could a dummy help me get dd to go 2 hours between breastfeeds

[robinredbreast]

shes 9 weeks old and my poor old nips are very sore
havent given her a dummy yet but thinking of it

[lyndyloo]

At 9 weeks my experience is that they are pretty much attached to your nips I'm afraid. It will calm down eventually. She needs to suckle alot to produce the amount she needs - it will sort itself out. The dummy may help a bit but the emphasis is on demand feeding as the best way to bf. i know it's hard but stick in there!

As for your nips - they shouldn't really be sore now. Is she latched on OK? Use lanisoh to help the soreness. Worked for me.

Honest she will eventually go for longer!

[whomovedmychocolate]

Oh dear, it is hard to start with isn't it. But it should be evening out now, so do have a look at your latching (or get someone else too). I found lying DD on pillows helped me get it right - also it's hands free so you can do other things while she nurses rather than getting tired arms.

If your nipples are sore, try some cabbage leaves in your bra between feeds (seriously, it works).

[notnowbernard]

Both my babies loved their dummies. DD1 had one from about 2 weeks, DD2 about 5 days. I gave them one because they wanted to feed all the time. DD2 especially (in evenings), and I found she would get all windy if i just let her feed constantly.

I BF both of them (DD1 ti 9m, still bf DD2 at 1yr), so don't think dummies interfered with their feeding patterns.

[SachaF]

Have to say I gave a dummy pretty early, and even in hospital the midwives encouraged him to suck his thumb as straight out he was a sucky baby, and after hourly feeds at night we had to find other ways to settle him as I was knackered.
I agree that sucking for milk will stimulate the milk flow and all will even out. However, is she sucking for milk or for comfort? I believe continuous sucking for comfort will make you sore (but I don't know that).
We got rid of the dummy at about 5-6 months quite easily if you are worried that she will become permanently attached - I got fed up of getting up every hour or so and plugging dummy back in.

[Beenleigh]

Try one and see. He'll soon reject it if he wants milk!

[ArtistFormerlyKnownAsSOH]

I second the suggestion to use Lansinoh cream after every feed- doesn't need to be wiped off before feeding.

I don't mean to be the bearer of bad tidings, but you may just have a hungry baby who simply wants milk. My dd is 16wks today and has never, ever gone more than 2hrs between feeds. She is definitely hungry- if I express she'll take 10oz from a bottle and still look for more. She's on the 98th centile for height and weight so is supporting a massive weight gain (started under the 50th).

If you try and find she won't take a dummy and continues to suck this much then have you tried a sling? Feeding on the move is a godsend.

All that said, she may love having a dummy and her feeds may settle!

[SenoraPostrophe]

It's true that she needs to suckle a lot and that babies do feed a lot at 9 weeks, but she should occasionally go for more than 2 hours (though she probably won't go 3 hours at every feed). I would try a dummy: if she's still hungry she'll cry.

[imnot27]

Oooooohhhhh yes, my first 2 had a dummy, as they were very sucky babies, - always wanted to be on my poor old boobies, just for comfort really. Dummy really worked for us!

[SenoraPostrophe]

artist: the amount of milk a baby takes from a bottle doesn't necessarily have any relation to how hungry he/she is. Most babies will down a bottle even when not hungry. I know, because that very assumption was the beginning of the end of bf for dd.

[ambercat]

I gave ds2 a dummy from about 6 weeks for the same reasons as you. Didn't use it all the time, just if i had to sort out the other kids. It worked really well, he only had it for about a month and then he settled into more of a routine.

(I bf him for 6 months altogether)

[SenoraPostrophe]

lol at "just used dummy for a few months".

I should probably warn you that ds2 is the most dummy addicted baby ever. we never leave the house without at least 3.

[ArtistFormerlyKnownAsSOH]

SP- I know how much she will take from a bottle is no indication of how she breastfeeds- kinda like being full up after a meal and still eating pudding, right? I should have explained myself better! To clarify (I make little to no sense atm!) I got so fed up of ILs saying 'she can't possibly have a tummy big enough to be feeding all that time' that I expressed milk to show them that she could take 10oz easily in one sitting, not bring any back up and then take a few ounces more. My ILs just couldn't accept that I know when my own dd is feeding, actively sucking and swallowing and when she is just comfort-seeking. The bottle analogy is not a very good one at all and I shouldn't use it really, but my point is that some babies are just very, very hungry. DD at 3.5 months is the size and length of an average 6month old and feeds an awful lot. If just looking for comfort she sucks her thumb, if hungry then nowt else will do.