favouritism for one breast - help!!!!

[debliz5]

My 7 month (tomorrow ) dd2 has started to prefer my right breast to the left one.It's been going on for a couple of days and today she wouldn't take it at all - not even before going to sleep when she always has "4-5 breasts".
It's really putting me down. I don't want to be going around with big/small breasts now.I don't think she's weaning as she hasn't switched to solids yet. I never had it with my first two. What can I do?
Has it happened to any of you with a happy ending of feeding with both breasts?

Thanks a lot!

Not to me, but to a friend of mine.

Her ds refused to take one of her breasts from 2 months! She ended up feeding for a year but only from the right side. She had one flat side, as the milk just stopped in the 'rejected' boob.

Sorry, not what you wanted to hear. Have never heard of this with anyone else though, so I'm sure it will resolve itself for you.

DS occasionally prefers one side and refuses other one. so lets say he wants right but not left.. i hold him as if i'm feeding him on the right but he's actually on the left one. this requires many cushions etc under his legs but after a couple of days he goes back to liking both
hth

Is she feeling okay otherwise? No ear infection or anything?
Mine both had a preference at this age but never completely refused one breats....I just had to be a bit persistent. Hopefully someone will be along with some good advice soon.

Sorry - our posts crossed. I didn't mean to imply that the other posters weren't giving good advice - there was noone posting when I started my reply!

Thanks for your replies, girls.
laurasmiles, how were you persistent? I'm also trying to be persisten be she is more...I'm hoping it's a fase and perhaps even tonight she will take both.

Miamla, how do you hold like this? it seems that she doesn't mind being cradled on the left (falling asleep there) but the minute the boob goes into her mouth she spits it out...

hold her as if you were going to feed her on the right boob and keeping her in the same orientation, shift her over onto your left boob. you'll need a pre-prepared pile of cushions next to you near your left hips for her legs to rest on

DS was exactly the same about being cradled on his "wrong" side but spitting nipple out

he first did it when he was about 3 perhaps 4 months old and still does it probably once a month

does my explanation make sense? if not i'll get DP to photograph me doing a demo!

oh and i found he took his "wrong" side if he was v sleepy ie for one of his million night feeds

With my daughter I would take her off the breasts completely if she pulled herself off, jiggle her around, talk to her distract her and then try her again back on the side I wanted her on. Lots of praise and talk and stroking of head....

But as I said, she never flatly refused a breast, just kept trying to change to her prefeered side. My son was the same.

I love Miamla's ingenuity - this sounds like it might work with most babies.

Thanks again for your very helpful advice!
Miamla, very impressive manouevre! I shall definitely try it. And even though your explanation is quite clear, I think a pic to document such ingeniuty is definitely necessary :0.
Last night, she took the left boob half asleep. That's what she did the night before too - she has to be half unconscience to take it....

My dd liked the right side best but I did the same as Miamia and changed positions. It worked most of the time.

I have a friend who's dd liked the left side best and she just aloud her to feed from that side. One boob was a tiny bit bigger than the other but unless you pulled her top off you'd never be able to tell.

Hi,

I am only feedng from one side and have been for the past month. My ds is 11 months. He just weaned himself off one side which has always been less popular. Because he is on 3 solid meals a day I haven't been so worried -b/f is just a complement. If your dd seems satisfied and happy enough then I wouldn't worry. Your body and baby are resourceful and I wouldn't cause her distress by trying to force her to take the side she doesn't want. I am def lop-sided but it doesn't show when I'm dressed so I can live with it. B/f doesn't last forever and I'm ok as long as it works in a way that my baby is happy with.

Erika

I've tried the changed position and it didn't work. I don't think I did it right as she and me were uncomfortable... I shall try again another time.

And yes you're right - I shouldn't make such a big deal out of it. It's just so strange to have only one "working" boob and I have still time to go (I hope), as I breast fed my other 2 till over a year. And I am (vanely, I admitt) scared of looking funny. I have a big wedding in London in May and don't want to have a funny cleavage... also it's getting spring and summer (not soon enough) and it might be apparent when wearing t-shirts and vests.

