Nursing is overall going well for us. It is easier for me this second time around.
Challenge - she is so little, she doesn't take as much as DD did. I'm engorged!! Also, she falls asleep quickly during nursing, so keeping her up and going is difficult.
Enjoyment - I love the close bond we have and just holding her in my arms.
Post by Squishy622 on Sept 27, 2015 3:07:44 GMT -5
Hey link! I'm here. Brain too fried to answer your questions right now but we are trying to make it work with twins. I'm in an exhausting routine of trying to build up my supply to make enough to feed 2 babies, and we're supplementing with formula as needed until then.
They are doing a great job gaining weight, are latching/sucking better every day, and my supply is slowly increasing. We also just started doing tandem feeds a few days ago which makes me feel like a total badass.
Hope things are going well for everyone else BFIng too!
Post by darkbluesunday on Sept 27, 2015 3:39:00 GMT -5
Nursing's going pretty well. He is getting a lot of good long sucks, so there's lots of improvement there. My early milk is coming in too.
One of our biggest challenges is getting my nipple to cooperate. It seems like using a nipple shield is the only way to get them ready. He also likes to keep falling asleep so I have to wake him up during feedings.
Nursing's going pretty well. He is getting a lot of good long sucks, so there's lots of improvement there. My early milk is coming in too.
One of our biggest challenges is getting my nipple to cooperate. It seems like using a nipple shield is the only way to get them ready. He also likes to keep falling asleep so I have to wake him up during feedings.
I had to use a nipple shield the first 2 months with my first and am having to do the same now. I have flat nipples so I think it just takes a while for them to stretch out before I can go without it.
She's still getting the hang of nursing but I've been able to get her latched for a few seconds here and there without the shield but I'm trying to find a good mix between when to pump to try to keep my supply up and trying to keep her nursing since she's still so much in the sleepy phase. Just hoping it goes better for us this time.
Post by Squishy622 on Sept 27, 2015 8:53:10 GMT -5
I'm laughing really hard right now because I sort of have a vague memory of responding to this in the MOTN but I wasn't expecting to open the thread and see an entire response from myself. Need a nap.
I had to use a nipple shield the first 2 months with my first and am having to do the same now. I have flat nipples so I think it just takes a while for them to stretch out before I can go without it.
She's still getting the hang of nursing but I've been able to get her latched for a few seconds here and there without the shield but I'm trying to find a good mix between when to pump to try to keep my supply up and trying to keep her nursing since she's still so much in the sleepy phase. Just hoping it goes better for us this time.
Thanks for telling me that, it makes me feel so much better. The LC would prefer I just start with them and then take it off a few minutes into feeding, but then they end up going flat again. It gets really frustrating.
I feel dumb asking this, but would anyone mind if I post in this thread as well? I'm in the vast minority in that I've chosen to formula feed, but obviously I'm still up in the night and would like to occasionally post. I obviously can't totally relate to what you ladies are going through but I'd like to be able to offer support where I can.
I feel dumb asking this, but would anyone mind if I post in this thread as well? I'm in the vast minority in that I've chosen to formula feed, but obviously I'm still up in the night and would like to occasionally post. I obviously can't totally relate to what you ladies are going through but I'd like to be able to offer support where I can.
Post by darkbluesunday on Sept 27, 2015 18:29:21 GMT -5
I just talked to the on-call pediatrician since Alex has only had 1/2 the stools he's supposed to have and his stools are still black and tarry. Since he's had 6 wet diapers and has jaundice, the dr. wasn't concerned. We have our first appointment tomorrow and I have a ton of questions. Thanks breastfeeding chart for freaking me out....
I Googled earlier because Elliott hadn't pooped at all for a couple of days and I couldn't remember what was normal for a FF baby. Google was less than helpful but managed to worry me. Thankfully he had a massive poop shortly after. I don't think I've ever been so happy to see poop in my life (though my first postpartum bowel movement may be a close second). Hopefully things will pick up soon for Alex, and you will get some good answers! Our first appointment is tomorrow as well and I am definitely asking about "normal" pooping since I forgot to ask when we were in the hospital.
I think once he gets past his jaundice it will get better. It's making him super lethargic, so he's having a hard time feeding for very long at a time. I have a bazillion questions to ask tomorrow, so I'm sure glad I'm going to have the opportunity.
I have tried everything to get my breast milk to come in and still when I pump I only get 10ml top. It is so frustrating. Definitely jealous of all you ladies able to nurse you LO.
On the topic of poop my little guy poops constantly. I am starting to worry about it. He is almost 2 weeks old and almost every diaper change has a poop. Now he has a red bum from so much popping. I don't know what to do. At one point tonight I was changing him and he pooped while I was changing him and it was like water. He has also had some small amounts of blood in it. We called telehealth where you talk to a nurse and she said to bring him to the doctor tomorrow. When some of you say how much your lo is pooping I worry about my LO pooping too much.
I just talked to the on-call pediatrician since Alex has only had 1/2 the stools he's supposed to have and his stools are still black and tarry. Since he's had 6 wet diapers and has jaundice, the dr. wasn't concerned. We have our first appointment tomorrow and I have a ton of questions. Thanks breastfeeding chart for freaking me out....
I looked at DD's newborn poop/pee charts and by day 3-4 she was only having 1-2 poops a day and 6-10 wet diapers. By two weeks she started only having a poop diaper every 3-7 days. My pedi said to ignore the chart and as long as she was having enough wet diapers she was ok.
