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October 2014 Moms
Breastfeeding Links & Talk
This discussion has been closed.
Re: Breastfeeding Links & Talk
I can relate to feeling like nothing but a dairy cow these days. I just keep telling myself it will get better soon and eventually LO will see me as more than just his food source.
I've been engorged in the mornings the past two days, and I'm thinking it's because of a growth spurt.
Eta: my baby grew three pounds over the first month so it's possible my normal is your growth spurt too!
Be careful with severely restricting your calories. It can have a big impact on your supply...so make sure you're getting 1500-1800 calories per day minimum! Rapid weight loss programs are not recommended because toxins stored in body fat are released into breastmilk when calories are severely restricted.
Dieting really isn't recommended until at least 8 weeks postpartum when your supply is well-established and regulated, but even then, dieting should be approached with caution.
The good thing is that breastfeeding itself burns 300-500 calories per day, so you can lose weight (slowly and safely) without doing anything but nurse your baby!
I just didn't know if it would be more convenient for me to use at home while I'm on mat leave since there aren't as many parts that need to be hooked up as there are with the electric. I would probably start pumping once a day here at home to get my freezer stash going.
Married 10/06
Baby Girl "C" arrived on 10/07/14 (39 weeks, 6 days)
Also, I think I have a plugged duct. I noticed a little pain on one side of my breast and can feel a small lump. I have pumped and fed off of that breast to try and keep it emptied. Again, any suggestions would be great. Sorry if this has already been discussed but I'm on mobile bump right now.
My LO was born 5 weeks ago weighing 7.3 lbs. We discovered in the hospital that I have shallow nipples so the LC gave me a nipple shield (size small...ended up buying x-small later on because they are SO shallow) and we were able to successfully breastfeed while I was there. He was discharged at a weight of 6.14. Three days later at his pedi appt. he was back to birth weight. I met with the LC a week and a half after that to see if we could wean off the shield (just because it was a pain to deal with) and he successfully latched. We did a weighed feeding and he only took in .5 oz in 15 minutes of nursing. He also had only gained 7 oz in a week and a half. The LC suggested I replace two feedings a day with pumped BM to give him easy calories to put on weight. The fear was that since he is such a lazy eater (often falls asleep- I use all the tricks out there to wake him up but it is a constant effort- or just uses me as a pacifier) he was not going to take in enough milk. We tried that for a week and at our next weigh-in he had only gained 4 oz. The LC then had us switch to a morning and evening nursing session with the rest of the day pumped milk in a bottle. Tomorrow will be a week of this and at our pedi's office yesterday the scale said he gained 7 oz. in 6 days. He is now at 8 lbs. 9 oz. and will be 5 weeks old tomorrow. The pedi said he should have put on a few more ounces than that and suggested going back to exclusively nursing for 15 min on each side and then offering formula (as much as he wants) after to supplement. This totally contradicts what the LC wanted me to do because we assumed that he wasn't taking in enough milk from the breast. I feel like I confirmed that this morning because after a 30 min nursing session (15 each side) he proceeded to drink 3 oz. of BM from a bottle). I am in such agony over this because I want to avoid formula if at all possible but I don't want to underfeed him either.
Any advice as to what you think I should do? He is not a chubby baby and everyone comments that his arms/legs are skinny, but he doesn't show any signs that he is starving. I am making sure he is getting 3 oz. of BM every 2 1/2 hours daytime with a 4 hour sleep stretch at night. He has plenty of wet and 1-2 poops a day. I would love to exclusively nurse but I will stick with the pumping schedule if it means I can avoid FF. FWIW, I am also only able to pump a total of 4 oz combined both sides each 25-30 min pumping session...I don't feel like I have a huge supply to begin with so I am not able to build up any sort of stash. I have all of the galactagogues going in full swing as well.
Thank you for any help...it is so tough when you get conflicting info from the professionals and I am desperately trying to make this work!
Thank you so much for your help. I will look into a third opinion for sure. I think my confusion stems from the fact that he has gained the most weight in the shortest amount of time (ideal right?) on the "BM bottle all day/nurse morning and night plan" yet the pedi wants me to go back to primarily BFing which only yielded the 4 oz. growth in a week.
The only thing I can think of for why the pedi might have been looking for more growth than normal is that he was behind and she wanted him to make up for it. Not sure.
