How is breastfeeding going?

[honeybee]

I hope all is well!

Kian is nursing like a champ, and I know he's getting enough because of all the wet and dirty diapers, but there are still times when it's a bit trying. He'll hit a fussy point where he acts like he's starving, keeps trying to latch on, but not doing so because my breasts are so flat, since he's already been nursing for an hour straight! I remember Aaron doing the same thing, and I know he's probably just hitting a growth spurt and trying to stimulate more milk production, but it does make for a difficult time. Sometimes I think he'd be happy with a pacifier, since he'll suck on a finger for a while, but it's too early yet to introduce a pacifier.

Anyway, I thought I'd share some of my best breastfeeding online resources in case anyone needs any help or support!

La Leche League Mother-to-Mother Forums
http://lalecheleague.org/vbulletin/

La Leche League Breastfeeding Information
http://www.lalecheleague.org/bfinfo.html

Kellymom
http://www.kellymom.com/

Breastfeeding.com
http://www.breastfeeding.com/

Ask Dr. Sears
http://www.askdrsears.com/html/2/T020100.asp

[AppleCrisp]

Depends who you ask! The baby is happy, that's for sure! Gained a pound and a half in two weeks. But still a little sore on my end, and not adjusting well to interrupted sleep. How is everyone else doing with the sleep changes? Being my first, I haven't ever not gotten a full nights uninterrupted sleep so this is a real change for me.

I hear you about the pacifier - it so crossed my mind to calm him down after he nursed and nursed, but I resisted. He is fun to watch - he seems to love it so much I couldn't imagine giving him formula or a bottle.

[Metasequoia]

We're nursing well after some blistering in the beginning. I thought that by continuing to nurse Dd2 throughout pg, that I'd avoid any nipple soreness this time, but nope. I used a shield for a few days & kept him off of the sore-est side (letting Dd2 empty the sore side) & then switched & they seemed to heal up nicely. I had engorgement issues (again) & Dd2 has been VERY helpful with that .

I used my Avent Isis once so far because I was SO engorged & the relief was wonderful.

My little guy was 8 lbs, 4 oz at birth, dropped down to 7 lbs, 15 oz by day two & at our home visit on day 4, he weighed 8 lbs! By his 1 week appt, just 4 days later, he weighed 9 lbs!! That's a whole pound in 4 days! I think by now, day 16, he's at least 10 lbs, maybe close to 11!! What a porker!

[InochiZo]

I have oversupply and over active let down so DD tends to get a little too much. This can make her gassy and upset. She really wants a breast when this happens and know it will only make things worse. I really don't like the binky but if she's at the breast too long she will get multiple let downs. She gained almost 1lb since birth. She is sleeping for good block periods at night. I have not felt over tired except the one night she had a really gassy night. I actually have a little trouble falling asleep if I nap with her during the day.

[amyrobynne]

It's SO MUCH EASIER the second time! The only bf-related problem we've had is that at one week, I got a blogged duct or something and spiked a temp of 102 for a day. It took a couple days to completely go away. The baby latched on on his first try (at 24 hours, due to respiratory problems) and has been happily latched on since.

With my first, the first two weeks were a horrible, stressful mess because of bf, so this has been wonderful.

My toddler weaned 4 days before my second was born, so I'm not sure if the non-stop nursing made the difference, or just experience.

[allismom]

Good thread......

Kyler is nursing like a champ! I have been a bit engorged for a few days now so I really need to get my Avent Isis out and sterilize it and pump a little for relief. I just don't find the time to do the hot and cold packs. I also have trouble napping since my DD won't do naps anymore herself But I did bring a cleaning lady in yesterday and I have enough meals coming and frozen for about 3 weeks! So I really am only doing laundry.

He lost 6 oz from his birth weight, but by his 4 day checkup was back up to his birthweight. He has plenty of wets and poops. In fact, the boy poops just about every single time he eats.......but only small amounts. Is 10-11 poops in a day too many?? Poor guy has a sore hiney from it!

He's nursing twice at night.....around 2 and 5am and we are cosleeping so as soon as I hear him starting to stir I give it to him and he barely even wakes.

