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Infant feeding

Get advice and support with infant feeding from other users here.

Original poster

Could I possibly start to breastfeed 11 week old?

30 replies

sarahev · 28/01/2011 13:54

Hello,

This might be a long first post but I would appreciate any advice from anyone with the time to read my message.

My DD is 11 and a half weeks old and was born at 33+6 gestation. She was tube fed in hospital a mix of formula and my breast milk, and I wanted to breastfeed her but she had a small mouth and I have small flat nipples so was advised to use medela breast shields. She has always been a very sleepy baby and remains so and just didn't have the energy or desire to feed for long.

She came home after 3 weeks and was EBF for 10 days when she was weighed and concerns were raised as she was only gaining 11g per day and it had to be at east 20g. I was given 48 hours to improve this or she would have to go onto formula. I managed this, but was so stressed out that I began expressing and mix fed in bottles breast milk and formula until my pumped supply was good enough to feed exclusively expressed milk.

I did try to put her on the breast 1 day - but she lost 60g that day ( I had been prescribed baby weighing scales for a month to keep and eye on her weight gain) so lost all confidence and she has been on exclusively expressed breastmilk since then.

she was 2455g at birth and at 11 weeks exactly weighed 4760g so she has done really well on this regime and I should stress that I am committed to the cause if this is the best thing for her even though I must confess it is hard pumping and feeding, and I do have some ready made cartons for if we are out and about and I have no breastmilk with me.

Anyway - sorry this is long - but this afternoon she has been fussy at her last 2 bottles and was grizzling, so in desperation I took her to bed and put her mouth near my breast (no nipple shields and she seemed to start sucking!). I was very surprised but left her to it, and then burped her and switched sides when she stopped and again she started sucking.

Sooooooooooo - the though that I might be able to feed her normally has reared its head. Do any of you think that at almost 12 weeks I could manage to put her onto the breast or is it too late? Also - I was due to pump about 14.30, but as she has just fed, but may not have taken much, should I not pump and try her again in about an hour?? I have worked so hard to get my supply up - now pumping more than she eats daily, that I do not want to risk that, but it would be lovely to breastfeed at least some of the time.

I am completely out of my depth and no idea what to do - I must say that knowing how much she has eaten is a benefit of pumping - except then I know when she hasn't eaten much also.

Could any of you very experienced ladies offer some advice about what might be possible???

many thanks for any words of wisdom - I really appreciate your time if you have gotten this far!

OP posts:
Househunter · 28/01/2011 13:59

Wow - what a fantastic job you have done. I would think if she is now latching on you could continue to bf her but how about getting hold of the NCT breatfeeding line for some professional advice?

Checkmate · 28/01/2011 14:02

I agree with Househunter. Well done you - I've had a prem baby too, and establishing breastfeeding/expressing is so difficult under those circumstances, you are amazing.

Switching to breastfeeding from expressing does involve a bit of a leap of faith, since our boobs don't have ounces marked on them! But it sounds like it may work for you,keep at it.

CMOTdibbler · 28/01/2011 14:04

If she is happy to feed from you, then why not give it a try - theres nothing to lose. Give her every possibility to feed from you (can you have a babymoon where you both go to bed, and she has free access to your breast all day).

Are you in the UK ? It sounds like you have had a lot of stress put on you with the daily weighing (which isn't normal practice)

alfiemama · 28/01/2011 14:16

Well done you, your doing an amazing job.

I would think as long as your daughter is happy to bf then I would give it a go, she sounds like a natural at it.

Maybe speak to hv or a breast feeding counsellor, but I know you will get fab advice on here.

OhForBoonessSake · 28/01/2011 14:21

well done you!! you have doen a great job so far. i would say why not. if she is happy to feed from your breast then why not keep putting her on for all her feeds and the express straight after each feed so that you keep the supply up and also have EBM to give her should she decide she doesn't want the breast.

Original poster
sarahev · 28/01/2011 14:37

Thank you all for the support - no not in the UK - we are in France (but moving back in the next few months) and I think that has been part of the problem.

She was born at the English speaking hospital but as she was premature she went into the French system in a French speaking neonatal unit. I was very happy with the care she received, but the language barrier proved problematic and I was unable to talk to the breastfeeding support etc so I have been pretty much doing everything from mumsnet research (ie how to build up my supply pumping etc)

I just had another go by putting her to one side and pumping the other but she did not seem hungry so will try the same with the other side when she seems to want feeding..............

wish me luck and all advice gratefully received :)

OP posts:
japhrimel · 28/01/2011 15:18

Good luck! I'd keep pumping but offer her the breast first and pump & top her up afterwards.

philmassive · 28/01/2011 15:26

Just didn't want to read and run on this one. So pleased for you and you should be so proud of what you are doing and sticking with it through what must have been a really tough time.
Would just add my thoughts that neither of my ds's liked it when I pumped as they fed and it disturbed them I think, so maybe try to do it separately from the dd's feeding time. I know that's a big ask as you may well feel as though you've got your boobs out all day long for a few days Grin
Also, with each of mine when they were new I basically spent a full day feeding them whenever and wherever to encourage them to get used to the feel of feeding and also to stimulate supply. I can't see why this shouldn't work for your dd, even thought she is a little older, if you're in a position to feed out of 'routine' as such.
Really, really good luck.

