The Breast Feeding Support Thread

Thanks for all your advice How Strange :-)

How is your little girl getting on with her feeds now? Is the tt still causing some problems?

I have a much happier fella this week. Hes sleeping much more although hes probably exhausted from all his growing :-)

Ahhhh! She's screaming constantly at me - where is my milk!! Pls let it be tomorrow!!! My nipples are bloody and raw! Latch good apparently - it's just the constant suckling! On the plus size its causing major uterus shrinking contractions!!!!
She is soooo much hungrier than my daughter ever was!!!! And stronger! The extra 3 weeks cooking really helped her I think!!! Drove me mad...!

DL it took a good few days before my milk came in too and my nipples were sore from the constant sucking but once it came they completely healed overnight almost. I used lanolin after each feed and didnt bother covering up just to let the air at them (hubby was delighted!!) Ive only had to use it once or twice since then.

Been using the multimamm compresses today and they've helped!

Tried rugby? Hold today but find it awkward - dont know if its cos of uncomfyness in general after section! Cradle seems easiest!

Think my milk has just come in this evening!!! She fell asleep fir 2 hrs since last feed after 5 hrs of feeding... And now my boobs are hard , there's milk keaking as she's feeding and she's not fussing as much! Not as sore either! Hopefully this will sort her!! Other than that she's either been feeding, screaming or sleeping. Maybe tomorrow she'll actually be happy!!
Yippee!!

And thanks ladies - breast feeding is so much easier with support - there's some very tough times where it all seems too much!

Great news DL :-)

Holding my right boob is also sore from time to time and i think i find it harder to get the latch right on it all the time. Support groups are brilliant to attend. Its great to meet other mothers who have gone through or are going through the same experiences. They are definitely a sanity saver!! I started baby massage this week with some other mothers from pregnancy. It was lovely and relaxing and gave me another opportunity to feed baby in a 'safe' environment while i build up my confidence.

Need help!
So upset had really cracked nipple last night - couldnt feed thru the pain. As a last resort after several attempts at feeding - my left side was empty - she wanted more - I had to pump from the right - I then gave this one oz to her after the left side in a bottle. She fed after that that night and after using multimamm compresses for a few hrs was able to feed from both sides. Thought that was that. It was literally one oz of expressed milk at the end of a feed. Once!
This morning it took me ages to feed her properly - she kept taking one suck and then off. I tried every position I could with my section wound. Eventually I got her latched on and fed. She then slept fir a few hrs and woke at 1 - I literally spent from 1-4 trying to feed her. Phoned lactation line in holles st who said keep trying but not past 6 hrs as risk of dehydration - then give 20ml bottle and try rest from breast & keep trying. Had he skin to skin for an hr in bed trying & trying making it as relaxing and calming as I could. But she bacame hysterical so I had to give her the bottle - 2oz expressed milk. I then expressed from boobs as they were bulging & leaking. She's asleep now & ill keep trying to latch her on when she wakes but I'm so upset this could be it and that she will refuse the breast I really wanted to feed her a lot longer than this - she's only ten days. And I was so happy to have managed every feed myself so far. I just know she is strong willed Abd was so upset & frustrated she was hyperventilating trying to latch on by the time I have her the bottle.
I don't have time as I have a 15 month old also to express & feed her as it was enough if a struggle just to feed her alone time wise! So if I can't fix this it'll be formula for her. It's not what I wanted and was doing so well
Everything I read about nipple confusion online is really quite negative! I don't have hrs to spend in bed doing skin to skin etc and tried that today without success. I obviously plan on keep trying but like how long do I? 2 hrs per feed?! Then a bottle of expressed? I can't keep that up! I suppose I just want some good news and positivity from experience that this can be fixed!! How to to it ? And how long to expect it to take?
Ill phone the le leche league but literally can't manage a phonecall with all the screaming Etc going on around me so your advise would be greatly welcome!

+1 to scrgirl, ring Sue Jameson or Nicola O'Byrne this evening and have a chat with one of them. I rang Sue a couple of times during my first few days and she was so helpful.

This is nothing that can't be reversed so give either of them a call and see what they suggest.

The quicker you get help the quicker it's resolved.

Both are qualified to diagnose tt if that's the problem. Holles St LCs or the Coombes ones for that matter won't diagnose tt as they don't consider it an impediment to bfing do you need to get expert advise from an ibclc LC which both women are.

There's a doctor in sandycove who can snip some tt's so pm me if you get a diagnosis of tt and I'll give you the details otherwise there's a consultant in Clonmel General Hospital who gets most referrals.

