establishing breastfeeding following emergency caesarian

[EllenRipley]

Hi, has anyone had problems getting their milk to flow following a c-section? my son was born by emergency C on Nov 30th and though i can breastfeed and he's not underweight, he's slow to gain weight and midwife has suggested i express as much as possible to top up feeds when he gets quite frantically hungry during the night. Have heard that sections can hinder the milk a bit and i had quite a traumatic stay in hospital. Feel like i'm just not giving him enough to eat and that he's going to sleep hungry and exhausted, even though he's on the boob from the moment he wakes. Currently able to express about 2ounces p/d if i really dedicate some time to it (time i'd like to sleep!)... if anyone has any thoughts or similar experiences, would love to hear, it's making the baby blues much worse.
x

well some babies can be slow to gain, but i think as long as he is gaining that's good.

key is to feed on demand, and as your midwife says expressing should help, even if you aren't getting much out it's still stimulating the breasts to produce more.

how often does he feed? how long for? wet and dirty nappies?

if you have a local la leche group or baby cafe you could visit i'd recommend it because they can check that you're getting a good latch and give advice on upping supply etc

thanks thisis... yes, midwife thinks we're doing okay, it's just really tiring and frustrating, not knowing if he's hungry. He can sleep 2,3,4 hours in the afternoon between feeds (though if i've got the energy i'll not let him go longer than 2-3), which last an hour, though i think he'd stay there all day.
It's in the evening, through til about 6 in the morn, that it's harder to get him down, last night he was feeding for an hour, crying for an hour, dozing then feeding again. Midwife seems to think nappies are okay, 1-2 dirties per day and latching on is improving, i think we're doing okay though nips still hurt! Will check out la leche groups, thanks... dont know if there are any in glasgow but there is an NCT group here. Thanks again.

if nipples hurt then iut's possible he isn't getting a great latch and is not transferring milk as effectively as he could be (although all other signs are great!)

lots of babies "cluster feed" in the evenings though, that's totally normal- and very tiring for you!

la leche league

oh no, the glasgow december meet was today!!! how annoying