Ongoing struggles? Fast let down, baby who spits up a lot and he hates to burp and just screams the whole time. I also have pretty sore nipples because he is loving to comfort nurse and going thru so many growth spurts. I give him the pacifier or my pinky which sometimes does the trick but not always.
Struggles that you have worked through? I think we are doing pretty good on the timing of the feeds. He eats about every 3-4 hours all day and about 4-5 hours at night majority of the time. We have also gotten much faster and I can now nurse side lying.
How long do you plan/hope to BF? I was planning on a year but I really want to make it to 6-9 months and keep going if possible.
Do you have a lot of support for BF IRL? I do have a ton of support from my family and my husband. Its just been hard to keep going when it hurts and you get so frustrated. But everyone says to make it a month and you will notice it gets way better and easier, so here we go just a few more weeks!
Post by backseatdriver on Jan 25, 2015 15:30:43 GMT -5
How old is your LO? 2 weeks
Ongoing struggles? We have been lucky to not have to many struggles this time around. I can feel my letdown getting stronger though so I'm hoping she can continue to manage that. My son had lots if difficulty, but I also had oversupply last time around due to pumping.
Struggles that you have worked through? Sleepy baby. Thankfully she had been much better about staying to task. With my son he never nursed longer for 6 minutes so it has been an adjustment for me getting used to longer nursing sessions. She has been gaining well though so I'm happy.
How long do you plan/hope to BF? I definitely plan to BF to a year. Possibly until 15-18 months depending on how I feel about it. After a year I do want to cut back to morning and night though.
Do you have a lot of support for BF IRL? Yes and no. I go to LLL meetings and most moms I know BF. My mom did as well. My DH didn't always think it was worth the struggle and he hates that feeding is only up to me. Until nighttime of course when he is more than happy to sleep!
Post by backseatdriver on Jan 25, 2015 15:37:18 GMT -5
@nedralynn I think sometimes it can be really hard for moms who didn't BF to be supportive of their daughters during struggles. First they don't have a lot of experience to offer advice and second I think there is an emotional/psychological aspect to it. I think it can be hard to admit that BF is that important if they didn't do it.
Ongoing struggles? (I can mimic papapalie's almost exactly) i have extremely sore nipples still due to early on problems. She hates having to stop nursing to burp but when she does she spits up a lot. I also have a fast let-down so she starts choking when it starts flowing.
Struggles that you have worked through? we started off with her being tongue-tied so she was latching wrong for a week before getting her frenulum snipped. This caused severe cracking to my nipples. I still have sore nipples when she latches on initially but this can also be because all she likes to do is nurse and sleep!
How long do you plan/hope to BF? I plan on nursing her a year like I did my other two. It will be easy once summer comes because I'll be home all day (I'm a teacher). However, I know that having to pump twice a work everyday is a huge commitment and very exhausting!
Do you have a lot of support for BF IRL? I have a lot of support from my husband and from the ladies at work. My family has become more supportive over the years but have no knowledge on the subject. My in-laws are annoyed that I nurse because it's time spent away from the baby (because yes, it is all about them).
Hi everyone. Hope it's ok if I just jump in. I was never a regular on jan15 but I was on PGaL
How old is your LO? 5 days
Ongoing struggles? My milk just came in... No real struggles yet except for just trying to figure it all out!
Struggles that you have worked through? Just those first few days - they were tough. I had a c section and I was bed bound at first and unable to reallt position LO correctly for feeding. That's better now.
How long do you plan/hope to BF? My minimum goal is 3 mos (my maternity leave) but I'd like to go longer.
Do you have a lot of support for BF IRL? *yes, a few of my friends breastfed and are supportive but it's nice to have people who are currently breastfeeding to share support!
Post by skooeo2822 on Jan 25, 2015 19:36:57 GMT -5
How old is your LO? 3 days
Ongoing struggles? Newborn weight loss... She's down the typical 10% but my milk came in today, so hopefully we will have some good news at our peds appointment tomorrow. I also have a crack on each nipple which doesn't feel awesome, but much to be thankful for, such as, a good latch from the start!