Anyway, I shall try once more changing positions and if it doesn't work I shall leave it. She really gets upset when I try to insist on that side, and it's really not that important. I want her to feed as long as she can and not put her off breastfeeding altogether.

Thanks again for your replies

hello, i had lots of problems with this too.

I think it was worst around 7-9 months. my ds prefers the left, and really didn't want to feed at all from the right. i have heard of causes such as ear infections or teeth erupting, and if so, miamia's idea of the rugby hold should help and it will pass.

In my case, i think it is because my right (less prefered side) has a slower let down and produces less milk (smaller breast, can express about a quarter of that of left). I managed to get my ds to persist with the right side and he is still feeding from both now at 15mo, although he would happily just feed from left, but i didn't want to do that.

I just tried to feed on the right whenever he would take it - started every feed on that side, and sometimes he would just pull off and i'd swap over, but sometimes he would feed a bit. but if i started a feed on the preferred side he would never take the other as he would be full, so i didn't really do that. for night feeds i tried to feed as much as possible on the right.
after a while he accepted it and it didn't seem so much of a problem. i still start every feed on the right side.

i'm sorry i'm a bit vague about how we coped with it, and for the long post, but it might be trial and error for you and baby to sort out what works for you. but it is possible to work it out. good luck.

Thanks very much, weasle, for your post.
(I had written and sent this post hours ago, but apparently there was a problem and it didn't go through...).

You have really encouraged me and given me hope that all is not lost. It's good to know that this could still change and she will take the left breast once again. She took it twice during last night so at least it's being used a bit...

Please don't apologise for your "long" post. In fact, please post again telling me how you persisted with your ds. If I persist too much dd2 gets upset, and of course I immediately switch to the prefered side. I dpn't want to put her off breastfeeding all together.

once again thank you all for the advice. Will see what happens tonight...

ahh, glad i have been of some help, thanks for your nice words.

I have been scratching my head today trying to think what i did to encourage ds to feed from both sides and i can't really remember any more! Sorry.

Is your dd latching on at all to your left side (in the day, when awake)? My ds would have a couple of sucks then break off crying and i would swap over. we had a phase when he wouldn't even go into nursing position on that side. i think i did a while of feeding on preferred side first, then swapping to unfavoured side when let down had happened, then swapping back when he got fed up and that worked for a bit, but then i changed to the less-favoured-side-first at every feed approach, which i have done now for months.

how about feeding in the bath with her? that seemed to sort many problems out for us. Obviously not possible for every feed, but once a day might help get a good feed in from your less favoured side. (and great that she is taking that side at night).

i can't rememebr at what age i started giving him a toy to hold whilst bf to distract him when waiting for my slow let down, but you could try that. be careful though, i once picked him up with a spade from the sandpit in his hand, bf him and he gave me a nasty smack between the eyes with the spade!

one of the bf counsellors at a group i went to had the same sort of problem, and was still bf from both sides at 18months so that gave me encouragement.

x

Thanks again, weasle, for your helpful post!

Last night, she didn't take the left side at all. She hasn't latched on at all for the last 2 days.I'm ( a bit) encouraged by the fact that she doesn't mind getting into that nursing position, and sometimes, she just falls asleep there (with her dummy). She has something gainst the boob itself...

Feeding in the bath - that's an idea. I have never nursed in the bath. Never really get the chance with my other 2.

And I shall try with a toy as well, see if that helps. It's also really encouraging to hread about the counsellor who also sorted it out in the end.

You've given me some good tips here, and I shall try them all (including the one about not giving her spades and sharp objects...).

Thanks again

An update We're back to both sides in both positions!

Miamla - you're a genius!!! I tried again your position and it worked . she agreed to have the left one when holding her on my right arm. I did that for a few days, and now she drinks from the left side ON the left position!

I'm so happy to stop expressing 3 times a day...and so relieved we're back to normal

So thank you so much to all of you .