Give me all your breastfeeding tips

mmkaye · May 2011

I have a sleepy baby with a bad latch. He is doing slightly better last night and today, but boy are my nipples sore. My milk started coming in today so I am sore there to. This boy is lucky he is a cutie! Stick out tongue

I am going to get in touch with the LC's at the hospital on Monday if things aren't going better. But just figured you guys would have awesome tips because BOTB knows all.

angiegail78 · May 2011

Work with the LC on the latch.

To keep him awake, strip him down to his diaper when you're nursing. Tickle his feet or stroke his cheek to help keep him awake.

armandos_girl · May 2011

Strip him down to his diaper when you nurse him. As far as a bad latch, you have to keep at it - take him off and try again. Nipple shields are supposed to help with latch too, although I've never tried them.

mrs_b_2007 · May 2011

if your nipples get really sore, talk to your LC about prescription nipple cream. My LC hooked me up with a compound cream & it was AMAZING. My nips were good as new within 48 hours. I also used a shield for a bit b/c they were pretty cracked & that made it less painful.

We had to resort to practically stripping Brooke naked & washing her face at times to get her to wake up to eat. Sometimes they can be super sleepy but that only lasted for the first 2 weeks or so for us.

GL!!

SBma · May 2011

No tips. Just wanted to pop in and say hello/I love you!

jCamsquared · May 2011

Strip him, cool washcloth. The warmer he is, the sleepier he will stay.

Don't wait until Monday to talk to/see the LC. Since you are still so early in the game and your milk is just coming in this is the most critical time to make sure you're doing everything right. The longer you go the more damage you will do to your nipples, and the harder it could be to fix his latch.

Hang in there momma, it's hard but it gets better and it is so worth it! :-)

andrew's wifey · May 2011

They all have good technique tips, but I wanted to add in- just remember it will get better! Also, surround yourself with supportive, like minded people.

bancbev · May 2011

Here are some great videos of latching:

https://www.drjacknewman.com/video-clips.asp

Also www.kellymom.com is an amazing resource for everything breastfeeding.

Strip baby down to diaper. In the hospital, I had to also use a cool damp cloth on Ruby's back and head to keep her awake enough to nurse.

For sore nipples- use plain olive oil, or mix equal parts cortizone, monistat and antibiotic ointment. Apply to nipples after letting then air dry completely. Yoou do not need to wash off before feeding. If you can get a script from your OB for Jack Newman's All purpose Nipple Ointment (APNO) even better.

The best way to know that baby is getting enough is to count wet/dirty diapers. If baby is 3 days old (can't remember) then you should have 3-4 wet/dirty diapers in 24 hours. If you can't tell if he is peeing, put a square of toilet paper in the diaper. What goes in, must come out. So if he is peeing/pooping enough, then he is getting enough milk/colostrum. Behavior, crying, sleeping is NOT a good indication of how much milk baby is getting. Also pumping is not an indicator of how much milk you make. Baby will always get more than the pump will, and some women do not respond to the pump.

Put baby to breast every time he makes a peep, even if he just nursed 15 minutes ago. Let him suck as often, and for as long as he wants. Even if he is not actively eating. This is how your supply is set up.

Hmmm....If I think of anymore for the first weeks I will post them.

akalutts · May 2011

Ditto everyone else and plus also HI and CONGRATULATIONS!

I was swamped at work and missed all the announcements and pics.

mmkaye · May 2011

I will call tomorrow then. My MIL is coming by this afternoon and she has nursed four kids and worked as a L/D nurse, so I am hoping she can help me some.

He is impossible to wake up during the day, but wants to stay awake and be held all night.

andrew's wifey · May 2011

mmkaye:
He is impossible to wake up during the day, but wants to stay awake and be held all night.

In the morning when the sun comes up, no matter how tired you are, get that baby out in the sunlight for a walk around the block if you can. Or park him in his bouncy in front of a sunny window. It'll help to kind of reset his internal clock. This was one of the hardest things for me, but I really do feel like it helped in getting Camille's days and nights straightened out.

TwoSkis · May 2011

angiegail78:

Work with the LC on the latch.

To keep him awake, strip him down to his diaper when you're nursing. Tickle his feet or stroke his cheek to help keep him awake.

This. And he may have even more problems latching now that your milk is coming in- when I was so engorged, both my kids struggled to latch with their tiny mouths. Once the engorgement went away, things got a lot better. In the meantime, pump off a bit of milk to make it easier/softer for him to latch on.

bancbev · May 2011

mmkaye:

I will call tomorrow then. My MIL is coming by this afternoon and she has nursed four kids and worked as a L/D nurse, so I am hoping she can help me some.

He is impossible to wake up during the day, but wants to stay awake and be held all night.

Has his days and night's mixed up. While he was in the womb, he was rocked all day long by your movement, and then was awake at night while you were still. Try and get him outside for 10 minutes every morning. He needs sunlight to hit his retina's to reset his internal clock. Keep the house bright during the day, and dark at night will help too.

MrsVonKikabee · May 2011

I used these gel pads when my nipples were sore at the beginning. They were amazing.

When Vicki was super sleepy, I would put cold washcloths on her to keep her awake. Mean, but effective.

I also had to use a million pillows to get the positioning right and try a lot of different nursing positions before we found one that worked for us. When I tried side-lying in the hospital, her latch was awful, but cross body worked well. Now we can do both.

Good luck, mama!

EdithBouvierBeale · May 2011

squish your boob like a sandwich you're holding and giving him a bite of, and then kind of stuff it in his mouth. it may help to squirt out a little milk so its on there...

it is so hard at first, and then so much easier- good luck!

you REALLY have to manhandle your boobs at first...

andrew's wifey · May 2011

If engorgement is affecting his latch, try reverse pressure softening. It may help him get a deeper latch, without having to express milk before hand.

https://www.llli.org/faq/engorgement.html

Lyssapee · May 2011

What ever one else said, and have the LC check to make sure he isn't tongue tied.

magdalina.h · May 2011

Nipple shield. I had a lazy eater with a bad latch. The shield helped with that and I would bug him while he was starting to fall asleep to make him eat. I'd tap under his chin, rub his head, tickle his sides and do breast compressions to make sure he didn't have to work that hard that early. I would do all of that with him in just a diaper. Oh I also had to put some milk in a syringe and push a little milk in the corner of his mouth because that would stimulate him suck.

wils0482 · May 2011

One of the nurses told me to pump his arm like a lever if he started falling asleep. It apparently triggers the reflex to suck. It worked! BF is so hard at first, but it does get better. Hang in there!

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