Please help me give up breastfeeding. I am desperate and so upset.

[Artijoke]

DS is 3.5 months. I've had mastitis requiring antibiotics twice. I finished the last course 10 days ago and woke this morning with an agonising breast and crippling fever. With my second child this kept happening but I wouldn't give up. Basically I was ill for most of her first year.

I promised myself I'd move to bottles if I got mastitis more than once with DS. I need to for my health and my ability to look after my other two kids. However, all I get told is "don't drop any feeds while you are ill" I am always ill, so when do I drop feeds? Nobody will help me and I feel trapped needing to feed. I also feel v guilty about giving up at 3.5 months when I fed my others for a year. I need to let go of that guilt but I'm finding it harder than I thought.

I feel dreadful. Please help.

International board certified lactation consultant. HV is unlikely to have expertise to check tt, especially if posterior. My DD's was missed by midwife and several bf peer supporters before I got her checked by a tt specialist. Had to go private as GP refused my request for referral to NHS tt clinic because DD was gaining weight ok. Despite my ravaged nipples and repeated mastitis

Hi Arti, they are highly trained lactation consultants.

www.lcgb.org/

4 people missed my sons TT, midwife, bf counsellor, dentist, oral maxillofacial surgeon. Not until I saw a paediatric dentist, did he find it.

Don't give up bf on a bad day. Even if you don't carry on bf, if your dd has a TT, it should be treated as it will lead to problems in later life.

I wonder how many other women who end up feeding on one side are forced into it because of this reason?

Agree with the others, whatever you decide you need to get your Lo checked for tongue tie. Tt can cause problems with bottle feeding and eating solids, so just swapping to formula won't necessarily be the end of all of your troubles

Here is the website for the uk lactation consultants

Oh and sadly its very common for HVs and GPs to tell you that your baby doesn't have tt and later found out that they did in fact have tt all along...