I don't know if anyone can help but I hope so and thanks in advance.... it is rather long.....
So I finally had my little girl 9 days over due after a difficult pregnancy - extreme MS all the way through, and early labour started at 34 weeks - so had been 1cm dilated for weeks of bed rest etc, and then we went over! The birth turned out to be rather traumatic, with no pain relief since gas and air is banned in germany (where I live) and the bloody midwife didn't check my cervix often enough and I missed my epidural window. I ended up pushing for nearly 2 hours and then the placenta got stuck after all. They wanted to avoid an epidural or full anaesthetic at the end as this would be 'better for me' and gave me a local and shoved there hand in to remove left over placenta. I cannot describe how painful this was and kept screaming for them to stop. I then needed quite a few stitches...
Fast forward to the ward. She was hungry straight away, and I could not get her to latch on, eventually we tried with nipple shields to some success at suckling. Nothing would come out, I know this is quite normal though at first. She screamed and screamed. This went on for 3 days - in between I tried EVERYTHING they suggested - pumping every 2 hours, latching her on nipple shields when she screamed and screamed, every position possible. My nipples were expressing blood into the pump by the end. So I asked to use formula to at least give her something. She lapped it up - but the would only let me give it her via a syringe and small amounts on my little finger, I was also not allowed to give her a dummy in hospital. They then got me to use a syringe on my breast through the shield to mimic breast feeding, again she screamed a lot but got some milk in from the formula. She ended up very gassy from all the crying and this caused her more pain.
I finally got her home yesterday and she was still crying. We decided we would try a bottle out of desperation- we gave her basically double what we were 'allowed' in hospital - she had the whole lot and slept for 6 hours. The same pattern has been repeated today - sleeping for longer and just totally satisfied and content. So back to the BFing - I have had acupuncture today to help the milk come in still - nothing there - about 1/4 of a teaspoon I got from the pump and breast very soft etc, red raw nipples still. Still been pumping away in vain and it's become agony, I vomited earlier after the acupuncture, and been having hot and cold sweats all day and just sobbing on and off. I know BFing is hard, I would do anything for her, and indeed during the pregnancy did it all by the book including totally avoiding alcohol etc. But this just isn't working and I know that Hashimotos (under active thyroid really) and my anaemia is probably impeding the production. I just feel really sad about it all - all the medical staff keep telling me that it is not very often women don't produce milk - but it seems this way for me.
I just really wanted some perspective on it all - has anyone else had this and did you overcome it? I find her on the formula so great now she is satisfied but after so much 'breast is best' and me being determined to do the right thing after a miscarriage it's become all to much. I worry I wont bond as well with bottles? but then when she just screamed at me this was so awful too.
Thanks if you have stuck with me so far...!
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Infant feeding
Thyroid & anaemia - no milk and desperate ....
22 replies
Teaandflapjacks · 29/08/2013 19:05
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