Nursing Question...

doozer1345 · March 2013

Hello... My c section is scheduled for the 15th. I plan to breast feed and have been having a lot of anxiety about affects c section may have on my ability/ease to breast feed. I've read up a lot about this and it seems the majority says it is a bit more difficult to nurse after having a c section from having your milk come in to having severe pain from positioning LO to nurse. Do any of you have advice on this?? TIA!

jesselayne8 · March 2013

I had no problems BFing DD after my c-section. She stayed with me in the OR and went with me to recovery. She latched on within an hour of being born. My milk didnt come in for 5 days but we did not have to supplement. No pain due to positioning either. The only severe pain associated with my c-section at all was getting in and out of bed or off the couch.

imimahoney · March 2013

I had the same experience as pp, bfing was fine and had no problems. I did use a boppy for comfort. If you are concerned I would speak to your ob about how bfing friendly your hospital is. Hopefully they will allow you to nurse first, offering colostrum before having to give formula.

sonshine0609 · March 2013

Same for me as the PP's. My 2nd nursed fine although for me I found the Boppy uncomfortable. I have a short torso, so the boppy raised DS to high & pressed into my incision. I used a couch pillow & was fine.

azzyberry · March 2013

I have had two c/s and didn't have any trouble BFing either of my kids.

emberlee3 · March 2013

I had no problems BFing DD after my c-section. She was a small baby, and I was comfortable with pretty much any hold (with lots of pillows to prop her up). In comparison to the tremendous pain of sitting after my 3rd degree tear and massive swelling/bruising of my perineum after DS "elbowed" his way out, sitting after my c-section was a piece of cake.

ladybugpjb · March 2013

We didn't have any issues caused by the c-section itself. DS latched well and nursed within a half hour or so after I got out of surgery. (I think it took about 30-40 minutes to stitch me up and move me to recovery.)

Our issues started when they sent him to the NICU later that day and I didn't see him for hours. I also had unrealistic expectations, and didn't realize how often I needed to feed him, and my milk took awhile to come in. I don't think any of it was c-section related.

I did have some discomfort when trying to do a cradle hold - the football hold was more comfortable.

edit - I forgot to say, my arms were really shaky after the surgery, so I waited until I felt confident that I could hold him.

Alexames · March 2013

I had an unplanned csection. The healing process went well, but I did end up using a regular pillow more than my breast friend pillow while breast feeding my LO bc of how sensitive the incision was and I have to supplement with formula the first two weeks bc my LO lost too much weight since the milk didn't come in until 5 days after she was born. All I can say is, just try to keep an open mind when the time comes and try to go with the flow. By that time, it might just be easier to stay relaxed (you are going to need all the rest/energy you can accumulate) and enjoy your moments with your LO.

Good luck, cherrish the moments and hold on for the ride of your life...

payn0045 · March 2013

I wouldn't worry too much about the c-section having an impact. Just start things off as soon as you're in recovery and keep it up!

I've heard that your milk can come in a bit more slowly with a cs, but I had a scheduled c-section at 37 weeks, and my milk was in within 2 days - so it's definitely nothing guaranteed or universal. As far as the incision, I just used the hospital bed pillows to position baby, and was perfectly fine comfort-wise.

Angela814 · March 2013

azzyberry:
I have had two c/s and didn't have any trouble BFing either of my kids.

Same here.

LeapOfFaith10 · March 2013

I never had any issues breastfeeding after my c-section. DD never left my side though- they kept her with me at all times until we got up to the room. I'm surprised not all hospitals do that!

I was sore, but if you stay on top of your meds and don't overdo it, you'll be fine. I didn't have any problems using the Boppy. Just find a comfy chair to nurse in.

Ruthie04 · March 2013

My milk came in on day four. My incision wasn't painful for nursing, but if you are concerned, you can work with the LC on football hold. As we had twins, I mostly nursed in FB hold in the beginning. I have had many problems with nursing and have a very low supply, but it is all due to my boys latching issues from their prematurity and small for gestational age diagnosis. My issues have absolutely nothing to do with the c/s.

GL!

nosoup4u · March 2013

Find a private lactation consultant you can call if you do have problems. I ended up pumping for the he first few days while we got our latch down, and having the hospital LCs were a godsend (he was in the NICU and pediatrics after he was born, so we weren't together all the time the first few days). We also did a lot of side-lying nursing because I was so exhausted. But! my c-section was unplanned, which can make a difference.

