Your weekly feeding thread - 11/28

[tjanca22]

Lets talk about feeding those babes. Who's nipples are about to fall off? (mine are)

What's working well for you this week?

What are you struggling with this week?

Questions/concerns?

Have you set any feeding goals?

[tjanca22]

What's working well: Milk is in and I'm not feeling too engorged. It probably helps that she likes to nurse nonstop.

What are you struggling with: my nips feel like they are on fire. We're working on her latch, but her suck is super strong that as soon as she latches it's so difficult to get her to open her mouth to re-latch. The nipple shield is again one of my favorite things in the world.

Questions/concerns? We have a weight check this morning, so I'm hoping she's either back to her weight or close to it. I would really like to spread out a few feedings if I can.

Feeding goals: I'm starting small and making a month my first goal. I was able to nurse E to 1yr and would like to do the same with L.

[goldenlove3]

What's working well for you this week? Lately we're giving him breast milk during the day and formula at night. It's easier not having to deal with cold milk in the motn.

What are you struggling with this week? Supply and I've just about given up with him breast feeding.

Questions/concerns? I don't understand this nipple shield. It seems to stick out way beyond my nipple. C hates it. He won't even try to latch on it. Am I missing something?

Have you set any feeding goals? I'm not sure at this point. If I can get my supply up, I'll keep pumping for a while longer and hopefully not need to use formula as much. I'm still hoping to keep doing it until I go back to work.

[ClassyMrsA]

danib We have been having the same issue. I can literally hear her gulping trying to keep up. I'm trying to nurse more upright and that helps, but not always.

What's working well for you this week? She can latch pretty easily in the dark now. I feel less engorged this week so she's getting a better balance of milk I think (we had a few green poops but not for several days now).

What are you struggling with this week? Nipples are still sore. She's gulping initially which is leading to lots of trapped gas. I burp her between sides and after, but it doesn't always help.

Questions/concerns? None this week.

Have you set any feeding goals? Go as long as we can.

[shedreamsincolor]

What's working well for you this week? Supply is finally regulating so I am way less engorged (thank god!!).

What are you struggling with this week? He is 2 weeks tomorrow and I'm pretty sure we're entering our first growth spurt. Has nursed every 1.5 hours or so for the last 12 hours. I know this is temporary but with DH going back to work tomorrow I'm worried about the lack of sleep and caring for DS1.

Questions/concerns?Anyone else gone through the first growth spurt already? Trying to remember how long these usually last?

Have you set any feeding goals? Exclusive BF for a year plus.



ETA: Once we're through this growth spurt I need to start pumping a bit (goal once a day) for middle of the night bottles and so I can actually leave the house!

[shedreamsincolor]

danib - I also have a fast letdown. Another thing you can try is latching, wait for letdown, take him off and let it spray into a burp cloth and then relatch. I'd probably wait until your nips are less sore since it involves 2 latches but that has been a game changer for us. Plus the method you describe using positioning and gravity to slow down the flow!

[shedreamsincolor]

goldenlove3 - you can have the fit checked by an LC but that was his mine fit too. DS1 would latch onto the end of the nipple shield (he couldn't open wide enough to get the whole thing in his mouth) and sort of sip from the end of that makes sense. For some reason he could latch on that just fine but not to me. We transitioned around 6 weeks once he was bigger and better coordinated with suck/swallow

[hangry]

What's working well for you this week? She has been having less of the choking incidences, so in hoping it's just developmental and will continue to get better.

What are you struggling with this week? My left nip started to get sore. I had been feeling good since like 1 week and suddenly it's sore the last couple of days. I think she has a bit of a lip tie and that she has been lazy with latching. ClassyMrsA I am jealous of your in the dark latching! I send still need to turn my flashlight on every time.

Questions/concerns? I hated pumping before and am dreading starting it now. But I have dinner plans with friends in 3 weeks.

Have you set any feeding goals? My short term goal is to have one bottle worth for my dinner plans. Over achiever here

[goldenlove3]

Nov 28, 2016 11:36:18 GMT -5 shedreamsincolor said:

goldenlove3 - you can have the fit checked by an LC but that was his mine fit too. DS1 would latch onto the end of the nipple shield (he couldn't open wide enough to get the whole thing in his mouth) and sort of sip from the end of that makes sense. For some reason he could latch on that just fine but not to me. We transitioned around 6 weeks once he was bigger and better coordinated with suck/swallow

I just tried it again and he took whatever was in the tip then pulled off. Same like he does with my breast. I'm finding the shield to be really awkward though. C is so wiggly and fights latching so much that he's knocking it out of place.