Struggles that you have worked through? Just waking her to eat
How long do you plan/hope to BF? Beyond the 1 year mark
Do you have a lot of support for BF IRL? From my girlfriends and sister yes. From my mom no. She didn't nurse and is truly annoyed by it when it means there isn't a baby to hold, or I express frustrations.
skooeo2822 if you have cracks on your nips, you don't quite have a good latch. a good latch might hurt a bit and make you sore no matter what, but shouldn't cause damage.
skooeo2822 if you have cracks on your nips, you don't quite have a good latch. a good latch might hurt a bit and make you sore no matter what, but shouldn't cause damage.
It happened when I fell asleep and didn't unlatch. :/ You would think I would have learned my lesson from the first side, but nope, happened the very next night feeding session on the other side.
Ongoing struggles? He has a slight posterior tongue tie, and I have insufficient glandular tissue. So we're trying to work on his latch and my supply.
Struggles that you have worked through? We haven't quite worked through the struggles, but we have a plan in place (herbs, pumping, continuing to work on his latch), and we're working on it.
How long do you plan/hope to BF? Initial goal is 6 months, then we'll see about 9 months or 1 year. I made it to 11 months with DS1 with supplementation, so maybe I'll try to do at least that long.
Do you have a lot of support for BF IRL? Kind of. DH just wants to make sure DS2 is fed, and he doesn't care so much whether it's formula or BF. I have an LC (really she's an angel who does LC for free because she believes so much in it), and she is wonderful.
Post by mmheartspb on Jan 25, 2015 23:18:25 GMT -5
How old is your LO? 15 days
Ongoing struggles? She is doing really well. Just the cluster feedings are really hard emotionally on me but she is thriving so that is all that matters.
Struggles that you have worked through? Sore nips = lanolin and sleeping during feedings = feeding on demand.
How long do you plan/hope to BF? 1 to 2 years
Do you have a lot of support for BF IRL? I do. My husband's side of the family are exclusive breast feeders
Post by backseatdriver on Jan 26, 2015 5:50:27 GMT -5
@nursesouder I EPed for a couple weeks with my son and it was exhausting. Sometimes I felt Ike it was the worst of both worlds (BF and FF). It was worth it to me, but I know how hard it can be.
Post by 3littleones on Jan 26, 2015 7:33:17 GMT -5
6 weeks today!
Fast let down, but he does a fairly good job with it.
Apparently had a shallow latch that H fixed. Still baffled by that.
Long as I can.
Yes, H helps me by distracting visitors until I can get to a different room. Too many times to count we've had someone show up unannounced while I'm nursing uncovered and my entry way is right in the living room.
Ongoing struggles? My nipples hurt on initial latch like crazy. Baby can also be a double eater - eats for 15 minutes, detaches himself and then wants to eat again for 15 minutes 10 minutes later.
Struggles that you have worked through? I was exclusively pumping for the first week of his life but now we've gotten him latched with a nipple shield and I only pump once per day just to have some on hand if we need it.
How long do you plan/hope to BF? As long as I can up to 2 years (aiming for 1 year at least).
Do you have a lot of support for BF IRL? My husband is awesome and super supportive, as is my family. His family is freaked out by breastfeeding and thinks it's gross so there's that.
Post by BabyStandish on Jan 26, 2015 9:01:17 GMT -5
How old is your LO? 2 weeks, 3 days
Ongoing struggles? The constant feeding and fussiness during feedings. I'm going to guess he's going through a growth spurt. I feel like he's constantly attached to my boobs.
Struggles that you have worked through? latching was VERY rough the first few days. The LC at the hospital was a huge help. I've also started pumping once a day to let DH feed him and give my boobs a break.
How long do you plan/hope to BF? 1 yr
Do you have a lot of support for BF IRL? yes, DH is fully supportive and most all my friends BF. DH's family didn't BF so not a ton of support there, but who cares about them
Post by milagros315 on Jan 26, 2015 9:29:59 GMT -5
How old is your LO? He'll be two weeks old tomorrow!
Ongoing struggles? We're still dealing with some trouble latching and sore nipples.
