Just having a rant :(

[jadericho]

My little boy (6 weeks old) has been feeding at my breasts for two hours now. Two bloody hours. My tea has gone cold. I can no longer feel my arm. And above all I'm in so much pain there are tears rolling down my face as I type this. He has tongue tie which is what's making it so difficult and I've just got another week to wait until we FINALLY have our appointment to hopefully get it sorted. And that's just our initial appointment, I don't even know if they'll sort it there and then or if I'll have to wait another 2 weeks for an appointment? I'm really really struggling and I'm so miserable and I just don't know what to do :(

Oh love, that sounds so so tough. You’re doing amazing, really amazing. I have no advice but I’m hoping to bump this for you. In the meantime virtual hug 💐

Our DS fed constantly and always seemed hungry as soon as unlatched, so would latch on again. I went to see a BF specialist who said he was tongue tied, when we went to the appointment the ENT specialist said he wasn't. But my upside for you was that if he was younger tied they would have done it there and then, so hopefully same for you and he will be snipped at your appointment before you know it, but yeah they can just constantly feed, it can be relentless. Try nit to stress yourself out ( easier said then done, I know. I'm sure you are doing a great job, hold on in their and if BF is what you want to do, but don't make yourself Ill with worry over it.

Would it help if you expressed milk and fed him in a bottle for the time being?

Sympathies. And yes, when DS had his tongue tie appointment she just snipped it there and then.

Mine were all tied and it’s bloody horrible for both of you trying to feed.
All were snipped st first appt and the difference in feeding was miraculous.
If they try and fob you off, stand your ground and insist they do it.

Ridiculous that they push bf so hard yet fail to sort out any issues until it’s too late.

I’m so sorry you’re having to struggle through this.

Would an armchair help (Sorry if it sounds patronising) I picked up a second hand one on eBay from Ikea and washed the covers. Honestly helped me so much. I lay her on a nursing pillow which frees up both of my hands which is exactly what we're doing now. 37minutes and counting!

Urgh two hours you poor thing! Do got his tongue tie snipped at the first appointment, think whoever is specialised in recognising tongue tie would be trained to snip too so hopefully you can get it sorted there and then. It wasn’t a complicated procedure it’s over in a few minutes! Though be prepared that it might not make an immediate difference though, lots of people say they noticed an immediate effect but at five weeks my dis needed to relearn how to suckle and it took until 12 weeks for my nipples to heal completely and to experience pain free feeding, then probably 4 months until the time reduced. But it did happen I’m not trying to make it sound grim and I’m still feeding at 15 months! So I’m just saying this in case this happens to you, you are not alone and it can be (sadly) normal and it will get better eventually. In the meantime if you have a partner around get them to help out as much as possible, making meals that can be eaten with one hand With a muslin draped over baby to catch any drips! If you can learn to feed in a sling this will be invaluable for you but I never managed this with my ridiculous huge boobs 😩

The first three months of feeding were fucking horrible for us. No issues just DD's rediculous latch and constant demand to be on breast. I almost gave up so many times. My early memories of feeding mostly involve tears and bleeding nipples.

But after that, something clicked and it was worth it.

Air your boobs as much as you can. I pretty much spent 3 months topless. I'm not sure my postman ever recovered from me signing for a parcel with my tits out!!

Lansinoh was a godsend. And cold cabbage leaves. And handing DD over to DH for an hour every night so I got a break. Because the early months are fucking relentless. It's easy to forget there is another parent there.

On a practical level, learn to feed on a sling. Picky food is your friend. And they don't suffer from food being dropped on their heads!

Good luck at the tongue tie appointment. Stand your ground and insist that the snip is done there and then. Throw a tantrum if you need to (for the first 6 months you can blame hormones for all sorts!!). Then blame the sleepless nights!

But mostly remember. You are doing brilliantly. Your baby already knows mummy is there and will give them what they need.

Oh yes, sling feeding is great. DD loved that and by 6 months had figured out how to access boob without my help!

I fed for 3 years and honestly, it's great if you can get through the initial stages.