Hi, hoping to get some advice from anyone who had been through similar or has exclusively pumped.
Ds2 is 14 days old and has been diagnosed with laryngiomalacia. He has a marked stridor when he feeds and coughs, splutters and had problems dealing with the flow of milk. He is also now showing signs of reflux which is an associated problem. We've had a pretty rough time to be honest. Raised concerns about his feeding to several different health care professionals, even self diagnosed by a video on you tube, but gave been repeatedly fobbed off. Told I was missing his feeding cues and the noise was gulping as so hungry. I'm a nurse and one midwife even told me to "take my nurses hat off and be a mother because I was imagining it". In the end, I contacted the regional feeding coordinator for my area off my own back and finally things are moving. She has referred urgently to ENT and is at least giving us some support.
In the meantime, feeding is a nightmare. I'm an experienced breast feeder. Fed ds1 until he was 2.5. At first he would feed from the Breast, albeit a struggle for him, but now he's starting to refuse to latch, he gets in a real tiz and just won't latch on. Think he knows it's such hard work so doesn't bother. Tried every different position and all the old tricks but he will not latch. So what I've been doing is expressing. He will take around 2oz from the bottle, then is usually calm enough to latch and finish the feed at the breast. I think he does find the bottle easier as the flow is more predictable but If I make sure boobs aren't full, he manages ok finishing on the breast.
I'm dedicated to fb and want to avoid formula at all costs. Have a good supply, expressing is ok and getting good amounts each time. It's just I can't seem to settle into a routine. Am just winging it from one feed to the next!
Has anyone got any experience of this condition? Feeding specialist says sometimes bf is too hard and risky for these babies and the bottle is often the way forward.
Has anyone expressed for a baby that will finish a feed on the breast?
How often do I pump and when? Finding timing pumping and feeding quite tricky. Don't want to remove all milk from breast so he can still feed if he wants.
Also do I alternate boobs? As in pump from alternate boobs then also feed from alternate boobs. Getting very confused!
Any advice would be very welcome! 