[shedreamsincolor]

goldenlove3 - I know it's so tricky at first when they are tiny and their head control isn't good yet. You can try using a little breast milk or maybe even Vaseline or something similar to help it stick in place. Then use one hand to hold baby's head and the other to sort of anchor the shield to your nipple until he's latched. Believe me I feel your pain. My first had a terrible time with latching and it was seriously so frustrating. Anyone else use shields that have tips/tricks for use?

[goldenlove3]

Nov 28, 2016 12:48:40 GMT -5 shedreamsincolor said:

goldenlove3 - I know it's so tricky at first when they are tiny and their head control isn't good yet. You can try using a little breast milk or maybe even Vaseline or something similar to help it stick in place. Then use one hand to hold baby's head and the other to sort of anchor the shield to your nipple until he's latched. Believe me I feel your pain. My first had a terrible time with latching and it was seriously so frustrating. Anyone else use shields that have tips/tricks for use?

That's pretty much what I did. I used some nipple cream to make it stick but him constantly pulling off makes it move.

[tjanca22]

Nipple shields - they always seem like you need an extra set of hands. One to hold the shield in place, one to hold the baby, another to keep baby's hands from getting in the way!!

What's helped us is to first focus on holding the shield in place while using the other hand to hold the baby. Once the tip of the shield is in her mouth, I'll readjust her latch by opening her mouth wider or fixing her lips. Her lips will sometimes get tucked up under her gum, so I adjust so they are fanned out. As for those flailing arms, I'm not much help. She always gets an arm in the way no matter what I do 😕

[dashook]

Whose nipples are about to fall off?
Mine are actually feeling better finally (10 days PP).

What's working well for you this week?
We're getting more comfortable with positioning. She is gulping less initially, staying on the nipple a little longer, and taking her time getting all the good hind milk.

What are you struggling with this week?
It still takes us several tries to get her latched on and eating. The issue isn't as much her opening wide enough anymore. She often gets a good wide open, with her tongue in the right position, but just won't start sucking. It takes 5-8 minutes of trying sometimes to get her on. I'm seeing a LC on Wednesday and we'll see what they say.

Questions/concerns?
Just the latching thing. Mostly because it's annoying. Once she's on, she's awesome.

Have you set any feeding goals?
Minimum EBF one year, continue nursing after that until we're ready to stop.

[aggiebug]

Lets talk about feeding those babes. Who's nipples are about to fall off? I am feeling pretty ok now although leaking like a sieve. Oyi

What's working well for you this week? In general it's going well over all

What are you struggling with this week? The sleep is hitting me which makes it so difficult to get up and he is a DM good sleeper for a newborn.

Questions/concerns? Can we add in how often we are feeding as a question? And age of kid? As I am curious.

Have you set any feeding goals? Not starve him

[tjanca22]

aggiebug I'll add in those questions next week!

L is 5 days and we are every 2 hrs, but that's because I wake her to eat. I'm hoping towards the end of the week to stick to 2hrs during the day and whenever she wakes at night.

[goldenlove3]

Nov 28, 2016 13:23:19 GMT -5 tjanca22 said:

Nipple shields - they always seem like you need an extra set of hands. One to hold the shield in place, one to hold the baby, another to keep baby's hands from getting in the way!!

What's helped us is to first focus on holding the shield in place while using the other hand to hold the baby. Once the tip of the shield is in her mouth, I'll readjust her latch by opening her mouth wider or fixing her lips. Her lips will sometimes get tucked up under her gum, so I adjust so they are fanned out. As for those flailing arms, I'm not much help. She always gets an arm in the way no matter what I do 😕

Maybe swaddling? I'll give all these tips a try next time. Thanks!

[aggiebug]

goldenlove3 it should stick out quite a bit, it helps it hit the suckle reflex and also makes it easier to latch. Once they start sucking it should pull your nipple into the shield and fill it a bit more but not all the way. I am sorry you are still struggling. I found it a trick to get on but once it was on DD did fine latching.

If you still want to find a way to make bfing work if you can I suggest peeping into the BF forum they really are super helpful AmyG knows her stuff well they all do but she is the guru of gurus in my experience. If you are just fine at this point that is also a-ok, you do what is best for the both of you.

