My two week old has been put down for a total of about 45 minutes for his entire life. We have a rock n play, crib, swing, and bouncy seat that all sit unused since he is constantly held. I'm going to snuggle him for as long as I can!
Apologizing in advance for this one. But. Water births really gross me out. I've tried to see where people are coming from when they talk about how amazing they are, but it just..
I have also held the baby almost non stop. But that's because he screams when I put him down. Sleeping is impossible. I would love to shower today but he will scream the entire time. DH just left for work so it's all on me.
My mom and dad want to take me out to dinner tonight. All I want to do is housework and sleep. I don't want to go to dinner. I don't even want to eat. I am having anxiety thinking about taking him out. I just need sleep.
I love my cat, but she is driving me crazy. She is depressed due to the fact we moved 2 months ago, me being somewhat depressed due to my patient passing away, SO being depressed and having even more health issues. So the cat is on kitty Prozac and we bought her special food to help mask the taste since it's a super small amount of medication (1/4 of a tablet). She doesn't want to eat the special wet food....blah! I am ready for kitty cuddles and nap time damn it!
I'm not sure breastfeeding is for me. I want to do it. I know it's good for LO but, I've been having some real discouraging set backs and I'm starting to think I should just throw in the towel. It seems like everything is against me doing this!
I'm not sure breastfeeding is for me. I want to do it. I know it's good for LO but, I've been having some real discouraging set backs and I'm starting to think I should just throw in the towel. It seems like everything is against me doing this!
I've cried all day after coming to the same conclusion. My LO spent a few hours in nicu after birth and had to be bottle fed for his sugar levels...and that was just the beginning. Plus my husband just kept saying 'try for a little longer'...I decided today to let it go...
I'm not sure breastfeeding is for me. I want to do it. I know it's good for LO but, I've been having some real discouraging set backs and I'm starting to think I should just throw in the towel. It seems like everything is against me doing this!
How old is your LO? They say by the end of the second week it gets easier. If you really want to have a go at it, talk to a lactation consultant, they might be able to help you. If not then at least you know you have done everything you can, and you can move on and not feel any guilt over stopping.
@BabyArnold2016 we had the same situation. im trying to pump to at least give her something...but, I'm sure she's thinking "that's it?"...I feel terrible.
@kmo8986 she's a week. We met with an LC and it was somewhat helpful but, also not a very good experience. I felt very judged by my decision to supplement.
I've rented a hospital grade pump for the month to see if it helps at all but, I'm just feeling frustrated, discouraged and sad that none of what I had planned for this LO seems to be going to plan.
I'm not sure breastfeeding is for me. I want to do it. I know it's good for LO but, I've been having some real discouraging set backs and I'm starting to think I should just throw in the towel. It seems like everything is against me doing this!
I've cried all day after coming to the same conclusion. My LO spent a few hours in nicu after birth and had to be bottle fed for his sugar levels...and that was just the beginning. Plus my husband just kept saying 'try for a little longer'...I decided today to let it go...
NICU mom here too.
I stopped BF at 2 1/2 weeks, because LO was beginning to get sloppy on the breast and then frustrated when I'd try to reposition, slow him down. I never knew how much he was getting, because he'd fall asleep and then scream for more shortly after. Pumping afterwards would get me not even enough for 1 feeding. I pumped from then on out and decided to start supplementing. 2 1/2 weeks later from that decision and I've now decided with only 3 weeks left of my maternity leave, to go strictly to formula. You're not alone.
@saraawlbr no judgement here and you should do what is right for you but I heard that if you can just make it through the first 10 days for a lot of people it's much better after that. In my own experience, I almost quit everyday for the first two weeks - she has a shallow latch and I was in excruciating pain, I'd cry before every feeding, I did formula 2 nights --- and then suddenly around the two week mark out of nowhere it started getting better. At day 17, it only hurts on one side now, and the pain is much less and only hurts for 1/2 a second when she latches -- and I think that will go away once my nipples are healed!
I feel like a horrible mom. Despite my happiness to have baby here, I feel very distant from her and bothered by the way she looks. I can't put my finger on it, but she looks so different from her siblings...almost like she's unfinished and anyone who says she's gorgeous or cute is just being nice.
I'm not sure breastfeeding is for me. I want to do it. I know it's good for LO but, I've been having some real discouraging set backs and I'm starting to think I should just throw in the towel. It seems like everything is against me doing this!
You've got to do what's best for you and LO. But if you have interest in continuing I'd see an LC. I have also heard 'don't quit on a bad day' which helped me get through the worst of it.
