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Infant feeding

Get advice and support with infant feeding from other users here.

Original poster

Question for my friend with giant boobs feeding her 3 weeks old and some wierdy advice I've never heard of before!

44 replies

ladytophamhatt · 09/12/2008 22:15

Ok, so my friend spoke to teh HV today about still being in pain and they discovered that the latch wasn't right.
A breast feeding councillor advised on position and bringing baby to breast etc but my friend is nervous about squashing the baby with her mahooooosive boobs.

Breast feeding councillor said (and this is the weird but) that she should put her boobs in a sling to stop them "hanging" so much.
Not the baby in a sling....Her boobs!!!

Now, I'm not breast feeder but that just sounds mad to me. Wouldn't that restrict the milk production? I knwo wearing a tight bra can affect it so I imagine hoiking them up in a sling would do the same??

If that is mad advice what else can she do?

I'll email my friend a link to this thread if any of you have advice for her so please show her how great MN is.

Thanking you all muchly.

OP posts:
NotanOtter · 09/12/2008 22:16

sling???

sorry but my mind is racing lol!

GoodWilfToAllMN · 09/12/2008 22:17

No idea and never heard this before but doubtless someone with more experience might. I have heard however that a carefully positioned rolled-up sock can help adjust very large 'uns so nipple in a better position re: baby...

sundew · 09/12/2008 22:18

Hi - my boobs weren't really huge when breast feeding but I did find the latch a lot easier if i held the breast up - So I imagine this is wehat they are talking about - just siomething to support the breast so it is in a 'perter' (is that a word?) position.

Aitch · 09/12/2008 22:18

my friend has enormous boobs and is nervous about feeding her second baby when he/she comes. she said she'd been investigating it online and seen this sling idea on a few places. she has very downward-pointing nipples so she reckons the idea of using a wide banadge or something to hold up her boob a bit might work. sooooo, it may not be as mad as it sounds.

moondog · 09/12/2008 22:19

I've heard of this for humungous hooters.
Whatever works!

blametheparents · 09/12/2008 22:20

Well I was an h up when I was b/f and it didn't really seem to hinder either of my babies from feeding (perhaps H cup is not that large, I don't know) They were so rock hard and massive that they didn't droop atall and certainly couldn't have smothered a baby. It did help to express a bit of milk before feeding baby so that the boob wasn't so hard that baby could not latch on, iyswim.

dizzyjingles · 09/12/2008 22:20

I have huge norks and have managed to feed all 3 of mine with use of cushions

I build them up and balance norks on them too but it works - not so practical when we're out and about but we're getting there

Aitch · 09/12/2008 22:21

my pal said that the pic she saw online looked like someone had made a loop out of a bandage and had it under their boob, round their back and up over their neck. iykwim?

SnowballsintheSky · 09/12/2008 22:22

I was told to do this by the bf counsellors I saw. Didn't work though, nothing made the slightest difference, they just seemed too big to do anything with.

thisisyesterday · 09/12/2008 22:27

i hacve heard of this too. you can make a sling yourself out of an old pair of tights.

there is also a little pillow you can buy to go under boob to add "lift" but obviously a rolled up muslin or whatever would do the trick just as well.

DumDeDumMeAgain · 09/12/2008 22:27

I am a G and use a cushion mostly and pich my nipple - i'll move my profile so you can see pic. I fed with boob 'over' a slightly tight nursing bra and hey presto - 3 x mastitis until I chucked it and went braless @ home, big flexible one when out, so I really think sling will be bad. Let me m ovee profile so you can see ('cuse typing - feeding!)

Original poster
ladytophamhatt · 09/12/2008 22:33

Oh so it is some real advice...it sounds totally mad to me but reading how you all interpret a sling makes it all clearer.

I'm sure she'd be very grateful for any tips on differnet positions she can try too.
I know shes worried about squashing her little bundle so everything will help.

OP posts:
VivaLaPotPourri · 09/12/2008 22:33

Ah, just changed back my silly name, 'twas easier. I was dumdedum something just now. I have southward nipples too , def. recommend a V pillow, pinch hold. Although I can/do feed without the pillow at church etc.

AaliyahsFirstXmas · 09/12/2008 22:35

Ok - this is why I ended up stopping BFing (and other things) my boobs are too big and have downward pointing nipples. I found that if you use one hand behind baby's head (allowing baby's body to lie on your knee) and rather than bringing baby's head to boob but to move boob to baby. While using free hand to hold boob up it worked but I couldn't do it discretely in public (AT ALL)

Hope that helps somewhat.

Oh - as for sling - I wouldn't know as I had reduced flow anyway so I dont know whether that would have helped or hindered.

llareggub · 09/12/2008 22:36

I have mahoosive norks and just improvised with cushions, different positions and the arm of the chair. I did get there in the end. Now he is a toddler we tend to feed lying down. DS has rather benefited from such big norks, as he is able to have a quick feed when I'm in the bath by hoiking my breast over the side of the bath and then running off to play.

Never heard of a sling though, but would be very interested to try with this baby when it comes. I found I got there through trial and error really and I did find it very difficult when my rather smaller and pert breasted friends tried to tell me my positioning was all wrong.

whomovedmychocolate · 09/12/2008 22:37

Perhaps she meant 'use a slingshot to catapult the nipple into your baby's mouth'

Seriously, that sounds very odd.

What I do (and I have 32K boobs) I have to lie a pillow on my lap so DS is supported without being held and put one hand around his bottom and the other holding my boob up and presenting my nipple in the right position for DS.

Once they get to six months this isn't as necessary because they get the hang of things (literally ouch) themselves! DD can now latch on even upside down

llareggub · 09/12/2008 22:38

Oh, I did find the rugby ball hold quite useful for my left nork. It never worked on the right somehow.

llareggub · 09/12/2008 22:40

I think that's what I did, whomovedmychocolate. DS has a rather unusual position now, he quite often sits on my head and bends down to feed, but I think it is part of his strategy to get me out of bed.

JFly · 09/12/2008 22:41

Boob sling sounds like a faff to me, especially at the beginning when you're just trying to get the hang of feeding. I was a J cup when my milk came in and then settled into G/H. When DS was very tiny (under 6 weeks) the Widgey worked. After that, I found DS fell into the gap between me and the Widgey and pulled on my nipple. OW. A normal pillow worked much better as it supported my boob as well as baby. I still (8.5 months later) hold my boob with the same hand, though, to position nipple properly.

JFly · 09/12/2008 22:42

Yes, like whomovedmychocolate! But I still hold my boob for the most part. Probably out of habit.

Original poster
ladytophamhatt · 09/12/2008 22:44

llareggrub... I'm not sure whether to chuckle or recoil in horror with my hands clutching my teeeeny weeeeny norks at the image of your boobs being hoiked over the side of the bath

I think I am secretly impressed though, I could hoik mine of the side of an tea cup....

OP posts:
whomovedmychocolate · 09/12/2008 22:45

I could fill a tea cup with mine, they absolutely widdle milk out at the minute.

Original poster
ladytophamhatt · 09/12/2008 22:47

WMMC.....widdle???

Widdle....LOLOLOLOL

OMG I used to say that when I was about 4.

Thats my new favourite word.

OP posts:
Piffle · 09/12/2008 22:47

I got handache as had to supportlarge heavy b(r)easts while also holding dcs. I used a muslin to help.
Not as mad as it seems
Mine were so heavy I'd get cramp.

Piffle · 09/12/2008 22:49

rugby hold
Primo

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