women helped me stay with it when I was ready to quit :)

    image
    Mother's Day, 2011
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