Baby hitting and pushing away at breasts when trying to breastfeed him

[sarahhoping]

My baby who's of 1 week age.
I lactated a little late, about 3 days after childbirth, and that too with the help of herbal medicines ,
My baby gave us a tough time in the hospital refusing to breastfeed and had to be keep on formula, maybe because I was not lactating that much.
But since we came home after being discharged , he used to readily latch onto my nipple as soon as I kept his lips on it .
However , since 2 days now, he hits back and pushes away at nipples , but does ultimately hold it and suck it well .
What could be reason for his initial repulse and then accepting and sucking it.
Is it because I had cesarean and I am now on trypsin, chymotrypsin and paracetamol.Are the meds coming into milk and its what repulses him ?

It's very normal for your milk to come in between 3 and 5 days. It's unlikely anything in your milk is repulsing him. What is more likely is that he is struggling with the let-down which is why he appears to fight the breast before ultimately taking it. You can help this by feeding in a laid back position and by taking your baby off the breast when the let-down is triggered and catching the fast flow in a muslin, re-latching when it's slowed down. Newborns and babies generally can be very fussy at the breast and this is normal. Try different positions, swaddling, feeding when your baby is sleepy, white noise or relaxing music and feeding in a quiet environment to see what suits. The only indications of supply you should focus on are weight gain and nappy output (plenty of wet and dirty nappies). If you are still struggling please get some face to face support - see if there are any breastfeeding groups in your area (ask your Health Visitor and have a look on Facebook).

It's pretty normal, I wouldn't worry too much.

My baby does this when she's overtired. She also does it when she needs a burp.

Try rocking to sleep, or burping her lots.

Sometimes, they can do it if your milk is coming out too slow. I think this can be the time of day, if you're tired and need resting, if you've fed her lots and not had chance to "recharge", your position. Etc. You can get compressions on the breast to get the milk out quicker.

They can also fuss if your milk is coming out too quickly. Changing position can help with that.

Another thing can be bad latch or tongue tie so they're not getting enough out. Has your MW /HV said baby is putting on a good amount of weight?

Look up fussy babies, Le Leche League etc. I found lots of info online when I had the same problem.

My baby is 7 weeks now and still does it sometimes.

Day 3 is totally average- that's when mine came in. And then we spent 3 months pulling off at the let down and me catching it in a muslin as it sprayed all over the place

Please don't assume herbal medicines will help with milk production- there are few, if any, that have any scientific evidence to back them up.