Any side lying bf tips?

[JanieLovesLuckySocks]

My little one is just 5 days old and while in hospital the mw were great at helping me to feed while side lying but I just can't master it at home. I'd love to be able to do this for at least one night feed but just can't get ds to latch on in this position.

Ant tips would be much appreciated

I used to lie them on a pillow to get the height when they were tiny.

Yes! Make sure the baby's nose is level with your nipple when you start, so they have to "look up" to reach the nipple.

Bring the baby to the breast, not the breast to the baby - if you're lying on your left side, use your right arm to scoop their body and pull them in towards you. Keep them low down - that looking up is so important. Make sure you're both on your side.

Use your lower boob for now but once you get the hang of it you can do the "mawbroon roll" (lovingly named after a MNer!) and sort of roll over angling the top one at them, but don't worry about this yet.

Thanks for the tips :) I'll be sure to give this another go tonight. He may have been too high up after all

I tend to use a couple of fingers to pull the skin and point my nipple 'up', if you see what I mean, so he's not searching for it in my armpit.

Also make sure his body is facing you, not just his head, my ds struggled when he tried to lie on his back and turn his face to me. The midwife actually wedged a pillow behind him so I didn't have to hold him in position which made it easier.

Worth persevering, if he turns out not to be a great sleeper, feeding lying down is a godsend so you don't wake up 100%!

Good luck and congrats on the new baby!

Oh yes definitely make sure nipple is accessible and not hiding away somewhere!

Thank you so much, the pillow behind tip is great as I found I was trying to hold him in place.

Fx I can master it :)

I think I've been doing this wrong... I was lying on my left side, with my left arm underneath dd, with her head on my arm... So if I hold her with my right arm where does my left arm go? I thought she wasn't feeding very well...

Mummy if it's working for you both I wouldn't rush to change. When the mw showed me (on my left side) I had my left arm under my pillow, out of use.

Mummymog, i used to feed dd on my arm too when she was small, now she's bigger i tuck my arm under the pillow or kind of put it above her head and down her bavk (so she's feeding in a circle made by my arm)
Do whatever works for you.