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Breastfeeding
ashleyrsotomayor
member
Those who feed from bottle and breast...
ashleyrsotomayor
member
My LO only nurses off my left side, and doesn't ever seem satisfied when he is finished, so I have been nursing on the left and simultaneously pump the right..then I top him off with 1oz from the right fed from a bottle and I put the rest in the fridge for later if I need to supplement the nursing. He doesn't have much of an issue switching back and forth from bottle to breast, and honestly (even though we haven't gone out yet) I think I will prefer using pumped milk in a bottle when out and about. I have just been stashing the milk pumped from my right in the fridge to grab when he is unsatisfied with what he gets from the left side when nursing, but at what point should I start thinking about freezing some. What is most convenient if I want to have some for when we go out? Also, should I be pumping more to have on hand/freeze?
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Re: Those who feed from bottle and breast...
If I were you I would talk to a lactation consultant regarding the left/right imbalance! Since your LO is only 4 days old, you don't want to set up habits like this. Pumping is fine, but should be in addition to what your lo eats. You are still establishing supply and the best way to do that is nursing, not pumping (unless you have to and some people do).
When you are out and about if you want to use pumped milk, you will need to pump at those times anyhow to maintain your supply and avoid engorgement, at least early on.
Please talk to your OB or pedi about finding a lactation consultant to help you; it sounds to me like you are just making it more complicated than it needs to be.
PS - Your baby is adorable. Congratulations!
I'm not sure how much help this will be, but this is what I do.
I try to pump every time before LO eats and keep that in the fridge until I run out of storage bottles, then I freeze what's in the bottles so I have room to store more. LO is taking around 4 oz from a bottle right now, so I keep enough milk in the fridge for about four/five 4 oz bottles before I start freezing it. I always have milk in the fridge to grab & take with us when we go out. I'm not against NIP, but I just like to have a bottle in case we get somewhere that I can't/am not comfortable nursing him. I've been nervous that my supply would tank or something, so I very rarely give the milk I pump (except @ church on Sun. & Wed.) so most of what I pump gets frozen every 2 days (or there about).
I started freezing some right off. I would nurse on one side and pump the other. However, it's really more convenient to NIP because you don't have to bring anything but your cover. The times that I do bring a bottle, I'll use one of the bottles from the fridge. Since I'm back to work and DS is in daycare, I nurse when I'm with him, pump right after and then pump at work. Whenever I have at least 10 oz more than what I need for the next two feeding or for daycare bottles, I freeze it.
Goblin Gallup 5k 10/30/11 - 36:46
Turkey Trot 5k 11/24/11 - 35:14
Festival of Lights 5k 12/31/11 - 33:13
Love the Run You're With 5k 2/13/12 - 31:58
Backyard Burn 5 miler 3/11/12 - 1:08:42
Cherry Blossom 10 Miler 4/1/12 - 1:58:22
Wine Country HF 6/2/12 - TBD
Spartan Race 8/25/12 - TBD
I went to BFing class and worked with a lactation consultant in the hospital. She said that it's normal for some babies to favor one side and refuse the other. She said to feed him on the side he likes and pump the other side at the same time. Because the pedi wanted to make sure he gained his weight back after birth, he said I need to let him feed off the left as long as possible and then top him off with pumped milk from the right. So...I have been doing that and saving the extra from the right in the fridge because sometimes he just won't latch on or gets really frustrated when I try to get him to nurse off the side he does't like. Plus I don't want my boobs to get totally uneven and the right gets so engorged. I just get so confused about pumping and feeding...
If I were you, I would try offering him the right at every feeding. I would start off with the left, when he is in a rhythm, break the latch and slide him over. Don't change positions - jut slide him over a bit. So, he moves very little, but you move to get to him. That might help. Then, if he still refuses, pump the right after you're finished.
Sometimes, it helps to hand express a little, so there is some milk around your nipple.
If the problem is that your let down is too forceful on the right side, you can pump for a minute to help that. If you have flat/inverted nipples, pumping for a second before feeding can help to draw that nipple out - or a shield might help. Some people say they are the devil, but I would not have been able to bf without one. (We weaned from the shield at 8 weeks.)
GL!
Thanks:) I have tried sliding him over from the left, but he just gets mad and grunts and pushes away on the right side. That nipple is a little more flat, so I have tried a nipple shield which works sometimes but not others. I guess I just need some more time to get the hang of all this. I didn't want to introduce bottles at all yet, but the pedi said he needed to be eating more and that was the only way to make that happen, plus my left side got incredibly sore from him only nursing that side, and I needed DH to help me with feedings so that boob could get a break and I would just pump it. BFing is challenging that's for sure!