Struggles that you have worked through? I had a terrible engorgement problem, but we solved that with pumping. That also helped with severe nipple damage. We're having some success with latching using something that YouTube called the "fipple technique" so hopefully we can get the hang of it soon.
How long do you plan/hope to BF? At least until 6 months. I'd love to go even longer but I don't want to put too much pressure on myself.
Do you have a lot of support for BF IRL? Yes. H has been awesome about helping me stick with it and try new techniques. My mom has been great too. She breastfed four kids, so I feel like she knows everything. I also have a very big group of friends with a wide range of experience so that's been so helped us too.
Ongoing struggles? Sometimes we have a bad latch so still getting some nipple pain.
Struggles that you have worked through? Over supply/ fast let down!
How long do you plan/hope to BF? I plan on BF/ Pumping for a while. We just introduced the bottle last night so hoping I can pump some now and have enough for when I go back to work.
Do you have a lot of support for BF IRL? My husband is a huge supporter I also plan on attending a BFing support group! [/quote]
Ongoing struggles? We are dealing with our 3 week growth spurt and have been very fussy the last two nights with more frequent feeding. We are dealing though! I am also learning how to burp her. It's more difficult than I thought!
Struggles you have worked through? It took a while for my milk to come in, so early on we were BFing, pumping and suppl, but are doing much better now.
How long do you plan/hope to BF? I am hoping for 6 months, but I'm nervous about finding the time to pump while at work. I am a critical care nurse and I might not be able to leave my patients multiple times during a shift to pump if they are extremely sick (which they usually are). We will see. I am starting to build a supply now.
Do you have a lot of support for BF IRL? Yes! H is so supportive and I've just started going to a mom's group at a BFing center.
@amyg I've been having pain when nursing on my left side. I looked under my nipple and there are tiny little white dots (three sets of four) on the areola, which are painful. When I push on them a little milk comes out. Do you know what this could be and how to prevent them? I've never experienced this with my other babies. Thanks!
@amyg I've been having pain when nursing on my left side. I looked under my nipple and there are tiny little white dots (three sets of four) on the areola, which are painful. When I push on them a little milk comes out. Do you know what this could be and how to prevent them? I've never experienced this with my other babies. Thanks!
Post by laceysbryan on Jan 26, 2015 16:17:53 GMT -5
How old is your LO? 10 days
Ongoing struggles? Staying awake for middle of the night feedings, getting frustrated/bored as feedings are lasting longer. Kinda feel like a dairy cow that's restricted to one place for most of the day. I also suck at burping.
Struggles that you have worked through? Keeping LO awake long enough for full feedings. A quick shoulder rub and cheek jiggle works most of the time!
How long do you plan/hope to BF? 1 year
Do you have a lot of support for BF IRL? Yes and no. DH is really supportive, so I feel lucky for that. My mom and sister are also really supportive, but they live several hours away. My ILs don't care - SIL didn't breast feed either of her kids, and my MIL only breastfed for 6 weeks. I'm nervous about how supportive my boss will be of pumping when I go back to work.
@amyg I've been having pain when nursing on my left side. I looked under my nipple and there are tiny little white dots (three sets of four) on the areola, which are painful. When I push on them a little milk comes out. Do you know what this could be and how to prevent them? I've never experienced this with my other babies. Thanks!
Post by shannjohnston on Jan 26, 2015 19:29:04 GMT -5
How old is your LO? 16 days
Ongoing struggles? Days and nights are still up in the air, and she's sleepy a lot so she will fall asleep while nursing, not get a full feed and then want more in another 1 1/2 hours.
Struggles that you have worked through? Nothing major. She latched just fine from the get go and my supply seems to be more than sufficient.
How long do you plan/hope to BF? 1 year? DS self-weaned around 11 months, so as long as she still wants the boob, I'll oblige.
Do you have a lot of support for BF IRL? Yes, though DH is not totally comfortable with me BFing in front of other people (specifically other men). I started to lay into him a bit about it, but realized I wasn't going to change his mind with one argument. I don't remember him being that concerned with me BFing DS though - odd.
Ongoing struggles? Not a struggle yet, but I need to increase my pumping to twice a day to build up my freezer stash.
