Some questions from a first timer keen to bf

[malachismum]

Hello. Well Flynn arrived a week early and seems to be feeding well. My nipples feel like they are toughening up and think my milk had come in.
Do you always leak milk? I dont seem to be leaking at all?? He was born on Thursday and is feeding for anything between 15mins and 1 hour at a time, however is not feeding constantly.
My boobs are hard and a bit lumpy, all normal? Cant seem to get him to sleep in his crib and am having more success with him sleeping next me in bed.... Am I wrong?
Really any advice at all about the early days would be wonderful.
Thanks

ok I had LOADS of milk but I never leaked so I don't think that is neccesarily a problem

couldn't get DD to sleep anywhere other than on me for ages, he (my friend has a Flynn - it's a great name!) is still tiny and if sleeping next to you in bed is working for you & you're happy then do it - anything for an easy life (obviously making sure that you're following all the guidlines on safe co-sleeping). I was desperate for DD to sleep in bed with me, no luck though grrr..there seem to be a lot of people who cosleep on here and so can breastfeed whilst barely waking up - sounds great

boobs should settle down once his demand and your supply start matching each other

I think the main thing in the early days is to remember that they are so tiny and barely used to being separate for you and just feed whenever he wants it - which may lead to a rather eccentric 'routine' but it's far easier to do that instead of trying to impose some arbitrary routine/gap between feeds etc.

Congratulations on Flynn's arrival!

I didn't start leaking milk until after the milk came in on day 4/5. Before that you just have colostrum which (in my case) I didn't see but it was obviously there being sucked out by the baby!

Just from my own experiences it sounds like everything you say is completely normal (re: baby sleeping next to you) at the moment. He's an alien on a strange planet and just needs to be close to you while he gets used to it!!

Good luck and well done for your determination to bf - sounds like you're doing really well!

hiya, malachismum and congrats. breastfeeding sounds normal but i started leaking everywhere about week 2 or 3, just enjoy this time because if you do start leaking it can be messy, (tbh i didnt leak i gushed). I didnt want dd to sleep away from me after a midwife tucked her up with me just after she was born. I now have a bedside cot where she sleeps till early hours when she comes into bed to feed then weboth nod off.

sounds normal. all that lumpiness is milk inside the milk sinuses. don't panic when suddenly you discover that it's not like that anymore and they feel soft. it means that your body has learnt to match supply with demand.

tuck him up, keep him close, let your dp or anyone else cuddle him. that is what they need for the early weeks.

i only leaked a little bit and only for about 2 - 3 weeks.

Thank you. I think I need to re-check my latch position as I can sometimes hear a clicking noise which Ive just read is not a good sign....bugger. However Flynn is sucking short and fast then long and slow and seems to swallowing. Sleeping in between and seems very contented, is also throwing up milk in little bits so I know hes getting it. Im slightly worried about the sleeping as I dont want to get into a "bad Habbit" or so everyone keeps telling me.
Thank you again and Im sure Ill be on with more questions tomorrow.

You tend to leak if you get a let down and your breasts get too full. Hes proberbly just draining them well. Sounds like youve got the bf off to a really good start. My son slept in the bed with me untill he was 6months old i loved the closeness so did he. Hes always been a very happy content baby and i think felling warm and safe close to me helped. I did find it wierd when he went into his cot and own room though. Found i couldnt sleep very well at first but were both used to it now.

Lorna was the transition from your bed to his cot hard for him? How long did it take?

Malachismum - I really wouldn't worry about the 'bad habits' thing. In my opinion, the first 6 weeks (at least) is just about survival and doing what is easiest and feels right for you and the baby. He's too young to form habits and you can deal with anything you want to change further down the line.

hi congratulations on Flynn's birth

I too didn't leak until about day 5 then it was milk city, still is a bit (DD2 is 6 months now). My boobs only get hard now when she hasn't fed for a long while which is rare.

On the sleeping thing do what you feel is right, with DD1 I was on here saying "have I created a rod for my own back" by cosleeping with her. She slept with us until 9 months part of the night then went into her own cot in her own room at 15 months no bother at all. I loved sleeping with her and it meant we all got the best nights sleep possible.

With DD2 I bought a bedside cot and it is fab, one side drops under the cot and it's the same height as your bed so is basically an extension of your bed, DD2 can snuggle up and feed but there is more room for us all, it's great can't recommend it high enough.

Enjoy the early days they will go past in a whizz!

Yeh i found it quite hard, i just felt uneasy but i got used to it soon enough. The reason i put him in his cot was to try to get him to sleep through because at 8months he was still waking up to 6 or 7 times a night for feeds. It bacame a habit for him...everytime he stured or woke slightly hed need me to feed him back off to sleep. So i had to really.

I tried putting him in his cot at 6months but hed end up in our bed for most of the night. When he got to 8months i made sure he was still in his cot in the morning and he is waking less in the night now.

don't pay too much attention to people talking about bad habits, your baby has just finished being carried 24/7 in a constant climate. surely he must be surprised with being put down. don't start worrying about habits now. read 'the no gry sleep solution' for gentle tips for bf babies - and ff ones.

malachismum - sounds like you're doing a grand job. he's only a week old and since he doesn't know what a crib is, it's only natural that he wants to be next to you. Lots of women cosleep with their babies - google it and you can find the relevant 'safety' info. And really don't worry about 'bad habits' - whatever gets you through I say. I was always being told that I was making rods for my own back, but as someone on here once told me to say "they're my rods, my back, not your problem"! How many adults do you know that need to sleep next to their mum or breastfeed to get to sleep? I personally think it's a good habit to be in to be close to, and in tune with, your baby.

I've never really leaked. Probably a handful of times in nearly a year of breastfeeding. And even then it wasn't bad enough for anyone to really notice.

cry not gry

I also spelt with mine for the first few weeks and then they both went into a crib...without too much fuss! Ignore what people tell you about bad habitats and so what is best for you and your baby! They are so tiny only once - god I look at my 4 year old and wish I could go back to those days!

Thank you again ladies. I have some more questions so I think Ill start a new post!!! I do feel more confident now which is great.