Breastfeeding please help

[4orangebutterflies]

My little girl is 8 weeks on Tuesday but the 24 hours I’ve not been able to put her down, as soon as I do she’s awake fist in mouth looking for milk 😩 my nipples have actually bruised from her being on them so much. What am I doing wrong? I get so panicky wondering if I’m not producing enough milk for her. Am I just being silly? Thanks for any help x

I'm no expert but she could be going through a growth spurt. From everything that I read while breastfeeding it's very rare to not produce enough milk. Is it all day that she's feeding or just a few hours?

What she has done today is place the order for 2 days time. It’s how it works. It’s been this way for tens of thousands of years. You’re going great.

It sounds like a very normal growth spurt. Bunk down with snacks and water, it shouldn't last long and is just your baby's way of upping your supply

You are doing amazingly, it will be cluster feeding to bring up your supply, I remember having just the same thoughts when my dd would feed for hours and hours and hours. I just thought something must have been going wrong because how could she be hungry constantly??! It doesn't last forever and it will make you produce more milk for a growth spurt etc.
Make sure you eat LOADS yourself so you're getting enough calories and get some good books on your kindle or box sets on the telly and just let her feed feed feed

If your nipples are about to fall off make sure you have lansinoh cream and possibly try different feeding positions so it's not always pressure on the same spots. I became a huge fan of lying down feeding because I could just read my kindle for hours in a dark bedroom while she fed and slept.
If it's really agony maybe try to go to a local breastfeeding group to get some advice about making it less painful

You guys are wonderful 😍 you’ve really settled my nerves. Why is the one thing that’s supposed to be the most natural one of the most nerve wracking. I really need to learn to not panic so much. Thank you again xx

If your nipples are really bruised, something isn't ok with your latch. Can you get it checked at a breast feeding group?

On that note, whilst is very normal to be feeding every minute of every day when they are so young, she may also not be removing milk as effectively as she could be if your latch needs to be tweaked a little. But it could just be she's responding to growing super fast (or both!).

You're doing great. The more you relax, the more your milk will flow and will also help calm little one down.

My first was like that and I almost gave up breastfeeding because I was so sore. In desperation I offered a dummy even though I was worried it might put him off breastfeeding. It actually ended up being a life saver as it helped settle him between feeds and meant I could carry on breastfeeding- we did a year in the end but I would definitely have quit without the dummy. I didn't use it to replace feeds, accommodate cluster feeding etc and my supply wasn't affected - it was just a great tool to pacify him in between so my poor boobs could have a break.

Well done for getting to 8 weeks. Like others have said she's having a growth spurt/putting her order in. Constant feeding doesn't mean you haven't got enough milk it's how she makes sure you have exactly the right amount of milk for her. Regards the sore nipples ask your health visitor where your nearest breastfeeding support group is and get yourself there. They can help you with positioning and attachment. And also you will meet other breastfeeding mum's this will really help you to know what is normal and what isn't with breastfeeding. Forewarned is forearmed. Oh an drink plenty of water!

Well done.. the first few weeks are the hardest. I remember friends telling me it would get easier and quite frankly I didn't believe them, but I promise it is true. At a certain point it becomes so easy you may feel lazy when friends are sanitising bottles and you simply let baby latch on!

If your nipples are bruised it sounds like baby is latching too shallow, the roof of baby's mouth is rough and this causes friction and pain too, you may find it useful to learn the c grip (google it - watch YouTube vids) as it gives you more control over positioning. Good luck! Xx

We're at a very similar age and stage, don't think I went 15 mins on sat without her feeding! My first DD did it too, I've assumed it's just cluster feeding to boost supply. Make sure you stay well hydrated!!

I’m going to phone on Monday and find out when my local breastfeeding group is. She was in hospital for a few days and they did check the latch for me in there but would be nice to get someone to check again and show me some different ways to hold her as she’s getting rather heavy 😂. Will have a good look on YouTube as well will help over the weekend whilst I can’t get to the group xx if she is latching incorrectly will it be easy to get her to latch properly? Is that a silly question 😂 it’s such a mine field xx

Latching her on correctly can be a learning process for you both, and can be a bit hit and miss initially. But with support there is no reason for it not to be resolved. As she gets bigger it gets easier and easier.