Struggles that you have worked through? Falling asleep during feeds
How long do you plan/hope to BF? 1 year
Do you have a lot of support for BF IRL? Yes. I have yet to encounter a situation in which I felt uncomfortable BF. I also BF DD for 1 year so that may have laid the groundwork.
@saiven I will never understand people who think breastfeeding is gross. Ever.
How old is your LO? 19 days
Ongoing struggles? We are mostly doing well and he is gaining weight fantastically, but I have a few small struggles. For one, I have trouble with his hands getting in the way. Particularly in the MOTN he seems to give me a hard time latching on, preferring to either put his hands in his mouth or use them to claw my boobs. I also have fast let-down, particularly on the right side, which causes him to choke a little and cry. Finally, I get a sharp pain in either nipple for about 10 seconds when he first latches on, but it's worse on the right. And actually there often is a continuing discomfort on the right as he nurses...it's not really painful but it feels sort of scratchy (?? if that makes any sense). His latch looks okay to me so I've been trying to work on positioning to try to correct it, and also breathe deeply through it to try to relax. Definitely open to suggestions on this though...
Struggles that you have worked through? I lost a lot of blood after delivery and was severely anemic, so my milk was delayed coming in until days 5-6 (and he lost a good deal of his birth weight in between), but thankfully I had good advice and support at the hospital and was able to protect and encourage my supply by feeding, pumping, and supplementing through the first week and a half. As of Thursday (at 2 weeks old) he was 4.5 oz. above his birth weight, and as of Friday had officially outgrown his newborn clothes!
How long do you plan/hope to BF? At a minimum I would like to do six months but my hope is to go for a year so long as he's still interested. We'll see how I feel at that point too...I have a feeling I'll be getting ready to try for #2 so it might make sense to wean him then.
Do you have a lot of support for BF IRL? My husband is supportive but maybe not as educated about how it all works (i.e., supply and demand) as I'd like. My ILs are also very supportive; they live about a mile from us and at this point his mom has seen more of my boobs than I think either of us ever thought possible hahah! She BF'd all 5 of her kids though so she is not only supportive but also sometimes has good advice too.
I have no advice because I'm having so many of the same struggles but one thing that helps me feel less bad about the hands: when I complained about how he's always getting them in the way and sucking on them instead our lactation consultant told me, "well yeah, they were his only friends." So now, H and I tell him it's time to stop playing with his friends and eat
I have no advice because I'm having so many of the same struggles but one thing that helps me feel less bad about the hands: when I complained about how he's always getting them in the way and sucking on them instead our lactation consultant told me, "well yeah, they were his only friends." So now, H and I tell him it's time to stop playing with his friends and eat
This made me smile! I'll have to remember that when I get frustrated trying to latch her and hold her hands with my armpit. She always finds a way to grab onto my nipple too which isn't pleasant. Oh the things we go through to nurse our babies!
Post by megan81112 on Jan 27, 2015 16:52:03 GMT -5
How old is your LO? Jude is 4 weeks old
Ongoing struggles? No real struggles. Breastfeeding him is so much easier than it was to breastfeed my daughter.
Struggles that you have worked through? Just him blocking his face with his hands when we try to latch. I just make sure to hold the arms down to get it started.
How long do you plan/hope to BF? I would love to go as long as he's interested and my boobs cooperate. I try to pump so I have a stash to get by with for times I'm not able to feed. We are giving some formula. I'm ok with giving dad a chance to feed without using up my stash. Sometimes its just easier, depending on what we're doing that day.
Do you have a lot of support for BF IRL? Everyone is supportive. I pumped before going to dinner on Sunday because I wasn't comfortable feeding in front of my cousin and his girlfriend. Not sure why. I just wasn't sure how they'd feel and I wanted them to not feel awkward. I know its a dumb reason. I fed at the bowling alley on friday, but I used a cover. I never fed in public with my daughter, so its still pretty new to me. I'm just working on getting comfortable.
backseatdriver would you be upset if I copied this check in over at TB? I know people have been posting on the thread asking about having a check in, but nobody actually made a check in. I know some people there haven't moved over and could use a check in
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