Breastfeeding is so much nicer the second time around. I am not keeping 'charts' of when baby ate, how long, or which side. I am just totally watching his cues and feeding him as soon as he begins to stir or bring his hands to his mouth. He rarely cries.

Life is good!

[Mariposa]

breastfeeding is going good. she is finally latching good and we breastfeed most of the time. still pumping and bottlefeeding occasionally because she gets frustrated with my let down and cries and cries at the breast. so if it has been awhile, i pump, breastfeed her, then top her off with what i pumped out.

she is up exactly 2 lbs at 4 weeks today. making her a whole 6lbs 11oz, smaller than most of the babies here weighed at birth!

breastfeeding is definitely easier the 2nd time around! probably didn't help to work in postpartum for a year either at a hospital with 2 great IBCLCs!!

SHARI- emmy did that pooping small amounts all the time for awhile, now she does bigger ones less frequently. hope he does that soon!!

[Metasequoia]

Shari, doesn't your guy poop at night? My little man is like yours, pooping at every feeding, so like 10-15 times in a 24 hr period! It stinks at nighttime because I then have to get up to change him, otherwise we'd happily nurse back to sleep without moving since we cosleep too. Last night the little bugger peed on my jammies :. Have you tried Weleda diaper cream? It's the only thing that seems to work around here for the sore tushies.

I have oversupply issues too & have at least 4 or 5 letdowns per feeding , poor guy gulps & chokes like crazy.

As for the plugged ducts, with my other two, I had plugged ducts constantly (& mastitis twice) I haven't had ANY this time & I attribute it to not wearing a bra - ever, since Ds was born 17 days ago.

[nubianamy]

Wow, everyone sounds so fabulously NORMAL! Be proud, mamas, you're all doing a tremendous job feeding your little ones.

Ivy has nursed great from day one. It is now day 9 and she has lost 9oz and regained 14, so we're happy and the pediatrician is happy. She spits up freqently, but with plenty of wet and poopy diapers each day and her weight gain, we know it's "a laundry problem, not a health problem."

I'm really pleased breastfeeding has come so easily with our first baby. I attribute it to the homebirth setting, nursing in the first few hours of life, a good latch, some knowledge on my part and a chunk of luck. I also have huge nipples that are super-easy to latch onto. We are both loving it.

Nighttime feeding is more challenging, but she is a long sleeper (3+ hours at a time!). I usually wake up with engorgement before she wakes with hunger! Then I haul her out of bed to change her because it's the only thing that wakes her up. She doesn't like that at all. Our Stacinator fleece cover does a pretty good job of keeping her dry (we're using Kissaluv 0's) but we still have the occasional super-wet nighttime moment. She's in bed with us, which is a joy. I can already tell the cosleeper next to our bed will be almost unused. I worry a bit about our soft mattress, though.

Off to nurse again!

[krisalee]

nak

We had a ton of issues in the beginning. Gage had a very lazy latch, and would only take the very tip of my nipple to suckle. this of course led to bleeding nipples. In addition, he lost quite a bit of weight- 8 lbs, 3 oz at birth, and at 1 week, he was 7 pounds, 4 oz. And then he continued to gain very slowly- 7 pounds, 5 oz at 2 weeks. But, by 2 1/2 weeks, we had worked out the latch issues, and he was up to 7 pounds, 11 oz. Then my little guy contracted pnemonia, and narrowly missed a hospital stay. But even when he was so sick, he kept putting on the weight- he's over 11 pounds now at 5 weeks- and bfing is once again the joyful expierence I remembered, and Gage is healthy and strong.

[Tine]

Well, Maria's 1 week, 2 days old now, and frankly I have no idea what she weighs because we don't have a scale at home, and she won't be weighed again till her doc appt. next week. She lost 8 oz. of her birth weight in one day, but on day 3 was holding steady and starting to eat a lot more, suggesting that she'd be heading back up the scale. It's obvious to me she's gaining, as her hands, arms, and legs are starting to plump out a bit. Also, she's constantly pooping and peeing. What comes out must've gone in, right?

