my 9 week old and i have been trying to figure out the breast feeding thing for a while... it seems like we have multiple issues going on at the same time. it's heart breaking to not be able to breastfeed!
she latched well after delivery - i was thrilled because my first daughter and i struggled with breastfeeding at first. she was incredibly sleepy even after a drug free birth, and slept thru most feedings with me doing everything i could to keep her awake and nursing.
when she was a week old, i contacted a lactation consultant - i felt as though my milk supply was low and that she was not getting enough to eat (not that she was complaining at all - she was just a happy sleepy baby). when we weighed her at 9 days, she had not gained any weight back from the initial 12oz loss the first day after birth. our latch was fine and the lc suggested that i pump after every feed (every two hours) and then supplement her with that breast milk. she would take at least an hour to an hour and a half to nurse, so that meant i needed to pump and finger feed her and then start all over again!
after about 4 days of that insanity, my supply was up, but she was so sleepy and "lazy" that i had to pump and finger feed still, after every feed. a few days later, her poop went from yellow to green and she became incredibly gassy (too much fore milk). fora week or so, we thought we might have a colicky baby. it was at this time, around three weeks, that she first started to refuse my breast. she would take it sometimes in some positions, but, nothing that stuck out as a pattern.
we had some craniosacral and chiropractic work done and i eliminated everything from my diet and that seemed to help. her gas got much better and her poops went back to yellow.
now, at 9 weeks, she is still very sleepy - she sleeps 4-5 hours a stretch and is awake for about 60-90 minutes in between. during the day she latches and nurses for 2-5 minutes before pulling off and screaming bloody murder. i can not get her to latch back on to either side, unless i use a nipple shield... sometimes when she pulls off, there is a steady flow of milk, like at the begining of the let down, and other times when she pulls off, there is little to no milk flowing, so i am not sure if she's frustrated by getting too much or not enough. she doesn't spit up more than normal, and she's more than happy to drink from a bottle, laying flat so i don't think she has reflux...
my only hope is that she nurses just fine at our 3am feed - sometimes taking both breasts. some days, that is the only time i get to nurse her. crazy, but i will actually be sad when she starts sleeping thru the night!
my husband and i spend most of our time together hypothesizing about what's going on and what "solution" we should try next. he just recently suggested that i try the nipple shield again (yesterday) and that seems to be helping, although with it, she is more likely to fall asleep. and then i second guess how much milk she got and feel like i need to pump and supplement anyways, even after having her on for 45 minutes or so.
will she ever be able to nurse from me, with out the aid of a nipple shield and breast pump? has anyone had a babe that had a similar experience?
is she just incredibly sensitve to the whole breast feeding experience?
she latched well after delivery - i was thrilled because my first daughter and i struggled with breastfeeding at first. she was incredibly sleepy even after a drug free birth, and slept thru most feedings with me doing everything i could to keep her awake and nursing.
when she was a week old, i contacted a lactation consultant - i felt as though my milk supply was low and that she was not getting enough to eat (not that she was complaining at all - she was just a happy sleepy baby). when we weighed her at 9 days, she had not gained any weight back from the initial 12oz loss the first day after birth. our latch was fine and the lc suggested that i pump after every feed (every two hours) and then supplement her with that breast milk. she would take at least an hour to an hour and a half to nurse, so that meant i needed to pump and finger feed her and then start all over again!
after about 4 days of that insanity, my supply was up, but she was so sleepy and "lazy" that i had to pump and finger feed still, after every feed. a few days later, her poop went from yellow to green and she became incredibly gassy (too much fore milk). fora week or so, we thought we might have a colicky baby. it was at this time, around three weeks, that she first started to refuse my breast. she would take it sometimes in some positions, but, nothing that stuck out as a pattern.
we had some craniosacral and chiropractic work done and i eliminated everything from my diet and that seemed to help. her gas got much better and her poops went back to yellow.
now, at 9 weeks, she is still very sleepy - she sleeps 4-5 hours a stretch and is awake for about 60-90 minutes in between. during the day she latches and nurses for 2-5 minutes before pulling off and screaming bloody murder. i can not get her to latch back on to either side, unless i use a nipple shield... sometimes when she pulls off, there is a steady flow of milk, like at the begining of the let down, and other times when she pulls off, there is little to no milk flowing, so i am not sure if she's frustrated by getting too much or not enough. she doesn't spit up more than normal, and she's more than happy to drink from a bottle, laying flat so i don't think she has reflux...
my only hope is that she nurses just fine at our 3am feed - sometimes taking both breasts. some days, that is the only time i get to nurse her. crazy, but i will actually be sad when she starts sleeping thru the night!
my husband and i spend most of our time together hypothesizing about what's going on and what "solution" we should try next. he just recently suggested that i try the nipple shield again (yesterday) and that seems to be helping, although with it, she is more likely to fall asleep. and then i second guess how much milk she got and feel like i need to pump and supplement anyways, even after having her on for 45 minutes or so.
will she ever be able to nurse from me, with out the aid of a nipple shield and breast pump? has anyone had a babe that had a similar experience?
is she just incredibly sensitve to the whole breast feeding experience?