The first day violet came home with me i consider a huge win. I got a shower! DH and my mom went out to get my medications and some other things before the storm. I got tired of waiting and decided it was time to try and do this mommy thing. I got her to sleep and put her in the bassinet, wheeler her adorable butt in the bathroom and showered with the curtain hald opened.
@apinkpelican I've seen three LCs now plus assistance from my midwives at my appointments. All they've really managed to do is make me feel like a crappy mother because I'm having so many issues.
I've also now just gone through my second D&C since Lucy was born less than two weeks ago And they're sending me home with medication I shouldn't breastfeed on. Just another set back and more days lost...
@saraawlbr So I'm assuming she will be FF while you take your meds? I'd use the time to pump and dump and reflect on whether or not you really want to continue BF. I strongly suspect it will become very clear to you over the time you are on your meds! Personally, I'd probably throw in the towel and rest assured that I did everything I could and it just wasn't in the cards. The only right answer is what works for you. Good luck!
If breastfeeding is causing you anxiety and problems them just formula feed. Period. With DD1 I was 100% only going to breastfeed and then when I had her I had nothing to give her. My milk didn't come in until 8 days after she was born. As a pediatric nurse, the best thing you can do is feed your baby with what works best for them and you! You can't properly care for your baby unless you properly care for yourself. Also anyone who shames a formula feeding mom needs some serious mental help in my book because feeding your baby is the top priority, not how it's done. I'm formula feeding DD2 and I will tell people off if anyone gives me a hard time. You are trying to do all you can. No, breastfeeding isn't easy at all, but as long as you are feeding your baby, that's what's matters at the end of the day.
Pretty sure I have thrush and every time baby wakes up at night to eat I cry and seriously consider making her a bottle of formula because the pain especially at night is so severe. I'm sticking with it because I hear it gets easier and that it's worth it and LO is only 10 days old
@PedsIsHardcore thank you!! I really appreciate all you've said. It means a lot. I just need to stop worrying about what everyone else thinks.
Definitely don't let what other people think make the decision for you. I'm sorry you are going through all of this and I'm sorry the LCs you saw were not helpful. You've got to do what is best for you and the baby. If that is formula then there is nothing to be ashamed of. Good luck to you.
I'm not sure breastfeeding is for me. I want to do it. I know it's good for LO but, I've been having some real discouraging set backs and I'm starting to think I should just throw in the towel. It seems like everything is against me doing this!
I've cried all day after coming to the same conclusion. My LO spent a few hours in nicu after birth and had to be bottle fed for his sugar levels...and that was just the beginning. Plus my husband just kept saying 'try for a little longer'...I decided today to let it go...
Both of my older children were in the NICU for a few days and it really contributed to making BF hard. With my first I tried my hardest and quit after 3 months of misery. With my second I decided I was going to simply see how it went and I was done after two weeks. Both times I felt like a lot of people tried to make me feel badly about my choices but my pediatrician was amazing and very supportive and that helped a lot. The best thing he told me was that the "best thing" for my baby was me being ok, and that if BF made me stressed and physically and emotionally exhausted, I wasn't helping anyone.
1. I've never met a LC who was actually supportive. With my first 2 children I wanted help and felt like they were just BF Nazis who made me feel terribly.
2. I'm usually very open minded, but even though I have friends who have done it, I cannot truly understand why anyone would choose a home birth. I know all the data, it's just that I can't shake the knowledge that when things go wrong in childbirth, they often go wrong very quickly, and I just don't get taking that risk, however small it may be. This makes me feel like a judgmental jerk, but I just can't change my mind.
Debating switching from exclusively BF to pumping and bottle feeding after this last week or so. This kid must be going through another growth spurt bc I swear he wants to eat every hour and a half. Screams his head off if we try and offer the pacifier at that point and won't be soothed by anything else so I believe he's actually hungry. we went to my SIL last night and were there for 6 hours and I spent basically half of that with DS attached to my boob. I'm exhausted. He'll do one 3-4 hour stretch of sleep at night and then back to eating every hour and a half to 2 hours. I might give it until I go back to work in 3 more weeks to see how he's doing then but definitely exhausted by being a milk factory every 2 hours for 45 mins. I'm pumping trying to build up a supply for daycare and curious if anyone has any tips to get more saved up while BF and pumping. If I pump more than twice a day DS gets pissed bc he isn't getting enough and I end up having to give him some of what I pumped anyways. Any tips?