CamperFan · 28/01/2011 17:32

I think that's lovely that she started feeding from you after all those weeks on bottles. I know how hard it is to keep expressing all the time (didn't have a prem baby, but had really bad thrush with DS1 and expressed for weeks before I could feed directly again). From my own experience with DS1 I didn't ditch the bottles completely, I don't think I had the confidence by then and I ended up stopping bfing at 5 months. Had I stopped using them I think I would have bf for longer. You've done really well, just take it one day at a time.

NotQuiteCockney · 28/01/2011 18:43

If your supply is enough for her, which it sounds like it is, I think you'd be fine to just switch to breast directly. At her age, I think she'd be pretty noisy if she was underfed.

Tiny newborns get sleepy when underfed, so you'd want to ensure she was still behaving normally, for her, and having some alert periods.

You've done v well keeping your supply up all this time, it'd be marvellous if you could just switch to direct feeding, it's so much less work.

Please pay attention to your nipples, though, as your daughter might not latch right, and you might get damaged a bit. (not latching right also would mean she would get less milk)

theidsalright · 28/01/2011 18:55

wow! amazing you, amazing baby.

Your dedication to your daughter is making me feel all wobbly. I really hope it all works out for you.

mumnerves · 28/01/2011 20:02

Hi DS is 6 weeks and to cut a long story short was expressing as well. This week I decided to take a babymoon and just breastfeed. I was nervous too, but most times had about 40mls expressed in a bottle next to me to offer him after every feed and he refused most times or just drank 10mls or so. That was how I knew he was feeding well and was full, it also put my mind at ease. HTH and good luck, I know exactly how you are feeling but it was a great feeling when I was chucking bags of expressed milk in the fridge away because I never got round to using it :)

120 · 28/01/2011 20:08

Just wanted to say how amazing! Well done you and good luck with the feeding.

doricpatter · 28/01/2011 20:15

Can't bed anything useful but just wanted to give you a big "Yay!" for doing so, so well :)

ascouser · 29/01/2011 03:01

well done you.
think the advice here...i would agree with it. It may be the case that your daughter gets her fill more efficiently when she feeds directly from the breast. A baby will do a much better job (when latched well) than a piece of plastic sucking away robotically... You'll have all the lovely bonding hormones helping you as well.
Just one thing...Daily weighing?? sounds a lot, can become all about the gms... and of course it sort of is. But it's also important that baby is feeding as often as needs, feeds for as longs as needs, settled in between and is pee'ing and poo'ing.

Cosmosis · 29/01/2011 11:00

well done!

A fiend of mine had issues bfing at first and was expressing ad mix feeding, and she managed to get bfing again at about the same time - she thinks it was when her baby's mouth got bigger so was able to latch on better. She is very happily mix feeding now :)

I think a call to a bf helpline might be a good idea, but you've done great!

geordieminx · 29/01/2011 11:13

If you can keep this bumped the hopefully tiktok will see it, and she'll be able to advise.

I would try and resist the urge to weigh her every day, as long as she is doing plenty if wet nappies, and is sucking then she is getting enough IMo

Good luck! It's lovely to see someone so committed to breast feeding despite it being hard

littleshinyone · 29/01/2011 11:23

bump

really well done both of you!

SoozleQ · 29/01/2011 11:42

I switched to exclusively feeding from the boob at 11 weeks after feeding totally via pumping and bottles or shields from quite early on. I hadn't been giving formula as ours was a latch issue rather than a weight problem. I have only had her weighed once since switching a month ago and her weight gain seems fine.

Good luck and I hope it works out for you as it is so much nicer just to be able to feed from the boob whenever they want it.

geordieminx · 29/01/2011 16:41

Bump for tictok

geordieminx · 29/01/2011 22:57

Bump

ascouser · 30/01/2011 01:23

bump

sam12 · 30/01/2011 02:03

Hi. Dd is almost 16 weeks and has been fed expressed milk only due to latching problems. My bf lady was very positive that you can switch over to bf at any time and was full of stories of people she had worked with who had done it at even six months.
You have built up a good supply and your dd obviously is trying to bf so go for it! Good luck Sorry have no advice on how to make the switch as still pumping myself but will be watching for any advice you are given by those in the know as I may be able to make the change myself. Although I must admit I'm quite happy to keep on expressing for as long as I need.

Original poster
sarahev · 30/01/2011 11:20

wow - thank you all so much for the encouragement and advice.

I have tried a few more times now - having most success when we have used nipple shields. The biggest problem seems to be that she loses interest before she has sucked ling enough for my let down. obviously with bottles the milk comes immediately, but when she has achieved it she does seem to stay latched for a while and suck. She is always happy to take milk from a bottle afterwards though, and this is a baby who will spit out the bottle when she has had enough so I am not sure how efficient she is feeding from me.

Will keep trying though and see if she gets better at it!

One question - if we are using nipple shields - should I try and remove them half way through after my nipples have been pulled out a bit?

Thank you all again for all your help :)

OP posts:
Cosmosis · 30/01/2011 11:46

could you try a bit of hand expression first to get the let down going for her?

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