[aggiebug]

Oh and ds is 3weeks and we are now feeding every 2.5- 4 hrs. But usually around 3hrs.

[dashook]

D is 10 days old and eats every 2.5-3 hours. She nurses one side at a time for 15-20 minutes on average (sometimes a bit more or less).

[tjanca22]

Wow, I'm just marveling at how quickly these babes start to spread out feedings. In my head I know that's how it works, but seeing it in writing about the babies closer to 4 weeks are all around 3-4 hrs between feeds and the 2-3 weekers are around 2-2.5. I know it seems like 4 weeks is so far away, but in all honestly it isn't.

Wow, hormones, pull it together!

[cookswithwine9]

What's working well for you this week? O is still nursing like a champ so that's good. He eats every 2 during the day and at night normally every 3.

What are you struggling with this week? Being the only person that can feed him. It will be nice when we reach a point that H can give him a bottle. Our birth class said not to introduce a bottle before 4 weeks. Other's thoughts on that? He has to learn to take a bottle befor my maternity leave is up and he goes to daycare.

Questions/concerns? None at the moment. He is cluster feeding right now though. I hope this doesn't last too much longer.

Have you set any feeding goals? Short term 3 mo. Long term 6 mo. I am kind of shocked how many of you breastfeed even to a year. Statistically not many ppl make it that long.

[ClassyMrsA]

Lilah is 2.5 weeks old and she's eating every 2-3 hours. Sometimes she'll go 4 hours at night.

cookswithwine9 We never gave Lillian a bottle. We tried, but she wasn't into it and we didn't push it. She actually took a long time to drink anything from a sippy cup, too. She loved nursing. We will try again with Lilah because, like you said, it'd be nice for someone else to be able to feed her, realizing that I'd still need to pump when that happens. We are waiting until she hits a month to introduce a bottle and pacis. I've read it's because it's easier for them to get milk from the bottle and the latch isn't exactly the same so they can get lazy/frustrated with nursing. For us it's not a huge deal because I stay home. Like danib said, you do what works best. Plenty of people introduce a bottle sooner and have no issues. Also, I was able to breastfeed for 19 months because I stay home. I'm impressed by people who can keep it up once back at work.

[dashook]

Nov 29, 2016 9:17:52 GMT -5 danib said:

cookswithwine9 the bottle thing is so grey.. They say to way so that you have time to develop a good breastfeeding relationship and to avoid nipple confusion... But then again, I had to top up (with bottles) while we were in the hospital due to health concerns... I say do what works best for you, and if you notice a negative impact just stop right away and reintroduce a little later.

cookswithwine9, I agree with this. With DS I had to express milk and bottle feed (in conjunction with breastfeeding) right from the get go for the first 2-3 weeks. He never had any issue switching between the two. Some babies do, but fortunately for us, he didn't.

Now, because LO still gives me some difficulty with latching, I am going to hold off much longer. I also have this luxury since I'm taking a longer leave this time. So it's really up to you, and if baby is doing well with nursing and your relationship is established, you could certainly give it a try.

[buckyb]

Who's nipples are about to fall off? Mine!

What's working well for you this week? We finally found a good latch so the last few days have been much better.

What are you struggling with this week? My supply is still regulating so I still have moments of being uncomfortable especially if C only nurses on one side.

Questions/concerns? C was super gassy last night and I'm wondering if it was something I ate yesterday.

Have you set any feeding goals? I'm hoping to make it to a year. I nursed/pumped for 13 months with DS1. My goal this week is to wash my pump parts and clean a few bottles.

[buckyb]

Nov 29, 2016 10:24:56 GMT -5 danib said:

buckyb the chances of gas being related to your food is incredibly unlikely. Except in cases of allergies, which would present with other obvious symptoms.
Your milk is made from nutrients in your bloodstream. All the work of digesting the food to get those nutrients (which is what causes gas) is already done by your body.

Good to know! Thanks danib! He doesn't have any other symptoms so I'm going to caulk it up to a gassy/fussy night.

[ClassyMrsA]

cookswithwine9 I'm amending my previous reply. At Lilah's 2 week appointment today, I got the 2 week info packet. It says that as long as breastfeeding is well established, 2 weeks is a good time to introduce bottles if you plan to go back to work.