Breastfeeding is going fine. My nipples were EXTREMELY sore and getting kind of scabby for a few days there, but I seem to be turning a corner now. They still hurt, but not as much, and the skin is healing nicely.

I've had to pump a few times, too, to relieve engorgement. But as Maria gets more and more effective at nursing, I can see that problem fading away, too.

She's a pretty good sleeper; we've had many 3-5 hour stretches at night. The only bummer is that sometimes she decides to have a 2-hour alert period in the middle of the night. I must confess I'm not very accommodating when that happens. I don't feel very playful at 2:30 AM -- I just want her to go back to sleep!

On the other hand, I'm no stranger to sleep deprivation. I haven't slept well since DS was born -- and it was especially bad during pregnancy. So this situation isn't exactly a shock to my system.

[nubianamy]

Originally Posted by Tine

On the other hand, I'm no stranger to sleep deprivation. I haven't slept well since DS was born -- and it was especially bad during pregnancy. So this situation isn't exactly a shock to my system.

I hear you, Tine -- I am sleeping better and waking less now than I was while pregnant!

[RedOakMomma]

It's going well, I'd say. Noah's gained 3 POUNDS in three weeks! Dh jokes that he's trying to catch up with his older brothers...

My biggest challenge so far has been a breast infection. I only had 2 of them last time (I nursed to 26 months), but this time BAM! I got one already.: Go figure, too, it started just two days before I was supposed to start going it on my own during the day (no family here to help). Soooo...rather than mess around with natural means, I called up my OB and asked for antibiotics. Two days after starting the antibiotics, the fever, aches, chills, and headaches were gone.

I dunno, for some reason a clogged duct seems to go from 0 to 60 with me... if I get a clog, it almost always knocks me on my butt with an instant breast infection. This time I think it was stress, combined with a pinchy underwire nursing bra. Today's order of business: go online and buy different bras.

The other (manageable) challenge has been his nightime feeding... it goes great until about 5 am (he'll sleep for up to 4-5 hours already!), and then he starts working on a 2-hour monster poop. He won't wake up enough to nurse effectively, but he can't sleep because he's uncomfortable and straining...it's like 2 hours of fussy "near sleep" that keeps me awake from 5 to 7. I have to stay awake and make sure he doesn't cry, because if he does he wakes up James (my light sleeper), and then James wakes up Ian, and then at 5am we have a house full of cranky boys. So, for now, I sit up in bed and hold him, nodding off if I can, for two hours. Not ideal, but I figure he'll give up his 7-8am poop eventually.

Cosleeping is going great, though. Cosleeping with just one baby feels like such a luxury! With the twins, I felt pinned down by babies. With one, it's possible to sleep in any position!!!!!! I'm so thrilled! And it's delicious, to cuddle up to such a soft, warm, pudgy baby...... *sigh*......

[momto3g3b]

I guess I'm the only one for whom breastfeeding is NOT going well.

Joshua spent a total of 2 weeks in NICU and got very accustomed to the bottles that don't require much effort to get milk out of. As a result, he does not like to nurse, despite trips to see the lactation consultant, use of nipple shields and much effort on my part. I'm currently pumping and feeding him from bottles (NOT the NICU bottles) and I'm still breastfeeding my almost-28 month old toddler. It's kind of odd having a newborn who is getting EBM in bottles while having a toddler who loves to nurse, but oh well, it's working for us.

Yes, I know how to transition a baby to the breast from bottles ~ I pumped for 14 weeks after my twins were born because it took that long to transition them completely to exclusively nursing. I don't honestly know if I'm going to bother trying that with Joshua. He'll be having more trips to Portland for issues related to his Spina Bifida and, quite honestly, it helps that he'll take breastmilk from a bottle (my toddler, Isaac, never would).

