Forceps baby only feeds on one side (flat nipple complication too)

[nextchpter]

Hello. I have a new baby who will only feed on one side. Possible reasons I'm considering are a) forceps delivery making their neck/shoulder/jaw stiff b) flat nipple on the rejected side c) partial tongue tie on one side. Seen a cranial osteo who is helping with the stiffness, breastfeeding counsellor tried some new positions like rugby ball but they didn't work and nipple shield which again the baby didn't take, and I'm seeing the tongue tie clinic this week hopefully.
Any other things I could be trying to encourage baby to latch on that side? They open their mouth and root there but don't latch. I'm so over expressing the other side so I can bottle feed it 😫 thank you.

How old is baby? I found it helps, both of mine wouldn’t latch intitially on one side but later did without any real intervention.

If your nipple is a little flat, have you tried expressing a little first to get the nipple to come out a bit more?

I dont have any real tips to help with getting your baby to feed on the other side except the different positions that it sounds like you have already tried. I tried rugby ball and lying down with baby on my belly. rugby ball only worked once or twice, skin to skin lying down with baby on my belly worked the best i think.

But wanted to reasure you that all 3 of mine favoured a side at birth the first one for the longest as they were head down and obviously in the same position for a long time before birth so she was stiff.

Definetly keep up with express so you are not in danger of mastitis.

Have you tried the biological nurturing position for feeding- recline (sofa or bed) so you are flat enough that you can rest baby on your chest but so you can still see baby, lay baby skin to skin on your chest next to your nipple and let them root around and self latch. The idea is that they use their instinctive crawling reflex to find the nipple. I found that my dd got a good deep latch using this method. You have to be patient though as it can take a while, and not a position to try when they're fractious and screaming.

I know you're seeing a cranial osteo so you've probably heard this already, but mine suggested lots of tummy time and putting toys or holding my dd in a way which meant she was stretching her neck muscles away from her favoured side.

Thank you for all these tips. Baby is 10 days old so early days. I will keep trying the positions as you suggest - thanks for the encouragement! I really hope they do work it out!! It's so tough when it doesn't just happen

PS @JiltedJohnsJulie yes I've tried expressing a bit but he doesn't seem convinced.

Try latching baby onto the “good” side in cradle hold, and then after a bit, when they are nice and relaxed, sliding them over to the “bad” side in rugby hold - ie don’t change their body position at all.

That worked for me when my DC was being reluctant to feed from one side - it’s like you fool them into thinking they’re still on their preferred side.

I'll try that. Thank you!

I have no tips to help, but just to say I eventually gave up and ended up only feeding DD on one side, which has been fine. Still feeding at 14 months. Had lopsided boobs for a long time but they're even now! Good luck.

At 11 days I would try not to worry. Baby might just surprise you and start feeding from that side soon

I had a forceps baby and he was very one sided. I took him to the cranial osteopath and it completely straightened him out.

he would only look to one side of the cot or pram and favoured one side to feed. After one session he was so much better. I had three sessions altogether. The earlier you go, the better.

Doh sorry I just saw you did that! Maybe a other session or two?

I had the same problem with ds2 - solved exactly the way LadyGregory'sToothbrush described. Things change all of the time, this is a tricky phase for you both, it will soon be over, the next one may be better (or worse!), but that too will end. Enjoy the good ones, the bad ones will soon be over.

Thanks. I will try and persevere!

What lady Gregory said. Also laying down. Try not to worry. Ds was funny about one side but his was due to quick let down, he preferred a rugby ball position on that side.

My baby's mouth muscles were a bit affected initially from forceps. It's called facial palsy. He couldnt latch at all so I bottle fed and we had a special technique where we lay him on a pillow in front of us at an angle and the bottle went in easier then, we used a muslin for spills. This was recommended by a speech and language feeding specialist in the hospital and it resolved itself over a few weeks. Not sure if it's useful for you but might be worth seeing someone like this if it keeps happening.

I had exactly this 17 years ago! Rugby hold worked for us but it turned out my son did have issues with his neck from the forceps delivery. It took us a while to work it out and he ended up having physio and cranial osteopathy.
It might not be the same in your case but worth mentioning to midwife , health visitor.

Something I tried when I had blocked ducts was to lie baby on bed and go on all fours over him so boob dangling into his mouth. The gravity may help nipple fall more easily into a latch. It may also help if one side of his head is sore to lie on as he would be on his back.

Currently trying all your suggestions!! Nothing's quite cracked it yet but the dangling over idea seems like it could have potential! Might try combining with a nipple shield once I've sterilised them!

The nipple shield has worked!!!!! Thanks all. Appreciate your ideas and support so much!

Great news. Must have been nipple not head. My son was forceps and had big selling behind ear, poor baby.

Poor little mite @MerryMarigold glad you managed to keep feeding. Thanks for your thoughts!

He's going to be 13 on Sunday! No more a little mite. Enjoy every minute, it genuinely does go really fast. And the breastfeeding was quite torturous with him (my first) but then I had twins and it was really pleasant for 18 months!

Glad your getting there. I used nipple shields for flat nipples for both my DC and fed happily for a year with each, so don’t worry if people tell you it’s not sustainable long term.

That's reassuring. Thanks @Namelesswonder

To anyone who comes across this thread in the future, we only needed the nipple shields for a few days. He went on to exclusively breastfeed on both sides very happily. My more inverted side is now his favourite side 😂