Gaaaah! no-one picking up bf helplines so am turning to here...
DD is 7wks, has only put on 3 oz in 2weeks. Was horribly unsettled and couldn't figure out why. The unsettled bit seemed to stress me out and then she started sleeping a lot, missing feeds etc and it fed into a vicious cycle...
So...I gave her a bottle and the difference was immediate and amazing! Since Saturday I've been topping her up with 2/3oz 2-4 times a day. She was weighed monday which was when they noticed the poor gain (has now slipped from 50th - 9th centile
Obviously she now prefers the bottle! I've been in bed with her for 48 hrs trying to get supply up. I was shattered by the end of yesterday. I pump when I can, usually 2 times a day, but never get more than 1oz...
She is pretty sleepy, I think due to the formula which she guzzles so then its harder for me to bf her, just feels like comfort sucking.
Other than just switch to formula - what can I do?!
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Infant feeding
Expert bf help needed! Have I cocked up breastfeeding?
Marymaymay · 18/08/2016 11:30
I just remember I pumped during a strike thinking the same and had nothing then for actual feeding... there is an excellent fb support page with LOs, Bf counsellors etc.. I will pm you but whatever happens you will have done your best, just worth getting correct advice. Congratulations on your adored baby 
I'm so sorry I read that back and it sounds a bit boasty in the first sentence - that's not at all how j meant it to sound! 
I just meant that I got loads of milk from being permanently engorged on a morning. I couldn't do it after a while because DD took more and then from both sides so I couldn't pump before her feed! She needed to go first and then I'd pump afterwards. I hope that makes sense!
My most trusted midwife told me that top-up feeds can sadly be the kiss of death for bf-ing (but ultimately baby getting fed is the priority which is why they advise them).
So I would say you need to get your little DD back on the boob as much as you can including letting her comfort suck as she will draw milk in tiny drops too I would think. Put her on the boob every 2 hours day and night (
) and avoid bottles all together if you can face it (I suspect she'll protest). Stay on the sofa or in bed if you can (can someone look after your older DD?) because rest is important for milk production. As is keeping hydrated. As are calories - get lots of chocolate in and get a box set to watch.
It will be exhausting for a couple of days I would imagine but your DD will be the best thing to get your supply back up (as opposed to a pump) and you can spread out the feeds and balance things out once she's back used to BF-ing. But it may be a couple of days hard slog to get there.
If no improvement I would try to see a cranio osteopath as this may help her if she has a poor suck reflex.
Otherwise, don't battle - feeding your baby full stop is the best thing. There is nothing at all wrong with switching to formula and if it causes less stress for you and for her then it's the best decision all round.
Good luck.
As I suggested for the op really smelly I always offered breast first and would offer as much as possible. If dd was still unsettled or rooting around I topped up with a few ozs of ff and would then express myself to try and boost my supply. When dd was around 10 weeks I suddenly began to feel 'fuller' and noticed dd was needing less and less formula so stopped the top ups.
I know its often dismissed on these threads but personally I also feel that increasing how much I ate and drunk helped my supply, I aimed to drink a pint of water for every feed and ate as much as possible 
Every baby and mum is different though and what works for one doesn't necessarily work for someone else!
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