only feeding from one breast

[amummy30]

10 week old baby is very reluctant to feed from my right breast i struggle to get him comfortable on it and always give in and offer him the left, problem with this is the right obviously very rarely fills up, and as he goes 8 hours through the night (aren't i lucky) my left breast can be quite painful after an 8 hour break, really need to alternate, wondering in anyone can help with any positions etc??

This is very common! I've been there, and seen it as a midwife too. Are you expressing milk from the neglected side? This would help keep up the supply. Store the milk in the freezer and try some different positions to help your baby change his mind about the right side: e.g. lying on your right side with your underneath arm raised above your head. Or sitting upright, holding him under your right arm supported on a cushion so that he comes at the breast from below. You may need to shape the breast a little, and gently, for him to latch on more easily. Use your spare hand and shape the breast like a hamburger, depending on which angle baby is coming from he should be able to latch as if he were taking a mouthful from the burger. Hope that makes sense. It can be tricky without someone to show you with a doll. Have you asked your Health Visitor? Usually there's one in the team who's a specialist for breastfeeding. Best wishes!

I did all the things Kalanchoe suggests with my first baby and given that little one is only 10 weeks I definitely would go ahead and perservere BUT I'm now on baby number 4 and could have kissed the nct woman that told me that sometimes (more common in larger breasts than smaller ones) the wiring simply gets confused and the breast simply doesn't produce as much milk as the other. Thus on number 4 I've not worried about it. yes i do look like I've had a mamogram i.e. 1 side is a size E and the other is a J but what the heck my dd3 is perfectly healthy and pudgy on the one breast, the feeds are always to hers and my satisfaction AND at four months she 'normally' only wakes at some time between 4 and 5 in the morning.

If you can get to a breast feeding specialist then do so, just wanted to let you know that if you really can't get the other breast going that it really doesn't matter and baby still gets all the nutrition they need from one breast.

HTH

thankyou, if im honest my health visitor is the most unhelpful one i've ever come across to the point where im reluctant to go and see her unless i really need to, she really shouted me down for giving my son a top up of formula in hospital when he was 3 dys old on the advice of the midwife after having an emergengy c section and losing 2 litres of blood,kinda put me off her, im going to look for a breast feeding support group though, and I will try some of your suggested positions and expressing and storing milk is a good idea thanks

My 6moth old ds3 feeds almost exclusively from one side, he hates the right and it has little supply now as he won't touch it and I can't be bothered to express this time around.
He seems to be doing just fine on it and I've got used to being a bit lopsided for the next year!

yeah I guess im better just giving him what he wants, i can cope with being lopsided I think, my social life is quite minimal at the moment, and don't think i'll be braving a bikini this summer!!