Cluster feeding, help!

[LucieStar]

Hi ladies. Please talk to me about cluster feeding and give me your success stories! I have a 6 day old baby, my milk just came in two days ago. It's obviously very early days and I'm still recovering postnatally too from what was a very traumatic birth experience. Anyway ... I feel like my little one is permanently attached to my breast and I just need to know that it gets easier.

It gets easier.

Really it does.

Cluster feeding is hard work and best advice I have is to just go with it. If dad is around he does EVERYTHING else. He cleans, cooks, changes nappies the whole lot. He should also be proving you with food and water all the time.

If baby sleeps, you sleep as well.

For the next few weeks there are only 4 things you need to do each day (alongside feeding baby);

1. Eat
2. Drink lots of water
3. Shower
4. Something for you, a walk, watch a show you like, speak to a friend whatever that means for you.

Really though it does get better. Baby will settle, they will have other cluster feeds around growth spurts but these pass too.

They may get a witching hours soon where they cry and cluster feed every evening. It tends to be like clockwork going from say 7-9pm. Eat before it starts and settle in front of the telly and boob through it.

It's so worth it around 4 months when all this has passed. You can then grab baby and go out for a whole day and only have to think about taking nappies with you.

It really does get so much better soon

@Twizbe thank you so much for your reply, it has given me hope. Daddy is fantastic, he's looking after us both and has been literally feeding me forkfuls of food whilst she's attached to my breast. He does everything else too, nappies, cuddling her to sleep while I shower etc. I'm determined to see it it through to when it gets easier, I really am. Also the only way I can tolerate feeding her without excruciating cracked nipple pain is by using silicone nipple shields but everything I've read says this is frowned upon... but it's my only hope at the moment. Is it OK to use them longer term?

Put plenty of lansinoh on for the cracked nipples.
It get much easier really quickly. Watch some nice films or tv and enjoy the rest.
Bf is so easy once the first stage has passed and as pp said you don’t have to take anything with you.

@mayblossominapril
I've been using lansinoh after every feed and still in agony. It's been assessed by couple of midwives who said there's clear evidence of nipple trauma despite her latch being perfect. I'm literally screaming out in pain each time she latched. Tried the shields and I haven't cried out in pain once and she's still getting what she needs. Do you think it's ok to use them?

It's just stressed me out a bit that I've found a solution to the extreme pain I've been in and then I read up on it and it's frowned upon. Why?!!! Sod's law

Nipple shields are fine to let yourself heal. They can make the latch a bit lazy but for the short term while they heal it's fine.

With the nipple pain, I once read it's like wearing in new shoes. Horrifically painful at first and you get blisters. Then those heal and the shoes fit perfectly.

It really does get so much easier once you get over this bit

Use the shields, that’s what they are for. Give yourself time to heal.
Once they improve start trying without and use the lansinoh BEFORE and after every feed. It’s fine for baby so whack it on liberally.

The only drawback to shields can be getting a good latch without them. But they are vital if you have damage. Keep on.

I know it seems like an eternity but if you can power on to 6 weeks it honestly is so much easier after that.

Keep using the nipple shields if that what stops it hurting. It’s bloody agony when you get sore nipples

Does it matter if you use them longterm if baby is feeding well?
Sometimes fresh air to nipples helps the healing as well. It is a bit weird seeing scabs on your nipples though.

Nipple shields are fine, I used them for nearly 12 weeks with my first, gradually weaning him off then. I remember stressing about it to a breastfeeding consultant and she said that if they help you to breastfeed for longer then don’t worry about it, some people use them throughout. The other thing you can try when you’ve healed a bit is different breastfeeding positions, you might find some positions are less painful if the baby’s mouth is at a different angle so taking the nipple differently. Hang in there it will get easier ❤️