I agree that at this stage a cracked nipple and pain are signs of something either a bad latch or tt so it's best to get it sorted as soon as you can. Once you do you'll be flying at it again.

holding the only reason I can think of for the sore nipples on and off is that every so often you get a bit more lax with positioning and how he latches on. At this stage you still need to be very vigilant with getting the latch right every time. Night time feeds can be a problem if you're tired and not watching to make sure he's getting the breast and not just the nipple or that he's pulling on the breast. Other than that the only other reason I can think of is perhaps tongue tie.

A is spitting up too at the moment and my son did it too from 2 until around 5 weeks so I can only guess that it's because they are taking in a lot more milk than their tummies can hold. My son grew out of it around 5 weeks but it's exactly as you describe.

We did 3 changes of clothes yesterday because of spit up. That's not even counting changes due to leaking nappies!

Back on track after meeting with LC! So worth the money! Delighted! Thanks for the advise & contacts ladies!

Great news dublinlady

Fantastic news DL!!!

My litte man has reflux. GP said to use baby Gaviscon and a some water in between feeds. Im worried that i'll be giving him too many bottles and it will confuse him.

The last 2days have been horrible with him trying to get up wind and then he seems in pain when he does :-( The whole thing has really knocked my confidence.

Yeah i might try the middle of the feed. He is having plenty of wet nappies...so he's not dehydrated (so the gp says anyway).

holding wrote: »

Silly question, but does anyone have any tips for keeping breast pads in place? I use the reusable washable ones to soak up leaks etc. At night especially they slip around and fall out, even though I wear a bra at night too.

The disposable ones that stick to your bra might be good for nighttime? I like the Multimam ones.

On the whole breast pads thing, have you tried not wearing them at all and just give the boobs a knock with the heal of your hand when you feel them starting to go? I bought one pack of 20 before I had the first guy and binned the last few the other day, unused (fed him 16 mths, now 4 mths in with no.2); I just found them way too fiddly. I also don't wear a bra at night as I find its the only practical time to allow airflow to the nipples to keep the skin healthy. I found that without the pressure from the bra, I hardly leaked at all anyway.

I had to go to the dentist today and brought A with me. As soon as the dentist saw her he said 'what are you feeding her, she's huge'. I felt so proud saying mother's finest.

She's 1 month tomorrow and I can't believe how big she is!

A proud moment indeed!

My god it gets so much easier Nead21, once you hit 6 weeks it's so much easier & every month gets better & better (bar growth spurts), hence how I surpassed my 6 month & 12 month goals & am still going strong at 19.5months.

NBO it sounds like you've got blocked ducts. Do you have a fever and flu like symptoms too? If so you definitely need to take the antibiotics.

I'd recommend you get into a very hot bath, immerse your breasts in the water and massage them until the milk is flowing freely. It will be sore but you'll have to persevere. It's really important that you unblock the ducts. You may need to have a few baths over the next couple of days if the lumps don't clear straight away or if they come back.

Pumping alone won't clear the blocked ducts. I'd recommend that you hand express a little everyday just to keep them from getting engorged. Pumping will only keep your supply up which you don't want as you're stopping feeding. Also a baby is far more effective than a pump at clearing the breast so if you're going to do anything I'd suggest letting the baby feed from the breast for once or twice a day and then reduce it to once a day, once every second day etc for the next week or ten days and still hand express a little in between feeds to prevent engorgement.

I hope that helps.

NBO wrote: »

my baby is 16 weeks and I have been gradually weaning from breast to bottle for the last 3 weeks. I last fed him on Tues night and haven't breast fed him since. I am in agony and my boobs are getting progressively sorer and getting more painful. My boobs are hard and lumpy and I've tried massaging but its very painful. I went to GP this morning and got difene, antibiotics and he told me to pump however I'm not sure if I should be pumping at this stage. Any advice gratefully received as I'm so sore and tender at this stage I can't hold the baby.

I would recommend hand expressing or pumping a tiny bit - but just enough to ease the pain - and only for a day or two! I did this and it helped reduce my supply over a few days before stopping completely. Have to say though I still found it sore stopping totally! Was the same as you described! But I used ice packs to ease the pain a bit & then it passed after about 4-5 days!

DL this is how we sleep every night :0
I honestly don't think that a mother who is sober (no drink, drugs etc) would let her baby fall off her. The instinct is so strong that I wake up as soon as she starts mooching so she doesn't even wake or cry for a feed during the night. I also think we're only half asleep which is probably why we're so exhausted.

I just can't be bothered trying to stay awake until she finished her feed and then try to settle her in the basket. I find this way we get the most sleep we can expect to get.

I half recline and prop the arm holding her up with a pillow and when she's latched on I scootch down a bit so I'm lying down and so is she. If I wake up after a feed now I've started putting her lying down beside me on top of the quilt and we snuggle together.

In another few weeks I'll set up the arms reach side car cot and start her off in it but I'm sure she'll end up in the bed in the wee hours.