hr never "finishes" but they keep filling up - Page 2

[rachellanigh]

Without reading the other posts in entirety I would first say not to anticipate problems. Just enjoy your new little nursling!! Congrats!

Well I also can't help myself to say that my ds2 is not a comfort nurser and would scoff at the boob sometimes. He also would sometimes nurse for 3 mins and then finish when I knew it wasn't a full feeding (is there such a thing). I did develop two breast infections in a row (or maybe the first didn't go away).

A good friend told me that I could offer the same boob he didn't drain on the next feeding.

Finally, don't worry about nursing on both sides. If your babe wants to do that, you will know. If not, you will know that too!

Watch your baby, listen to your baby and learn from your baby!

Originally Posted by thebarkingbird

i have a 2 week old baby. he was born at 8lbs 14.8 oz. he was VERY sleepy that first day and hardly ate at all in the hospital though they let us go without verifying that he was eating. he only dropped a bit of weight and as of 1 1/2 weeks of age had regained his birth weight and then some. he's now about 9.5 lbs and change. he's visibly gaining and growing little fat rolls.

here's the thing. he never seems to "finish" either breast and will almost never eat from both sides in one sitting unless he's doing a 4 hour marathon like yesterday. my breasts keep filling up though. so i know my supply is good but could this lead to problems later? last night they didn't fill up when he was ready and after 30 mins of fussy baby i gave him an oz of EBM and then comfort nursed him to sleep.

[readytobedone]

Originally Posted by foreverinbluejeans

6. If the mom and baby were together 24/7, the mom had little demands on her time or energy other than caring for herself and the baby, the mom minimizes her time away from home and she takes the baby with her, the baby is not allowed to sleep through the night, the baby sleeps with or very close to the mother, the mother has normal hormones, the mother has an adequate diet, the mother has normal breasts, the baby has a normal mouth, the baby has a normal suck, the baby is healthy, the baby is exclusively breastfed for the first 6 months, the mother does not pump or express milk from her breasts, the baby does not use pacifiers. The baby would be near mother at all times and the mom would be in a location where she could breastfeed without delay. Then you could make the claim that it is impossibe for mothers living this lifestyle to over-feed a breastfed baby.

However, VERY few moms in the US choose to have this kind of hormonal symbiotic relationship with their baby.

uh, for most people this is NOT a choice. they have to work. do you know how classist this statement really comes off?

there are so many problems with what you are saying other than this...

the main other one i personally want to address is #1. some babies (esp. newborns) are ONLY comforted by nursing. i mean, seriously. every time DD cried for the first 2 months, boob was what fixed it. so are you actually implying that i was being too lazy to find a non-obvious solution, when the obvious one was, well, obvious?

some babies are comfort nursers. maybe they get fatter than other babies; who knows? DD is 95th percentile for height and weight and healthy as a horse. i really resent it being suggested that i somehow overfed/overfeed her. i was and am meeting her needs as she cues me to. i am proud of myself for doing that.

[ecoscapeleah]

Surprisingly enough, the American Academy of Pediatrics has published a very good book on nursing that helped me A LOT. You might want to have it on hand. As many people in this thread have voiced, your breasts will make the perfect amount of milk for your baby. Exactly how this happens is described in the book, but just know that it does happen. It will take time for your breasts to adjust to that perfect amount initially. It took mine 1-2 months to stop overproducing, although I was encouraging it by pumping the excess milk because I couldn't stand the engorgement! On the upside, I had lots of milk stored if I ever needed it.

[ChristieB]

Originally Posted by foreverinbluejeans

GET THE BOTTLES, PUMPS, FORMULA, ECT OUT OF YOUR HOUSE. To get your milk supply established you do not need them. They cause problems.

Agreed, except for the pump. I am so glad I have a pump! I hardly ever use it, but it is so helpful when I get a breast infection (which I've had a few times this time around, I don't know why). And as far as I know, pumps only help supply, they don't hurt it.

The breastfed baby will not overfeed! No need to worry there. The baby will change his/her suck, depending on the reason for the nursing. So if it's comfort nusing, you will only be giving milk if that's what the baby needs.

Please don't worry about your supply (easier said than done, I know). Your breasts won't always feel "full" or "empty". That's just while they are adjusting. And the empty feeling doesn't mean you're empty, either. I think it's all just to confuse us. If your baby is growing and having plenty of wet and poopy diapers, then you are giving your baby the perfect amount of milk. Simple as that.

Fussiness could be from so many things. My youngest was fussy every time he breastfed in the evenings the first month of his life. It was from overactive letdown. He getting the milk too fast. I sometimes wondered if he getting enough, if that might be the problem, but in the end, he had plenty and it was just me worrying. He got past it, grew so that he could handle the quantity of milk, and my body also regulated some.

Oh, and getting off to a slow start (sleepy, not wanting to eat very often) doesn't mean anything in terms of what is happening now. It just means he was sleepy, and maybe he wasn't interested in the colostrum. My youngest wasn't really into nursing until my milk came in, whereas my oldest was an avid nurser even before my milk came in. Both were sleepy the first 24 hrs. And both were perfectly healthy.

Enjoy this time with your baby! It goes by so fast.

[alegna]

Originally Posted by ChristieB

And as far as I know, pumps only help supply, they don't hurt it.

Too much supply comes with its own problems.

-Angela

[ChristieB]

Originally Posted by alegna

Too much supply comes with its own problems.

-Angela

True enough. I know too well. I guess I should have included a disclaimer. But my main point is that they don't lessen supply.