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BF help
Jack is just about 8 weeks. I nurse on demand and right now he's eating every 2-3 hours. He's been clustering at night for the past few nights so I've had a few marathon sessions which have been testing my patience. It's not new to me though - I had about a two weeks of on and off cluster feeding around 3-5 weeks which was a real drag.
Currently I nurse on both sides. He'll drain one side until it becomes very soft and if I try and express milk only a tiny drop or two comes out. He still shows signs of obvious hunger even after burping so I put him on the other side. He'll actually start to get frustrated and grunt and pull off towards the end, I guess because there isn't enough milk coming to satisfy him but this is much more noticeable during evening feedings.
I'm also not sure if I have an oversupply problem and if it's possible only on one boob. Occasionally, after nursing him on the right side and then switching him to the left, he gulps and pulls off like there is too much milk flow but after giving him a few seconds and then putting him back on, he's ok and resumes nursing normally. The left is my dud boob when pumping but I'm not sure if that applies when nursing since I obviously can't see how much he's getting. I'm not sure I could try block feeding either because he just isn't having it staying on one side once the milk flow stops. He also doesn't do the gagging/pulling off on the right super boob so again, I'm not sure I actually have an oversupply. I also only pump once after the morning feeding to get a stash and I typically get 3-5 oz.
I don't really have any specific questions, just looking for comments/advice about what I'm doing, if anyone has experienced something similar, what to do with fussiness, etc.
#1 12.11.11
#2 10.23.13 EDD
Re: BF help
He is adorable! My daughter is 11 weeks old and I'm BFing too. Do you make sure you switch back and forth with which breast you start feeding him on everytime? I know both the LC at the hospital and my ped. said you always start feeding on the side you stopped feeding the last time. I think that is supposed to help even out your supply.
For a while my daughter was having serious issues on my left side - she would nurse on my right side like a champ but was a pain in the butt latching on my left side no matter which way I tried to hold her or what trick i tried. I just kind of stuck with it - sometimes she gets super squirmy and frustrated but I just give her a little break and then try again and she usually calms down.
Anyhoo - I'm not sure I have any real helpful advice, but good luck. I am trying to stick with the EBF as long as I can, but pumping at work is definitely not the most fun thing for me so I'm hoping to stick it out for atleast another 3 months and then reevaluate from there. I also just had a case of mastitis on my left side - totally not fun and totally not helping encourage me to keep going!
This is what I was going to mention. I used a ponytail holder on my wrist to remind me which side to start on
I also had an oversupply and Charlie loved it but Sam hated it. When I would let down and the flow was strong, Sam would turn away - so I just started expressing it until it slowed and then she was fine
I had an oversupply in both breasts, so pumping in the am before she woke up helped a lot. GL!
DS 3.12.08
DD 7.11.09
DD 8.01.13
do you notice that you have over-supply more at one time than another? mine is/was first thing in the morning. i would try to get up and pump a little so that ds wouldn't get squirted in the face or drown at the same time dh was changing his diaper. it only took 5mins to get the crazy flow out and it really helped build my stash (seriously- i was getting like 4oz in those 5 mins). at 9 months in i am finally at a point where i can feed him in the morning without pumping during the week- if he sleeps in for me on the weekend that is a whole different story.
ditto pp about switching up the side you start feeding on.
i think you are doing great! keep on pushing through the cluster feeding/growth spurts- they aren't fun. you got this jend!!
Hi! Excited to hear you're still nursing. Great job!
I had wicked oversupply AND overactive letdown and serious output differences per boob. My righty was my trusty superboob and my left was my milk dud. In fact, when I weaned, I retired the left boob weeks before I stopped on the right.
So a few things. I had to block feed b/c L was having gas, frothy green poops, and was choking at the boob. I did it for a few days and never went back to two- boobed feedings. It worked out great for me. I hated feeding on both sides b/c I always ended up with one half empty boob.
It sounds like you could have an overactive letdown (aka OALD). It's like trying to drink at a firehydrant and it can be frustrating. You can look it up on kellymom.com and see if the little guy has any of those symptoms. Some signs would be choking on milk at first letdown, pulling off, crying, etc. One way to help this is hand express into a burp cloth or towel until your letdown comes. Then put him on. Since letdown can take a few minutes it's best to initiate feeding when you know he's getting ready to be hungry but before he starts to cry. It's hard to hand express when you have a baby that's freaking out.
Another thing that can help is to lay back when you're feeding him. Your milk has to work against gravity and it can help slow the flow from an OALD.
Re: pumping. If you believe you have oversupply (and it often comes hand in hand with OALD), pumping is not going to help. The purpose of pumping to build a stash is essentially to create an oversupply, so it actually can make things worse. If you think you have OS/OALD, lay off the pump for a few days or a week to allow your supply to regulate. My LC recommended this to me. I was able to do this and still build a great stash.