My son ended up nursing for 2 years, so it worked out in the end. Good luck!

bridein08 · March 2013

That was my main cesarean concern as well. DS latched on in recovery and my milk came in on day 2! We successfully BF for 13 months, and It was really without problem.

surpriseaddition · March 2013

Successfully BF my c-section DS for over a year. My milk came in on day 2. Based upon all these posts, you can see it can be done which hopefully is relieving your anxiety. GL!

nichhollle · March 2013

Baby took to breastfeeding right away and had no problem with the pain. The incision was so low, I just held him a bit higher.

makingroom43 · March 2013

azzyberry:
I have had two c/s and didn't have any trouble BFing either of my kids.

This was my experience too!

ghl · March 2013

Let the hospital staff know that you plan to BF and request no bottles be given w/o consulting you. I've had 2 c-sections and was able to BF after each one but have had different challenges with each. With both of them, it was still a few hours after birth before I was able to hold my babies but I was able to try to latch them once they were with me. There wasn't any discomfort specific to the C. We used the football hold to keep them away from my incision and propped them up on pillows. Using the hospital bed to help me sit up was a huge help. If this is your first, definitely request to see the LC at the hospital as soon as possible to help you. It took a little longer with my first for my milk to come in. If for any reason the doctors want your baby to be supplemented (low birth weight, blood sugar issues, etc), request if the baby can be cup/spoon fed and keep trying to BF before supplementing. A newborn should be eating every couple hours. They may be a little extra sleepy in the beginning because of the pain meds you're on - you may have to wake them sometimes to nurse. If for any reason you have to be apart from your baby for a while (NICU, or any other reason), make sure you arrange as soon as possible for a breast pump in your room so that you start pumping every 2-3 hours to stimulate milk production. I just had twins 3 weeks ago, a few weeks premature, both low birth weight, one in the NICU. I was BFing one, then pumping for the other in order to send colostrum up to the NICU for him.

ali26 · March 2013

No issues here either. I don't remember much pain while holding her either (I used a boppy most of the time).

The only thing I couldn't do was lift her from the rock and play to my bed to feed her (had to be standing up to feel strong enough to lift her) or sit up/lay on my side in bed to feed her for the first month or so. I needed the support of a chair early on (or the reclined hospital bed).

all1005 · March 2013

I had absolutely no problems with nursing my son after my C section. My milk was in within 2 days and we left the hospital with him gaining weigh rather than being down post birth!

I found it easiest to hold him in a football hold while nursing at the hospital.

magdalina.h · March 2013

I had no problems breastfeeding just because of my c/s. My milk came in 2 days later and the only reason why I was in pain is because my kid had an awful latch that couldn't be corrected.

ceteichm · March 2013

I had an unexpected and difficult c-section and struggled getting started with breastfeeding. Luckily the hospital I was at had lactation consultants that were a huge help! Also, the nurses were very helpful, when I asked for help they would come in and help me get DD latched. We did end up supplementing with formula before we ever left the hospital. If you do supplement I highly recommend using a Supplemental Nursing System (SNS). I'm fairly certain that using one saved my breastfeeding relationship with my daughter.

https://www.medelabreastfeedingus.com/products/52/starter-supplemental-nursing-system-sns.

FutureMrsTowns · March 2013

no advice, but I can give some encouragement. almost everything about c-sections that is supposed to make BFing harder happened in mine, both baby and I had complications that kept us apart for 4 hours post-op, I barely even got to see him before they rushed him off to the NICU, DS needed formula while in the NICU b/c his blood sugar was low(DH did manage to avoid a bottle by going and finger feeding this, so that's the only thing we avoided), even with all the complications and everything that was going on around us, the minute I saw my baby I picked him up and put him straight to breast, he has not had any issues with BFing thus far, and the lactation consultants that we saw were very impressed at how quickly we picked it up, for me it was just natural, and I think that makes a big difference, don't see it as a struggle, it's what SHOULD be natural, and you shouldn't have to stress about it, even if everything the books say makes it harder happens, that doesn't mean it will be! just relax and let your bodies do what they were made to do.

stephosu2 · March 2013

I never had any problems BFing after my c/s either. I would imagine a little harder to get into your nursing position as quickly than if you delivered vaginally. Overall though, BFing was fairly easy. I did get an infection from my incision around 2 weeks PP and had to pump & dump b/c of the antibiotics I was on. That sucked but luckily I made it through it and could continue BFing.

byrne15 · March 2013

I had no problems BFing due to c-section.

Good luck!!

Runaway22 · March 2013

As you know, everyone is different. I was put under general and didn't get to meet my baby until 2 hrs after birth. The nursery cleaned him up, but did not give him a bottle or paci. He literally latched like a rockstar in less than a minute of being introduced to the breast. I got incredibly lucky, I think...

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