I think I will look into getting a scale and in the meantime monitor diaper output while testing out the nurse - supplement as needed routine. Its so frustrating because I really don't think he is getting 3 oz. at the breast.
Breast massage and warm compress before nursing. Use a vibrator to massage and then a comb, bristles down, combing in the direction of your nipple. Those stubborn ones can take some work!
Also, maybe discuss with your OB or IBCLC taking lecithin:
https://kellymom.com/nutrition/vitamins/lecithin/
Plenty of factors can affect latch. Make sure he's opening wide to latch and that he is well-supported for the duration of the feeding.
It could also be that his latch is fine and something else is up (like thrush). What are your signs of shallow latch? I know you're having nipple pain...
If he gets frustrated with the bottle, stick it back in the fridge and try again a bit later. Try to keep it positive.
You may have to actually leave the house and let DH introduce the bottle. When mom and the boobs are present, it can be confusing for them to be trying to learn to eat from somewhere other than mom.
Good luck! 6 weeks is a great amount of time. Try not to stress!
Sometimes she spits up cottage cheesy looking milk (which I hear is normal).
What if it is milk only - like just straight milk? What does that mean?
As much as possible, she should put baby to the breast and do skin-to-skin. Unless medically contraindicated, she should supplement at the breast via SNS. She should be pumping every 2 hours during the day and every 3 hours at night, at least 10x per day. Does she have a hospital grade pump? She should see about renting one for the time being.
It shouldn't take long and won't be so difficult forever. This is just to get her through until baby is back to the breast. Can she see an IBCLC for help getting baby nursing if he's having trouble? Best of luck!
Surprise! BFP 3/7/2013, Missed MC, D&C @ 7w5d
BFP 12/10/2013, Natural MC @ 5w1d
BFP 2/15/2014...Katia Elizabeth is due 10/23/2014!
DD1 was born in December and it took until February to produce enough to feed her without supplementing, but it eventually did happen.
If baby has no ties, there are exercises your LC can teach you to help strengthen his tongue, and she can help you continue to look for the underlying cause.
It's great that your LO's weight gain is within the normal range. It's always possible that LO just didn't take as much milk at THAT feeding that was weighed. Could have been distracted or less hungry or the time of day or your nerves could even have had an effect. Weighed feedings aren't an accurate indicator of what LO gets at EVERY feeding. But of course if the LC noted a suck issue, it's good to look into that.
As for what to do now? Nurse often. If he's not transferring milk well, he'll need to eat frequently in order to get all he needs. This is especially true, too, if he tires very quickly and falls asleep at the breast. I would nurse every 2 hours and on demand in between until you're able to have him evaluated. Lots of skin-to-skin will also encourage frequent nursing.
Good luck!!!
@theresat858 , that's wonderful it got better. Do you think it got better because your LO was older or did you work on the sucking at all?
@emerald827 , I feel terrible, likes he's hungry, because he needs to gain more and I am already feeding on demand. I thought he would let me know he's hungry, and I really hope the 1 ounce was just a one time thing. Even now, when he eats, I barely hear him swallow unless I use breast compressions to get the milk out. I just started doing that so I feel like he hasn't been sucking enough To get milk.
Thanks for all the advice!
@savagek7 I'm right there with you. Same thing but from righty. DS drowns and pulls off and I spray milk in many a direction at once. I look like a sprinkler...we're spending a little less time with righty for a day or two to try to correct it, but if I remember correctly, that's my overachiever anyway, so we might just be messy forever. Oh, and DS is tough to burp too. DH is way better at getting them out than I am!
I've looked online but I'm finding conflicting information.
DS is 3.5 weeks old, so I know my supply hasn't regulated yet. My right side is the over achiever. About every two hours or so, it starts leaking. It leaks a ton! At home I try to stay either shirtless or braless with a big t shirt of my husband's. The leaking will soak a shirt in a few minutes. If DS is set to nurse on that side, I always express some milk into a towel so he doesn't choke on it. We've been nursing on just one side for each feeding and then alternating for the next. With this thrush, he very rarely is remotely interested in the other side after already nursing on one side.
Anywho, my question. Do I need to do anything about the oversupply? Do I continue how I have been, and will my body regulate itself? I've been avoiding pumping the right side so I don't make it any worse, and I've been sticking with the one side per feed so I'm not overly feeding from the overactive side.