Do you think there's hope?

lwmooney87 · August 2011

So, Reagan is 3 1/2 months old...1 month adjusted. In the NICU she breast fed well with a shield and they started pushing the bottle more and more so they were sure she got enough. (Some of the nurses were lazy I guess and didn't want to do pre and post weights) So, I tried to breastfeed her whenever we had a good nurse that day/night. Now that we are home...she will breastfeed sometimes. Usually after I give her a bath and she's happy and hungry. She will latch WITHOUT a shield! but will only nurse for about 10 minutes tops and then get mad and want a bottle. I know she's getting milk because I hear her swallow and milk squirts out after she stops. I have gone back to work part time and I work Wednesday, Thursday, Friday. Should I keep trying? Or do you think she;s had too many bottles now to breastfeed? I would reallly, really like for her to be able to nurse while I"m home.

I guess I'm wondering if any of you have had this issue and what you did about it... Thanks guys!

SurpriseMama · August 2011

ABSOLUTELY keep trying!! Eli has been bottle and breastfed since the day he could do both. I have worked full time and attended grad school full time since he was born. It's not easy, but it's doable. It's important. And you CAN DO IT!!!

What helped us the most was learning how to nurse side-lying. When I came home from work (and even now) we will go into my bedroom, snuggle, and nurse and talk and sing. It's our time together after a very, very long day. He loves it, and looks forward to it.

kck329 · August 2011

Yes! There is hope!

It actually sounds like she is doing great if she is starting to latch and suck enough to stimulate let down. Keep offering the breast every time you feed her when you are together. Try it before she is SO hungry that she doesn't have the patience to try. My DD switches between breast and bottle with no problems after a lot of patience teaching her both. Now she is faster and prefers the breast!

Good luck-let us know how it is going, there are a lot of moms here who have succeeded at BFing preemies after the NICU taught bottles.

katie4253 · August 2011

Yes! Keep trying. I EP and hope to get Gabe some nursing sessions in at night. He has colic and nursing the past 2 nights has calmed him down completely. Even if you never EBF you can do some nursing sessions. And, who knows, maybe she will do most sessions BFing and then just take a bottle when you are at work.

I hadn't tried to latch him in weeks. He was screaming when I put him near my boob and decided I didn't want to fight with him. I honestly think he wasn't ready. He seems to be now. He is 1 month old adjusted today.

kar5162 · August 2011

Definitely hope. DS transitioned around 2 weeks adjusted. He needed the shield though until ~8 months. You could try using the shield, which is a little more bottle like. You might also talk to your pedi. Ours said to push him a little (he was big and gaining well so there were no weight concerns). So once a day, I had him take his whole feeding by breast - I just kept encouraging him to take the whole feeding by nursing (switching sides, helping him relatch, etc). If he was hungry again before 1.5 hours, I'd offer the breast again. Then over time I worked in more and more nursing only sessions. He BF a lot longer than I know I would have pumped for so it was worth it to me to really push him to catch on.

urbanflowerpot · August 2011

You are doing GREAT! and there's so much hope - you're so close even though it seems far away! Ditch the shield if she doesn't like it and latches without - best thing is consistency so whatever you decide to do - stick with it. Sorry to toss a link at you but I think there's a lot of good information here and will be helpful. GL and post whenever you need support!

https://community.thenest.com/cs/ks/forums/56308494/ShowThread.aspx#56308494

hollerjeepgirl · August 2011

i'm actually nursing now lol i say keep trying. i rarely nursed ds while he was in the nicu and when he came home i'd do it maybe once a week or so until his enduranced picked up after 4 months. he's 8 months now and i do it whenever i can

JamieJeanS · August 2011

Well, my experience is slightly different, but ultimately I stopped putting my baby to breast. She was born at 31 weeks, and could easily latch with a shield. However, because she was getting more bottles than breast, she became confused at the breast with both her latch and her suck, not to mention that with the shield lots of milk would leak out, I felt like all thumbs trying to keep it on the breast, etc etc. I agonized over this, because my goal was to get her 100% at the breast over time. But...it was causing me more stress to put her to the breast than just pump and give her the breast milk that way. Since all her feeds are now via bottle, I was able to drop her calories down (I have to fortify with Enfacare) and her gas and fussiness has decreased considerably, so it was an extra reinforcement that I made the right decision for her.

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