7 days but milk hasn't come in?

[FluffyJawsOfDoom]

dd was born 7 days ago via EMCS but my milk hasn't come in yet - at least, I've not had the typical engorgement iyswim - no pain, no full/heavy boobs, no boulders in my holders - though she's dirtying enough nappies that she seems to be getting what she needs from me at the moment.

I'm getting increasingly worried that it's just not going to come at all. I've bought a manual pump but there was nothing to pump out after her last feed bar a few drops which didn't even make it down into the bottle (I only pumped 2-3 minutes each side, as I understand excessive pumping isn't recommended this early on).

Is there anything else I can do? At the moment I'd really appreciate some reassuring stories, too - I desperately want to bf but it's starting to look like nothing's doing :(

Ok.

Firstly not everyone gets engorged breast, leaking etc so that initself is not something to worry about.

Pumping is not at all in indication of supply so again that does not mean you have no milk.

What do her nappies look like? Has the poo been changing from the black merconium to a nice yellow curry?

If the poo is fine, she is wetting fine, she is happy between feeds and she is putting on weight then everything is most likely fine. I would however suggest having a word with your MW as internet cannot replace someone in RL.

I agree with everything Indith said (usually do tbh).

When I had dd, when my milk came in I had the rock hard, huge, painful, red boobs.

With ds I had no engorgement, no pain, no heat, no swelling, just seamless change from colostrum to milk. I knew it had changed because his nappies changed and I could see the milk in his mouth, weight gain continued apace, he was clearly transferring milk well etc etc.

I didn't have engorgement following my EMCS. I did hand express, which showed that my mik was most definitely in though. Hand expression is more recommended than mechanical pumping and is much gentler on the boobies! But I second Indiths advice on the nappies as your best indicator.

If you try to hand express a little then if it were just colostrum it would be sticky and yellow but if it is milk it will be, well, creamy milky colour. Your best bet if you want to express a little to set your mind at rest is to do it off the other breast while feeding as your let down will be stimulated and you should find it flows a bit more easily.

So my milk may actually be here anyway?

The stuff that's coming out is creamy white like cow's milk. Dd was posseting yellow fluid to begin with but I assumed the change in colour was because she was jaundiced early on (this is now greatly improved though not entirely gone) and not that that was the colour of colostrum changing to milk.

The first midwife (day 3) was "concerned" I'd not had any signs of engorgement/milk coming in; midwife 2 (day 6, yesterday) said it was very unusual but not unheard of for milk to be delayed after an emcs. Neither offered advice on what i could do and both were very pushed for time, tbh. I've just been working myself up as time's gone on!

fluff I thought this would be you. As others upthread have said, your best indicator that your DD is getting what she needs from you is dirty nappies. Do try a little hand expressing if you're worried, there are videos on YouTube showing you how if you're unsure yes really!.

FWIW, I never had typical engorgement either. After a few months I started getting a 'filling up' sensation, but prior to that the only indication that I had milk was the fact that DD was weeing and pooing regularly. I did have a very good pump though, which gave some reassurance. Didn't use it till I felt bfing was properly established, I guess about 6-8 weeks for me?

BTW my DD could go for days without pooing, but when she did go oh god did she go. The LaLeche advisers told me that was normal for bf babies, although at the time it felt like poomageddon.

Oh and we didn't really have too much of a meconium nappy as she went in my womb - her nappies are sort of chicken tikka and we're getting lots of wet ones and 3-4ish pooey ones a day atm

My milk took forever to come in and I got myself in a total state of anxiety. So, firstly, I never had 'engorgement' - my milk came in on Day 6, very gradually. DD's nappies changed from meconium to brown to yellow and I could see/hear her swallowing the milk. She also started to gain weight from that point too. So, what's happening in terms of your DD's nappies and weight?

Couple of other things, IF, your milk hasn't come in - firstly, it's not uncommon if you've had a C-section for the milk to be delayed. Also, it can be a sign that there may be a bit of retained placenta (I believe). For me, looking back, I think my lack of milk was due to the shock and trauma of the birth. It was when I was 'de-briefing' to a friend, a week after the birth, detailing all the horrors and general gory details, that my milk began to appear. I have no idea if this is something that may be applicable, but for me, talking through the whole thing was a godsend.

Thanks smegs :)

dd had lost 6oz when weighed on day 3, but she's not been weighed since (due again on Friday i think).

freckled I feel a bit traumatised too tbh! Iyetas just so far from what I expected to happen, and was such a car crash, I'm having trouble getting my head around it. I feel a bit like I'm in mourning for my serene waterbirth! So the stress could be hindering production... As i said upthread, her nappies are pooey and abundant, about 3-4 chicken tikka type nappies a day plus wet ones.

I'm just going to echo the other posts above. I had an EMCS 5 weeks ago. I did not experience any engorgement at all. My baby spent a week in SCBU due to feeding issues so I had to pump from the get go, perhaps that's the reason for no engorgement. I don't think it's anything to worry about :)

Congratulations on the birth of your baby :)

Numerous chicken tikka nappies = milk is in. Carry on as you are. Gee, those midwives weren't exactly helpful or reassuring, were they?

It sounds as though things are going really well from your descriptions of her nappies etc :)

Apparently engorgement is pretty unheard of in cultures where they carry their babies and nurse them the moment they grizzle. It is only us odd westerners with our ideas of spacing feeds and so on who allow ourselves to get engorged.

That's really interesting indith because I've been putting dd on the boob as much as possible (more than she's been demanding) to try and flush the jaundice out. Maybe that accounts for the lack of engorgement - I just thought it was normal and no engorgement = no milk

Thanks so much for all your reassurance everyone, I feel so so much better about it all :) :)

:) You really, honestly sound like bf is going fabulously well. If your milk was not in then the nappies would not be as they are, the jaundice would not have improved as it has and your baby would be letting you know that there was something amiss.

Thanks so much :)

It was such a pleasant surprise when I had no engorgement with ds. I kept both dc close, coslept, fed as often as possible with both but was engorged first time round, not the second. I think ds was just more efficient.

Never had a tikka nappy though. Mine were more of the korma variety...

How are you feeling today? Sounds like you've been through it a bit. My first was supposed to be a serene home waterbirth. It was the total opposite, bit of a frightening emcs. If you want to talk about it, feel free to PM me. The Birth Trauma Association and Sheila Kitzinger are v good and MN was a bit of a lifeline for a very long time.

Congratulations.

With number 1 it was all a bit new and I did the "you can't possibly be hungry again" and passed him over to his daddy. Fast forward to number 3 and he got a nipple stuck in his mouth the minute he opened it. Actually I still try to do that but am training myself to stop because I keep getting bitten .

If you feel your baby is getting enough milk and your midwife is happy with weight etc then it's probably come in without all the symptoms.
With my elective cs my milk genuinely didn't come in and my daughter was losing weight and unhappy, it took 6 weeks to be listened to and re-scanned to find I had retained placenta by which time I was mix feeding. My milk came in the day after my d&c. Just so you're aware it is a possibility as I was told you didn't get retained placenta with a cs.

I didn't get any engorgement with DC2 because I was sticking a nipple in every time he opened his mouth, so I didn't notice my milk come in either. But as everyone's said, let the nappies be your guide. If it's coming out, then it's going in!

I thought I'd update you all - dd was weighed today (day 10) and she's back over her birth weight! So my milk's definitely in and dd is doing well.

Thanks for all your reassurance, it really made me stress less about it all :)

Well done! Fabulous stuff :)