help cannot unglue baby from breast, 3 weeks old, is this normal

[LuckyC]

Hi all, arrrgh, help help, please reassure me. Baby now 3 weeks old. She is absolutely glued to the breast. Will feed for a few minutes then fall asleep then wake up and feed for a few more minutes. Screams if I put her down. Have just given in and husband is feeding her some expressed from a bottle while I go and vote. Has been on/off me for 6 hours today. I find it extremely frustrating and feel totally beside myself. Then guilgty for feeling impatient with her. All websites say this sort of 'cluster' / 'frequency' feeding is normal round about 3 weeks. Has anyone experienced similar? Is this normal or is she just snacking/ latchng badly etc? She is preemie baby but at last weigh-in was picking up weight. Not too preemie is her due date today actually.

Hoping you will tell me this will pass.

Thanks.

Yeah, agree with Rasputin, completely normal .

Have you got a sling you could carry her around and feed in?

Hang in there, it will get better!

thanks thanks thanks.

It's just knowing it's normal and will pass that will help me hang in and keep bf.

Having to revise my expectations about what I can achieve radically downwards - like, not leaving the sofa...

Can you feed lying down? At least then you might get to doze off a bit, and I think it helps your milk production (at least, it did in my day - old gimmer).

the best piece of advice i got here (when i posted frequently about my velcroed to my boob DD) was "you have 2 jobs - one is to feed your baby and the other is to not go mad"

IIRC it was Dawntigga

if you get dressed you are doing well

the first 6 weeks for me, were one loooooooooooong feed culminating in her 6 week growth spurt which made me cry

however, DD is now 7 months and i am still feeding

i second the advice about a sling and feeding lying down - both sanity savers

keep going

Yep, normal but tedious I know.

Get yourself surrounded with the remote control, phone, laptop and scrummy snacks and just go with it - it won't be for ever I promise

Yes, sounds about right. I made friends with Mr Kipling at about that point.

Very normal, hang in there it will abate! Develop your MN addiction

And truly, learn to feed lying down, I couldn't do it for ages but once I did it changed my life, really!

Repeat, 'this too shall pass' ad infinitum

Feeding lying down truly is a lifesaver!! I remember this phase all too well - I had a litle camp on the sofa with snacks, water and remotes and I watched endless awful TV. Putting DS down for long enough to go for a wee was cause for major celebration. It does pass, though, I promise! You're doing a fantastic job - hang in there.

After a good calming skin to skin session, a brief bout of worship at the shrine of the God Lansinoh and yet more frantic nursing, Matilda let go and slept for three hours last night.

I can't thank you all enough for helping me stay sane.

Off to try feeding lying down. Have sling washed and ready.

Dear LuckyC
Keep up the good work! You are the best thing in your new baby's life and breastfeeding is the easiest way for you to mother her! La Leche League offer excellent information and support on mothering through breastfeeding www.laleche.org.uk/ . Many hurdles in mothering, all of them worthwhile and empowering! Make sure your get some real human support (not just online support!) to stay sane - lots of other mums get overwhelmed, you are not alone! Bless you!

Normal feeding pattern for a 3 week old.

My DS was the same and I was going out of my mind, stuck sitting in one place for hours while he fed. I spoke to a HV about it and she said to think of DS like any other young mammal at this stage - little kittens, pups etc feed round the clock as so do little babies.

As your DD grows a bit and her stomach gets bigger it will be easier! My DS is now 10 weeks old and we really 'turned a corner' about 2 weeks ago.

Btw, I love your DD's name, Matilda is lovely

I remember asking an NTC friend - put how can I put her down! I used to take her to the toilet with me. Agree with others, I camped on the bed, watched telly, read the paper, dozed, talked on phone. Had a c-section so I couldn't drive anyway. Chill out, it will pass all too soon.

sounds like its just a growth/hunger spurt. have you tried a dummy? the baby is probably not genuinly hungry all the time, suckling is a comforting thing for them too. some babies will take a dummy, some of them wont, its a personal preference on the babies side!!

Dummies not the best option at this early stage if you want your milk supply to keep up with the baby.

I'm sure someone will come along and explain it better soon (you nay already know, of course).

I got a low-watt lightbulb for my bedside lamp and read Agatha Christie and similar all through the night (later downloaded audiobooks onto my ipod). I was too nervous to go to sleep next to DS at night when he was tiny, but we did nap together on the bed in the day which was nice.

well done you-it can drive you a bit mad!

IMO you should forget all previous semblance of organisation and just let the house go to rack and ruin-you can worry about all that stuff later when you are admiring your lovely girl in about a month and thinking "I did that"

or get a cleaner and a personal chef

Hi all. Thanks again for advice.

Tried a dummy last night, after she was still awake after her 10pm feed at 4am and clearly exahusted and definitely full. Worked well, in that itcalmed her and we both slept. Still so uncertain about whether she is getting enough to eat; need to get her weighed I guess. She has loads of wet nappies but only a poo a day (makes up for it when she goes though.)

Sigh for a personal chef.

Keep water at your bedside, and no coffee! Dehydration is an absolute killer under these circumstances: you will feel massively hungover! (I used to joke that it was unfair DS got all the drinking - and then passed out, drunk - and I got the hangovers!

You say you're using Lansinoh - are your nipples sore? If so, that combined with an 'always feeding' baby could mean your latch could do with a bit of a change.

Bad latch can cause painful nipples, and can mean the baby gets milk less efficiently, and hence needs to feed 24/7.

What's your local bf support like? Is there anyone BfN/ABM/NCT/LLL you can see? If you're happy to say what town you're in/near, I can have a dig for you.

did it get better?

sounds like my ds 3 weeks yesterday

be nice to know improvemet may be a few weeks away?!

They improve by about 4. (even if the BF has stopped long before then)