Sleepy feeder

[rebeccax2]

Hi Gals,

My little girls is a really sleepy breast feeder and she can go for almost an hour (2 x 20 min sessions with a nappy change and then a 5-10 final comfort session). Sometimes it seems to work alright but mostly I need to then top her up with expressed milk and then sometimes formula as well if I don't express enough.

I don't keep going and feed her until she has had enough because when I tried that she would feed for almost 3 hours without a break and screaming when I tried to stop and it exhausted me which was no good for either of us.

I can only make about 20ml per expressing session. I pump the left while I feed from the right and then alternate.

She feeds really really gently from the breast. I'm unsure whether she's really truly eating most of the time.

She is 10 days old and spent 4 days in NICU so I realise I have some work to do to get my breast milk caught up but any tips or thoughts on my regime would be appreciated. Midwives tell me something different every time we speak!

Thanks in advance.

Seriously? If I were you i'd retreat to my bedroom or the sofa with a giant pack of biscuits and a few gallons of tea or your beverage of choice. Drown your nipples in Lansinoh every time you get the chance - or spread some breast milk on them and let them air dry - and snuggle down and feed her. This will also give your body time to heal from the birth. Trying to express used to stress me out more than simply feeding tbh!

The more you feed, the more you produce and expressing is absolutely no indicator of supply as a baby is about eleventy bajillion times more efficient at feeding than even a hospital-grade electric pump.

For properly researched advice, have a read around www.kellymom.com

Make sure you're taking care of yourself, especially around eating. It's so easy to think "Oh the baby's crying, I'll eat/drink later" but actually, your health is just as important. In the early days (actually most of the way through!) I would have porridge (oats help milk production too) with a banana and some dried fruit first thing, then some toast with an egg or something mid-morning plus lunch and dinner just to keep my energy up. What you eat doesn't generally affect your milk, but an extra 500 calories a day will do wonders for you.

Can you get to a local breast feeding support group? Children's centres in England have them, not sure about the other UK countries, or look up La Leche League who I think have them in urban areas.

As she gets older she'll get stronger and more efficient so hang in there, you're doing a fantastic job

Thank you so much. Everything you've said is exactly what I want to be doing but I have this fear of the dreaded scales.

She lost weight when I breast fed her exclusively and so the midwives are watching her weight. I'm so nervous of her not gaining that I keep freaking out that she's not eating enough and giving her formula.

I feel really angry that I didn't get the support I needed in hospital and I just know this has contributed to our difficulties.

I've started to second guess my intuition and it pisses me off because I just KNOW what I should be doing is exactly what you've said.

I really appreciate your advice. xxx

Erm, they're supposed to lose a bit of weight in the first day or so?! And take a week odd to regain it - ds was born after a long ish but fairly standard birth at 38+3 weighing 6lb, by the next day he was 5lb15 and regained it over a week or so -will check his red book if you like but no one batted an eyelid!

Breastmilk contains a shitload more calories than formula, so unless the weightloss is dramatic, or she's not gaining, or there are signs of dehydration then you just need to let her get on with it.

DS was a slow feeder - an hour plus was normal for daytime feeds until he was 4 months, and I was sofa-pinned from 5 to 11pm every night - he is now coming up 19 months and self-weaned at 15. I'm not the most experienced person on this board though and am hoping a bit of bumping might attract their attention!

20ml is fine at this stage! :) Their tummy is the size of a walnut as this time. Skip the expressing and just feed, feed, feed for now. She'll learn to feed more effectively after a while, and you will come to relax more about it. Also relaxing = better milk supply :) Just take the time xx