Edit: I feel super guilty for wanting to switch to strict bottle feeding bc it seems so selfish bc he's such a good breast feeder and I know some women would love to have that but spending almost 7 hrs a day with him attached to me is literally draining so idk what to do
@Karenin I feel that way too. Everyone in my family has c-sections so I'm just not comfortable with the idea of having a home birth and putting either of our lives at risk. For me to feel semi-ok about it, it would have to be after at least one successful vaginal birth and with a certified nurse midwife. I read a horror story over the weekend about home some states don't have licensing laws for midwifes really so there are some bad outcomes. I won't post it here for a bunch of pregnant ladies to read but yeah...scary stuff.
Married DW 08.2013; AI 2x; IUI 6x; IUI #7 05.2015; DD born 2.2016 ; Reciprocal IVF FET #1 on 11.18.2020
For those of you who are struggling with breastfeeding (and having to read the birth announcements how every baby is "nursing like a champ") I'd just like to tell you all that my LO did NOT nurse like a champ. We are all much happier and healthier since the switch to formula. Do what you think is best for your health/sanity and the baby's health. A happy, healthy baby is all anyone should care about.
@saraawlbr - I've had the worst time of life attempting BFing and even with super sweet and helpful LCs I have failed miserably and have switched to FF.. Now that I have given up I actually feel better A lot more people face breastfeeding problems than is evident so cheer up and don't let this come in the way of enjoying ur baby !
Re: FFFC
DS1 01/08/03 DD1 08/11/04 DD2 10/06/08 DS2 09/30/14
SURPRISE! Hannah May born 01/22/16
I've also retreated to my bedroom while he tends to LO..
Mommy needs some me time.
My mom and dad want to take me out to dinner tonight. All I want to do is housework and sleep. I don't want to go to dinner. I don't even want to eat. I am having anxiety thinking about taking him out. I just need sleep.
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@kmo8986 she's a week. We met with an LC and it was somewhat helpful but, also not a very good experience. I felt very judged by my decision to supplement.
I've rented a hospital grade pump for the month to see if it helps at all but, I'm just feeling frustrated, discouraged and sad that none of what I had planned for this LO seems to be going to plan.
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I stopped BF at 2 1/2 weeks, because LO was beginning to get sloppy on the breast and then frustrated when I'd try to reposition, slow him down. I never knew how much he was getting, because he'd fall asleep and then scream for more shortly after. Pumping afterwards would get me not even enough for 1 feeding. I pumped from then on out and decided to start supplementing. 2 1/2 weeks later from that decision and I've now decided with only 3 weeks left of my maternity leave, to go strictly to formula. You're not alone.
DS1 01/08/03 DD1 08/11/04 DD2 10/06/08 DS2 09/30/14
SURPRISE! Hannah May born 01/22/16
But if you have interest in continuing I'd see an LC. I have also heard 'don't quit on a bad day' which helped me get through the worst of it.
I've also now just gone through my second D&C since Lucy was born less than two weeks ago And they're sending me home with medication I shouldn't breastfeed on. Just another set back and more days lost...
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DD 12/20/99, DS 12/14/12, M/C 9/2014, M/C 1/2015
You can't properly care for your baby unless you properly care for yourself. Also anyone who shames a formula feeding mom needs some serious mental help in my book because feeding your baby is the top priority, not how it's done. I'm formula feeding DD2 and I will tell people off if anyone gives me a hard time. You are trying to do all you can. No, breastfeeding isn't easy at all, but as long as you are feeding your baby, that's what's matters at the end of the day.
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Both of my older children were in the NICU for a few days and it really contributed to making BF hard. With my first I tried my hardest and quit after 3 months of misery. With my second I decided I was going to simply see how it went and I was done after two weeks. Both times I felt like a lot of people tried to make me feel badly about my choices but my pediatrician was amazing and very supportive and that helped a lot. The best thing he told me was that the "best thing" for my baby was me being ok, and that if BF made me stressed and physically and emotionally exhausted, I wasn't helping anyone.
I have 2:
1. I've never met a LC who was actually supportive. With my first 2 children I wanted help and felt like they were just BF Nazis who made me feel terribly.
2. I'm usually very open minded, but even though I have friends who have done it, I cannot truly understand why anyone would choose a home birth. I know all the data, it's just that I can't shake the knowledge that when things go wrong in childbirth, they often go wrong very quickly, and I just don't get taking that risk, however small it may be. This makes me feel like a judgmental jerk, but I just can't change my mind.
Edit: I feel super guilty for wanting to switch to strict bottle feeding bc it seems so selfish bc he's such a good breast feeder and I know some women would love to have that but spending almost 7 hrs a day with him attached to me is literally draining so idk what to do
A lot more people face breastfeeding problems than is evident so cheer up and don't let this come in the way of enjoying ur baby !