Some other thoughts - when he finishes on the first boob, squeeze your nip a little and look at the milk. What does it look like? Runny and greyish or thick and creamy (sorry HW)? You want to make sure he's staying on there long enough to get the thick and creamy hindmilk. This will make him stay full longer. If he's not getting enough hindmilk he's going to be hungry sooner.
Finally, the cluster feeding is totally normal - he's probably going through a growth spurt. But remember, your boob is never truly empty. As long as he's sucking, you're producing. The flow may slow down but it's ok to leave him on b/c that tells your body it needs to up production. Make sense? I always remember my supply would be HUGE after growth spurts b/c she was nursing so much that it took a week or so for my production to decrease again to normal levels.
HTH. Sorry so long. This was sort of stream of consciousness!
Yes, even if I feed on both sides, I always start on the opposite side that I started on.
And what's weird is that he only does the pulling away in the evening on the left side (no matter if I start on that boob or switch to that one later), so I'm not sure if it's just an evening fussiness thing?
Thanks for the words of encouragement, I wrote that last night at the height of my frustration level and just writing it out seemed to help me feel better, as do hearing your similar stories.
It could all change next week anyway as I go back to work and he'll be bottle-fed during the day. Hopefully this won't bring on latching issues!
#1 12.11.11
#2 10.23.13 EDD
Could be just an evening fussiness thing. Are you always nursing him in the same place in the evening? Is there something environmental that might be making him uncomfortable? For instance, when he's feeding on the left side and you're in your rocker is he being blasted by air from a heating vent? Is there something on the nursing pillow that might be bothering him?
Also, have you guys introduced a bottle yet? Stick with the newborn slowest flow nipple. We actually never moved up to the next level and never had a problem going back and forth between breast and bottle. He actually might want the boob more since he's going to be away from it during the day. Lots of babies reverse cycle when mom goes back to work - they don't eat much from the bottle during the day but they nurse like crazy at night and/or when you're together.
Good luck - you're doing great! And if you do have OS/OALD, it can be uncomfortable but it's fixable and it's not the worse problem to have.
There is lots of great advice here, and all I can add is babies are weird. They just are! What makes them happy one day pisses them off the next.
We went through all sorts of weird breastfeeding things -- oversupply, a nursing strike around 8 months -- and as soon as you figure out how to tackle it, it ends anyway.
DS was not into my left side from early evening on -- it was my dud boob, and I think he was just over working for it that time of day.
Just keep nursing, and know this too shall pass.
We never had nipple confusion, and DS had bottles from day 2 to supplement with BM before his tongue tie was clipped. Like LD, we stuck with level one nipples all they way through.
DS actually did not reverse cycle --he never would sleep at daycare, so he was eating a lot. Pretty much every two hours. It was a total source of stress for me because it was very hard to keep up with. In retrospect, I wish I would have been more forceful with daycare about find other ways to comfort him, offering the pacis after each bottle.
LD - I nurse him on the couch in the living room which is where I always do it. I am still using the Brest Friend pillow (which is a whole other story) so I can't really sit in a rocker/chair.
I'm using the pillow for two reasons - I can't yet get the hang of holding him correctly to nurse which rolls into the second issue of that he still doesn't always latch correctly so I've got to readjust him/my boob now and then. I think once he gets head/neck control it might make it easier.
Also, he was introduced to bottles in the very beginning because we had major latch issues. Since about 2-3 weeks, he's been almost EBF and only gets a bottle when I am away from him or if we are out in a social setting where I don't want to have to nurse. Luckily, he has no issues switching back and forth between bottle and breast.
Yes, Amy, babies ARE weird. I wish they came with an owner's manual!
And yes, I think at this point, he's just frustrated with the left boob by the end of the day.
As for the reverse cycling, I'm also slightly concerned with this. My SIL is watching him M, Th, F and my mom and stepdad are watching him Tu, W. My SIL has two kids (2 and 4) so she's got recent baby experience but she's a SAHM and always nursed instead of giving bottles so I'm hoping there is no issues with overfeeding (since he sucks bottles down and always acts hungry right after). On the other side, my mom and stepdad haven't had any baby experience in many years and if my stepdad had his way, he'd sleep with Jack on the couch all day, so I'm also worried about him not eating enough during the day and then clustering like mad at night. I'm definitely just going to see how next week goes before I worry about trying to correct any issues.
#1 12.11.11
#2 10.23.13 EDD
I only brought up reverse cycling as a possibility. I never dealt with it. You're more likely to have to deal with overfeeding then reverse cycling.
There are some things you can print out at kellymom on how to bottle feed a breast fed baby to help educate the people that will be watching him. Help them find other ways to comfort him as well.
Going back to work can be a tough transition. It's totally normal to be worried and upset. I still have my days where I miss the kid so bad. Just take it a day at a time and know that eventually you will get into a routine. You will all be just fine.
I really have nothing new to offer, but I wanted to say I had a forceful letdown on rightie. I felt so bad because it was almost like Huntface was drowning in milk! I started pumping a little before I would feed from that side to help steady the stream and it seemed to work.
Keep going and good luck!!