[biochick]

I had a planned c/s this morning. This is my third child. I got dd as soon as they stitched me up and she latched and fed like a champ. Her blood sugars were really low and they had dh give her 1 oz of formula and then she latched back onto me and ate more. That was at 9 am.

at 12 pm I fed her again for 40 minutes, her latch and suck were fantastic.

She has not eaten since then. she's mostly been asleep and hasnt wanted to wake up, has no interest in latching at all. wont suck on a bottle nipple, wont suck on my nipple after wetting with colostrum, formula etc. the nurse (who looks no older than 20) had me try to feed her around 8 with formula and all she did was spit up, no attempt to suck. She's been spitting up mucous since early this evening and has not had a bowel movement yet. Her blood sugar was at 82 at 8pm.

the nurses seem to contradict each other. my day nurse said some babies don't eat for almost 24 hours and they don't get concerned as long as their sugar levels are okay. this one is telling me the peds dont like when they go this long w/o eating (it's been 10.5 hours) and they really need to get something in her and took her away to the nursery nurse to get some formula in her.

I'm obviously pretty upset.

eta:
she just brought her back and told me they got 12 cc's into her. from what I'm reading, a newborns stomach only holds 5-7 ccs per feeding.

I told her that i wanted a pump and would prefer to feed her that way instead of formula. she said okay and just disappeared and hasn't been back.
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[rparker]

Do they have a SNS (supplemental nursing system) available that you could use with EBM/formula?

Maybe it would help if you could speak with a pediatrician and get a clearer picture about the situation with her blood sugar and/or how much breast milk/formula she should have. I had a similar experience with nurses trying to insist on formula (because they had suctioned the colostrum out of her stomach) which her pediatrician later said was totally unnecessary... so maybe it would help to get an MD on your side; the doctor on call might not even be aware of the situation if the nurses haven't alerted him/her.

 

[LeighB]

Gosh, I'm sorry I don't have much advice. I would insist on a breast pump until they bring you one. Every time you see a nurse or doc mention the pump. Other than that, I would just do skin to skin as much as possible, encourage her to nurse. Try and relax and not feel stressed about it, that way she'll pick up on it.
Good luck! i hope someone here can give you some more adivce.

 

[brandyk]

the mucous is due to the c-section (didn't get squeezed out of her at birth).

her blood sugar at 82 is totally normal. when it's below 40 you have to worry. http://www.ucsfhealth.org/childrens/...poglycemia.pdf

the more you feed her out of a bottle, the less you'll produce. find a lactation consultant asap!! ask the nurse. regular L&D nurses & pediatricians don't really know squat about breastfeeding.

if it were me i'd stop letting them take her out of the room, say no more formula, and work on the BFing. pump and dropper/cup feed the baby your colostrum until you can get professional help.

 

[zensven42]

I had similar issues with my most recent child, he just didn't nurse. I just had them repeat the blood sugar test after he hadn't nursed for quite a while, and it was within normal range. He eventually got less sleepy after about 2 days, latched on, and nursed like a champ from then on. My thought was that if the blood sugar is OK, then babies don't necessarily need to nurse the first 24-30 hours or so. They don't get much milk at this time anyway, mostly just very small amounts of colostrum. One thing I am certain of is that I would not let your child out of your sight while at the hospital, and do not let them supplement your child with anything (formula, water, or glucose) unless your child is obviously not tolerating the nursing and his blood sugar drops or something. I would also ask to speak with a lactation counselor if possible. Be sure to offer the breast to the wee one often, and let them nurse as much as possible, even when sleep-nursing. This will bring in your milk, and your child will likely become more interested in nursing at that time. Seemingly "lazy" nursers do exist though, and are more laid back. If blood sugar is stable, the child is having enough wet diapers, and is able to be roused, then you are on the right track. Please remember that I am not a doctor, but instead speak from experience and research. Good luck!

 

[PatioGardener]

Can you make sure your baby stays with you? Skin to skin will help her want to nurse.