This- I really think the overall concern is more focused on enough wet diapers and avoiding dehydration. Poop can vary so significantly, it's not as well defined of a measurement. For example, Gracie had a terrible explosive loose black poop this afternoon and I started googling (most things said blood in the stool, lovely). Well (TMI)- guess who's TCMing from the toilet now with an upset stomach- apparently something I ate today upset us both :-(
I have tried everything to get my breast milk to come in and still when I pump I only get 10ml top. It is so frustrating. Definitely jealous of all you ladies able to nurse you LO.
On the topic of poop my little guy poops constantly. I am starting to worry about it. He is almost 2 weeks old and almost every diaper change has a poop. Now he has a red bum from so much popping. I don't know what to do. At one point tonight I was changing him and he pooped while I was changing him and it was like water. He has also had some small amounts of blood in it. We called telehealth where you talk to a nurse and she said to bring him to the doctor tomorrow. When some of you say how much your lo is pooping I worry about my LO pooping too much.
Gracie did this for a few days. Worth getting checked out but hopefully nothing to worry about and his body is just adjusting. I highly recommend Aquaphor to soothe his little bottom.
I had to use a nipple shield the first 2 months with my first and am having to do the same now. I have flat nipples so I think it just takes a while for them to stretch out before I can go without it.
She's still getting the hang of nursing but I've been able to get her latched for a few seconds here and there without the shield but I'm trying to find a good mix between when to pump to try to keep my supply up and trying to keep her nursing since she's still so much in the sleepy phase. Just hoping it goes better for us this time.
Thanks for telling me that, it makes me feel so much better. The LC would prefer I just start with them and then take it off a few minutes into feeding, but then they end up going flat again. It gets really frustrating.
I met with 4 different LCs in the hospital with my first by she wouldn't latch and none of them were helpful. I was formula feeding for the first 2 weeks bc I didn't know what else to do. It wasn't until I paid an independent LC to come to my house and do an evaluation that we made progress. She took one look at me and told me I had short nipples and that we should try a shield. DD1 latched right on and drank 3 oz. I was so mad that the others didn't even suggest it. We used it for the whole feeding for about the first month or so but then could start with it and remove after a few minutes. Once we got to about 2 months, we dropped it completely so it does get better usually.
I'm frustrated this time bc she was formula/bottle fed in the NICU since they needed to up her intake to help her regulate her temps. She will nurse from the shield with me but gets frustrated bc it's not as much as quick as the bottle. Plus think the shield is a little big for her little mouth so she doesn't latch on to the whole nipple. I'm trying to be so dedicated to BFing this time since it didn't go well for us last time but I feel like everything is working against U.S. and that I'm going to end up having supply issues again :-(. I'm going to see how things go this week at our 2 week pedi appointment and then may bring back that LC to get her thoughts on what I can do.
I just talked to the on-call pediatrician since Alex has only had 1/2 the stools he's supposed to have and his stools are still black and tarry. Since he's had 6 wet diapers and has jaundice, the dr. wasn't concerned. We have our first appointment tomorrow and I have a ton of questions. Thanks breastfeeding chart for freaking me out....
I looked at DD's newborn poop/pee charts and by day 3-4 she was only having 1-2 poops a day and 6-10 wet diapers. By two weeks she started only having a poop diaper every 3-7 days. My pedi said to ignore the chart and as long as she was having enough wet diapers she was ok.
Thank you!
Eta: He's on amoxacillin for his hydronephrosis, so I wonder If that's affecting things as well.
Can i join? We are on our second day of nursing. My milk hasn't come in yet, so its just colostrum. He's nursing like a champ, but I'm starting to feel like a human pacifier. Anyone else?
How are you guys doing? Hope your milk comes in soon!
I feel dumb asking this, but would anyone mind if I post in this thread as well? I'm in the vast minority in that I've chosen to formula feed, but obviously I'm still up in the night and would like to occasionally post. I obviously can't totally relate to what you ladies are going through but I'd like to be able to offer support where I can.
shame on me for not including FFers from the start. Please join in!
@sunflra mentioned pumping. Anyone else pumping yet? I was so engorged yesterday that I pumped once. I am afraid to pump too much, because I don't want to overstimulate. However, Lucy seems to nurse less / get less out than DD did. I pumped 3.5 oz and froze it. We will probably wait a week or two to try a bottle.
@sunflra mentioned pumping. Anyone else pumping yet? I was so engorged yesterday that I pumped once. I am afraid to pump too much, because I don't want to overstimulate. However, Lucy seems to nurse less / get less out than DD did. I pumped 3.5 oz and froze it. We will probably wait a week or two to try a bottle.
I cleaned all my pump accessories in case I need to use it soon.
I pumped for comfort at first since Gracie wasn't taking much at feedings. I've skipped that for a few days because I felt like I wasn't feeling full when I went to nurse her again and wanted her to take the milk instead of the pump. Now I'm wondering if I need to pump for supply- I've never been one with an oversupply.
Post by darkbluesunday on Sept 29, 2015 0:43:59 GMT -5
The LC called me this afternoon to check to see how feeding was going. Because of Alex's stool issues, jaundice, and whatnot, she was concerned. I am now supplementing with pumping. We had a check up today and he lost more weight than they were comfortable with so we'll be going back Wednesday for another check.
@usernamesarehard, can you hand express on the left side so its ready for him right when he latches? Then at least he doesn't have to work for it for now.
That's what I've been doing, and he basically ends up just licking it. I guess maybe that nipple is more flat than the other one?
Can you try a different position? Maybe football hold?
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