Is this how I planned things? No way. If Joshua would happily breastfeed, I would be doing it, no question. I nursed my other 6 children and just assumed I'd be nursing my 7th, as well. But circumstances being what they are, I'm trying to be flexible and not stress too much (or feel too guilty) for not actually nursing the baby. I haven't given up the idea of breastfeeding Joshua, but if it doesn't happen, I will be all right with it. I have an abundant supply and will keep pumping and I'll keep nursing Isaac, too, until he decides he wants to wean (which won't be any time soon, I'm sure). Nothing has gone according to how I thought it would with this baby ~~ being born with Spina Bifida and needing surgery right away and not being able to wear his newborn cloth diapers because the elastic in the back rubbed against his incision and the difficulties with breastfeeding ~~ I guess I'm not surprised that I haven't been able to get him nursing, even with a LLL consultant's help. I'm not HAPPY about it, but I'm becoming more accepting of the situation.

[Phoenix_Mommy_4]

Breastfeeding is going very well here as well so far. Oliver is 2 weeks today and though we werent able to nurse right away as I would have liked at his birth, we have caught up nicely. He is gaining like a champ and tons of wet and poopy diapers. The night time feedings are going pretty well as well...being that we co-sleep as well it isnt really difficult...sort of roll over and eat...*grins* ..I think the bed beside the bed lasted half way through the first night..lol...he has been in bed with us ever since...and we love it. I do worry that he isnt getting enough still. You would think by number 4 I would be calm about that..lol..nope. He is also a really good sleeper and already has a pretty good routine down...he goes to bed about 9...wakes at about 1ish-2ish...nurses...goes back to bed till 8ish...then he is up most of the morning , has a long sleep in the afternoon adn then we start a gain...Its amazing to me that he has already found that routine. Anyway, great thread, and its going well here.

Phoenix

[lilsishomemade]

I can't believe how easy this is going! This little guy learned how to latch right away, and I haven't even had sore nipples (which I just figured were a little inevitable in the beginning while baby and mom figured everything out...). I did have waaaay too much, and during let down, milk would spray (yes, spray!) out of the side he wasn't on, but it seems that's over with. I never really seem to get too engorged, he feeds often enough. I just feel so lucky this time around!

Oh, and he is chunking up, also. I don't know how much he weighs, but we're going in to see the doctor on Friday, so I'll know then.

[honeybee]

Awww, Kate.

I'm so glad Joshua is home with you now, and getting all that good bm, no matter how it gets to him! I know nothing has worked out the way you envisioned, but trying to keep a positive attitude like you are will help tremendously in the long run. You are doing the best you can for Joshua, and are providing just what he needs the way he needs to get it right now. I agree you're better off not worrying about how/if/when he'll transition, but just take it one day at a time.

Keep up the great work mama! I am so in awe at all you're doing with 7 kids in the house!

[allismom]

Originally Posted by Metasequoia

Shari, doesn't your guy poop at night? My little man is like yours, pooping at every feeding, so like 10-15 times in a 24 hr period! It stinks at nighttime because I then have to get up to change him, otherwise we'd happily nurse back to sleep without moving since we cosleep too. Have you tried Weleda diaper cream? It's the only thing that seems to work around here for the sore tushies.

Oh yes!!! I have to get up several times a night to change his poopy dipes!
can you get Weleda cream at retail stores? or just online? I am keeping it under control with A & D but would be willing to try another.

[Metasequoia]

Originally Posted by allismom

Oh yes!!! I have to get up several times a night to change his poopy dipes!
can you get Weleda cream at retail stores? or just online? I am keeping it under control with A & D but would be willing to try another.

I get the Weleda at our local crunchy whole foods store, but I know that the big corporate WF carries it too. It's $6.99-$7.99, but SO worth it .

Elisabeth, I have worn a soft, wire free loose sports bra twice since having this babe & both times ended up with the beginning soreness of a plugged duct. I am no stranger to mastitis, having had it twice with Dd1. I am finding that not wearing a bra is helping me avoid any kind of breast problems, can you give it a try? The two times I wore one was because I was going out & IMO, it's just not worth the outcome, I'd rather look like a braless hippy!!

[Metasequoia]

Oh Kate, I meant to offer hugs, , sounds like you're doing the best that you can for your babe, he is fortunate to have you, I bet most mom's would have given up the bf by now. You're a strong mama.