To help your milk come in hand expression works well - every 2 hours at least. If you collect the drops of colostrun in a small medicine cup or syringe, then baby can be fed those (NOT BY BOTTLE) if needed after a nursing session.

Be strong, Mama! Good luck!

(Do you have a friend who can come in and be strong about this for you - it helps to have a champion at times like this.)

 

[LaurenAnanas]

My DD had one good initial feed about half an hour after birth, and then showed no interest in nursing for almost 36 hours. All she did was sleep! We tried all the tricks to wake her up, too, but she was having none of it! Oh, and we had mucous coming up for almost that whole time, too.

The only differences, it seems, between our situations, is that we had a vaginal delivery at a birth center and then went right home. She was clearly not in distress, but we did speak to the midwives several times over the phone, and they said that if she didn't perk up more by Sunday (born Friday morning), we would need to see the pediatrician.

Sure enough, Sunday, she "woke up" and has been nursing like a fiend ever since. She's now almost three weeks and has gained almost 2 lbs over her birth weight. My mom says I was the same way as a newborn.

I guess this doesn't help much in your situation, but don't think this means you'll necessarily have long-term nursing problems, or that there's something wrong with her.

 

[mamabear0314]

Quote:

Originally Posted by LaurenAnanas My DD had one good initial feed about half an hour after birth, and then showed no interest in nursing for almost 36 hours. All she did was sleep! We tried all the tricks to wake her up, too, but she was having none of it! Oh, and we had mucous coming up for almost that whole time, too. The only differences, it seems, between our situations, is that we had a vaginal delivery at a birth center and then went right home. She was clearly not in distress, but we did speak to the midwives several times over the phone, and they said that if she didn't perk up more by Sunday (born Friday morning), we would need to see the pediatrician. Sure enough, Sunday, she "woke up" and has been nursing like a fiend ever since. She's now almost three weeks and has gained almost 2 lbs over her birth weight. My mom says I was the same way as a newborn. I guess this doesn't help much in your situation, but don't think this means you'll necessarily have long-term nursing problems, or that there's something wrong with her.

My son was a lazy nurser at first too, especially that first week. Now he won't do anything but nurse!

A bit off topic, but did you deliver at Special Beginnings? I had my son there on 11-25!

 

[rivkah]

Excuse my ignorance, but why is the nurse feeding your child? It just doesn't seem to be at all conducive to setting up a healthy nursing relationship. It seems, sometimes, in situations like these, that you can get "walked all over." I mean you just has c/s, and I am sure you need a lot of rest and recovery. however, you are still the mother--the nurses should not be dictating to you how you feed you child.

 

[somelady]

Quote:

Originally Posted by brandyk the mucous is due to the c-section (didn't get squeezed out of her at birth).

not necessarily. I had a vaginal birth after 6 hours of pushing and my son did this too. freaked me the hell out, but my nurses all said it was normal. nurses like a champ now.

 

[MamaKickyPants]

Quote:

the mucous is due to the c-section (didn't get squeezed out of her at birth). her blood sugar at 82 is totally normal. when it's below 40 you have to worry. http://www.ucsfhealth.org/childrens/...poglycemia.pdf the more you feed her out of a bottle, the less you'll produce. find a lactation consultant asap!! ask the nurse. regular L&D nurses & pediatricians don't really know squat about breastfeeding. if it were me i'd stop letting them take her out of the room, say no more formula, and work on the BFing. pump and dropper/cup feed the baby your colostrum until you can get professional help.

This is good advice. Keep that baby with you! Lots of skin-to-skin time and avoid the bottle at all costs. Babies are supposed to lose weight after birth. Up to %10 of their birth weight is totally normal. We only produce colostrum for the first few days. It's like liquid gold, but not enough volume to gain weight off

Reember, this is YOUR baby. They can't take her away from you and feed her formula without your permission. Be strong mama. You'll both be fine