How to know if baby is getting enough milk

[dreamerkr]

DS is 11 days old and we’ve had a rocky start to breastfeeding. He just wouldn’t latch on in the beginning and then when he did, feeding him was so painful and my nipples were sore and peeling badly. I’ve been using lansinoh and it’s been helping a little now. I started giving him formula because he wouldn’t breastfeed at the start, and now we’re mixed feeding. I’m trying to lessen formula feeds and increase breastfeeding, but how do you know that baby’s getting enough breast milk? He seems to feed for hours, 2-3 hours at a time and he falls asleep and still continues to feed. It’s so exhausting but I want to badly breastfeed as it’s what’s best for him. However, even if he feeds for hours he will still be hungry. He will seem content maybe for 10-15 mins before he again starts to cry and shows that he’s hungry. Isn’t he getting enough milk? I breastfeed 4-5 times a day currently. Any advice? The health visitor checked for a tongue tie and said it really doesn’t seem as though he has it. I don’t know what to do, I’m scared that he’s not getting enough milk which is why he’s constantly hungry. He does have plenty of wet and dirty nappies throughout the day but he formula feeds too.

I just fed him for about an hour and a half during which he fell asleep and continued to feed. He was still hungry and I told DH to give him a bottle because I’m exhausted. He’s drank 3oz.

Am I worrying myself for no reason? My boobs definitely feel smaller right now after feeding him but i don’t know.. is it because of him feeding or my milk supply getting less?

Okay so you'll know baby is getting enough by their wet nappies.

Babies this age do feed for hours on end at times. They are upping your supply

Once you switch to mix feeding it is hard to switch back I think, but with perseverence it can be done. I think you need specialist advice though, I would try contacting la leche league.

It is likely the baby is feeding constantly to try to get your supply up, by giving the bottle you are preventing this from happening.

You will get no criticism/judgement from me but the reality is that if you want bf-ing to establish properly you need to feed as much as they want to for the first month or so and try not to substitute.

I am still breastfeeding my 16 month old... it seems long and hard at the start but it gets easier! If you are planning on breastfeeding solely I'd just stop the formula tbh and see if nappies are still wet etc

It works on a supply and demand basis x

He has plenty of wet and dirty nappies throughout the day, but I don’t know if it’s because of breastfeeding or formula if that makes sense?

Urghh sending sympathy. I feel like 4-5 times a day at newborn stage is not enough? You want around 8 feeds every 24hrs I'm sure. 2-3hrs seems a very long time to be feeding him for. I remember in the early days of DS2 20m used to be a long time for us.

I breastfed both mine and had a rocky journey with the first so I was far more well informed for the second.

Have you considered a dummy? Your milk is still getting established etc at this stage breastfeeding truly is easier once you're around 6 weeks in xx

Size of boob is no indicator of anything.

The only indicator is the baby - but please bear in mind that constant feeding is what almost all bf babies do at some stage especially in the very early phase.

I understand, but the only reason I give him a bottle is because even if he feeds for hours it seems as though he’s constantly hungry and not getting enough. I’m always worried that he’s not getting enough and I don’t know what to do

But what if he feeds for hours but is still constantly hungry? I want to try solely breastfeeding but I’m worried at the same time that he’s not getting how much he needs

If baby has wet nappies theyre getting enough milk. Its very normal for breastfed babies to feed for HOURS in the early days; theyre building up your milk supply. It is exhausting i know, my first did a solid 10pm to 3am shift of cluster feeding for weeks. I was so tired but i fed her for 18 months in the end and now i fondly look back on those nights of just me and her.

It is really not advised to give a dummy as this will interfere with feeding.

This page might help (the whole website has loads of info): www.laleche.org.uk/is-my-baby-getting-enough-milk/

My DS is now 10 weeks old and we had a similarly rocky start. When we left the hospital he was almost solely on formula but within a few days we were down to one bottle a day and the rest breast and we stopped that at 3 weeks. Based on my experience (and just that, obviously no expert), I'd say you need to be breastfeeding much more than 4/5 times a day. I'd always off the breast first before a feed and then top up with formula if needed but always let baby BF first. Use lansinoh religiously after every feed and when switching sides. Lather it on. It saved my nipples. It really does hurt at first but it gets better soon. By 2 weeks it was much better for me. Do you have support from midwife/HV? Is baby gaining weight?

Even if I feed him for 2 hours he’s still hungry. It’s never 20 mins with us. I will start using a dummy with him as sometimes it seems as though he’s using my nipple as a dummy instead, that’s why he’s sucking for so long.

By feed for hours i mean on & off, not solidly feeding.

Thank you 🥺

First thing, have a look for your local breastfeeding support group and pop along. Seeing a breastfeeding supporter in the early days can really help.

To answer your question. You can tell if baby is getting enough by plenty of wet nappies (at least 6 a day) and by then growing. Often when they've had a good feed they will come off the boob and look a bit drunk.

In the early days and weeks they do cluster feed to build your supply. Leaning into this can help. Let dad look after the house and keep you fed and hydrated.

Baby is likely to have around 8-9 feeds in 24 hours at this age. If you are giving any of those as formula you need to express the missed feed so your boobs know it still needs milk at that time.

Mostly though, head to a group so your positioning and attachment can be checked and you can be supported.

Wow, 5 hours! I thought 2-3 hours was a long time haha. So I should try to solely breastfeed and stop giving him formula? And then see if he has wet and dirty nappies?

I'd recommend getting some face to face help or contacting one of the breastfeeding helplines. It's easy to fall into the top-up trap - topping up with formula means you breastfeed less, your supply goes down so you add more formula, and so it goes. 4-5 breastfeeds a day is quite low for a baby so young.

He might not be feeding for milk the whole time either - babies suckle for comfort and might not be actively feeding the entire time. You can tell based on the suck suck swallow becoming more like flutter sucking and long pauses between suckling.

But if you can get someone out to see you (an IBCLC or breastfeeding counsellor) or get some tailored help from the Breastfeeding Network or La Leche League, it will really help.

Yes it is hard to trust it but breastfeeding is a matter of trusting in it + keeping an eye on your baby for any signs of things not being right.

The more you feed him the more milk you will make.

I'd go to bed tomorrow for a full day feeding and see how many nappies you get.

If you have any concerns get your baby checked, better to do that than substitute with formula on a (potentially false) worry.

I am on some excellent breastfeeding Facebook groups; they helped me out so so much- I even sent an admin a video of my latch etc and she helped me correct it. I also went to a breastfeeding cafe too.

Thank you so much. I do have support from my HV, they measured him yesterday morning and he is gaining weight. He’s regained his birth weight and a little more too which is good. But again, I don’t know if it’s from the breast milk or formula

Oh and I found doing tons of skin to skin a miracle worker. Plan to just be skin to skin together for a whole day if you can.

And remember, dummies exist to mimic nipples, not the other way round. He's using your nipple the way nature intends: both to feed from and comfort. Nothing wrong with using a dummy to get a break if he'll take one, although I would personally wait till breastfeeding is established and going well, but there's nothing wrong with non-nutritive suckling. It's an important part of the breastfeeding relationship