How in the world...?

Rosebean · September 2014

Am I ever supposed to nurse in public when I have to nurse laying down. OALD sucks! I won't be able to go out anywhere unless I can be home for the next feed... And pumping is horrible. It takes me 30 minutes to get 2 oz... Off both boobs! Tell me this gets better?

kleigh926 · September 2014

It does get better.... but it took me awhile to get to that point. 2-3 months I think for the oversupply/OALD. It does make things very difficult for leaving the house. I'm sorry you have to deal with it, I'm really hoping I don't have that this time. And if I can't pump enough, I have absolutely no problem supplementing with formula. I refuse to let breastfeeding control my life if I can't pump enough or if I'm not around for a feeding.

tamarar5 · September 2014

I've got nothing for nursing in public but, I found that taking a blanket that smelled like baby helped me get that awesome letdown. But I only really pumped with my first while I was still working. With E and now, I only pump when baby had eastern and I've still got more. Last night, after she finished, I still got 4.75 oz!

Rosebean · September 2014

@kleigh926‌ I appreciate that perspective. I don't want to be a slave to nursing either. It has me seriously thinking that if I can't get some sense of freedom, that she may be pushed to FF. I want her to have the same BFing opportunity DS had, but if she can't learn to cope with the let down the same way he did (he just let it dribble out of his mouth, then eventually was able to keep up with it), then I will seriously consider a switch. I know better than to quit on a bad day, so I keep hanging on. It's only been a week, but I need to be able to keep up with DS. It's not fair to him that we can only get out for so long, then I have to find a way to keep him still while I nurse laying down? Not cool.

But the idea of just having her drink formula while out and about or if I am not around is something I would like to do. If she accepts it

SummerLove21 · September 2014

OALD is hard. I very rarely NIP so I don't have a lot to offer, unfortunately. But when I did, I just found a quiet place and nursed as usual (i.e., sitting up). Yes, there was some coughing and sputtering, but eventually my flow would settle and it would be okay. But I always also nursed under a cover for my own comfort.

kleigh926 · September 2014

Rosebean said:

@kleigh926‌ I appreciate that perspective. I don't want to be a slave to nursing either. It has me seriously thinking that if I can't get some sense of freedom, that she may be pushed to FF. I want her to have the same BFing opportunity DS had, but if she can't learn to cope with the let down the same way he did (he just let it dribble out of his mouth, then eventually was able to keep up with it), then I will seriously consider a switch. I know better than to quit on a bad day, so I keep hanging on. It's only been a week, but I need to be able to keep up with DS. It's not fair to him that we can only get out for so long, then I have to find a way to keep him still while I nurse laying down? Not cool.

But the idea of just having her drink formula while out and about or if I am not around is something I would like to do. If she accepts it

I've heard that so many times, "don't quit on a bad day." And if you are truly committed to nursing and it's what you want to do, then by all means, keep up with it. But something I've been thinking about is, what if it's always a bad day? Or even mostly bad days? When does it become bad enough to stop?

My opinion may be somewhat biased because I had a lot of issues BF'ing DD and really didn't enjoy it most of the time, so take it with a grain of salt if you want. But I know that BF'ing contributed to my severe "baby blues" (I was never diagnosed with PPD but I think I may have had a mild case of it). I was so stressed out and upset over it, but I kept pushing myself to keep going. To this day I don't really know why. It caused so much stress and very negative feelings towards my baby and myself, to the point where I am still undecided as to whether or not I even want to try nursing this time. So the "keep going when it's hard" and "don't quit on a bad day" mentality kind of hits a nerve with me, because I feel that I could've been a much better mother if I had let myself stop.

Again, I know my situation isn't the same as everyone's and I am not trying to encourage you to stop if you want to BF. But I do think it's important to keep it in perspective and not be so set on nursing that other parts of your life start to suffer because of it.

Rosebean · September 2014

I totally get what you are saying Kleigh. I honestly am just having issues accepting this problem for three reasons: 1) not all nursing sessions are horrible.... Usually two a day are a catastrophe. I called a LC and they told me I was doing everything right and keep on doing it. 2) I had this problem with DS, but he adapted quickly and just let it all dribble out of the side of his mouth. So part of me is having trouble letting this go because I have had a successful nursing relationship before and 3) I want to give her the same opportunity at BFing that DS had. I feel like there has to be an end in sight. If I knew how long I had to hang in for with her before it gets better (as long as she is gaining weight and still eating enough) then maybe I can make it one more day. It only really frustrates me during a bad session and I can't understand if she is full or is so stressed out she just wants to comfort suck at that point. I just... I don't know how to make a decision at this point, so we are just keeping on with it. For now...

Rosebean · September 2014

@DC2London‌ it really helps that you wrote in on this about your experience. It's not so much the NIP that's bothering me any longer. We did give her a bottle yesterday and she took it well. It's the stressed out nursing sessions that have her coming off me while I am laying down and she's gulping air and screaming as a result. It makes me want to quit BFing altogether. Knowing if I hang in there for a wee bit more makes it easier. I can hold on for two more weeks. If this was months and months... I would seriously consider making the switch. Cross your fingers for me, and thanks everyone for input.

ally2011 · September 2014

Can you set a mental goal....like say "I am going to nurse for 2 more weeks and then reevaluate"....that helped me a lot because it didn't seem like forever and it didn't make everyday a mental battle over what to do. We ended up making it 16 months, but I did not enjoy the first 2 months really at all.

Rosebean · September 2014

I had set a mental goal. But every day had me really reevaluating my date I had set. I was super ready to quit yesterday. I almost went out to buy formula and some NUK bottles. But I spent the day at home doing some extended block feeding and a new position, and it really seemed to work. This morning, I actually nursed sitting up normally and she never popped off sputtering. If anything, she popped off because she had to work too hard.

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