Breastfeeding after c section

[NewMummyJelly]

Hi

please be totally honest… is breastfeeding more difficult after a section in your experience? I’d love to breastfeed but is a c section going to sabotage these plans from the word go?

thank you

I think self doubt is my problem. With first baby I was told he was hungry and there was nothing in the breast and my confidence plunged.

Thank you all for the responses, so many positive stories. I feel more confident hearing from you.

I had an emergency section and this impacted me being able to bf. I had a major pph and my body went through so much trauma that my milk never came in.

I had to do a lot of pumping to get things started, every time I fed her the midwives had me expressing and topping her up with that, I'd say for the first 4-5 days. But once my milk came in properly it was much easier and I EBF for 6 months until I went back to work xx

I had a c-section and only had problems breastfeeding because DS had a horrific tongue and lip tie. Once we got that fixed I fed for 6 months.

I had a c-section and no issues breastfeeding. My milk came in on day 2, I do wonder if it was quick because I’d been expressing collustrum in the last few weeks.

Had no issues with either DD (both ELCS). My youngest was doing her best to attach to my face while I was being stitched up, she fed brilliantly when I offered her a boob.

I did find positioning tricky during the 1st feed in Recovery - I was still quite reclined and it felt like baby was more lying face down than on her side (if that makes sense!) once I adjusted the bed so I was in more of a sitting position it was so much easier and comfy.

I’m a first time mum. I didn’t have my heart set on breastfeeding but said I’d give it a go. Had a c-section and it took approx 3 days for my milk to fully come in and I was all good from then. I fed on demand but had to supplement with formula the first couple of days. I only wish I had more colostrum collected.

I was quite lucky my first was a permanently hungry baby and she latched on right away so didn’t have any issues breastfeeding despite emergency c section, sepsis and major haemorrhage. Second baby arrived 20 months later (took a 5 month breastfeeding break) and the boobs remembered what they’re meant to be doing. Again no issue with breastfeeding despite another major haemorrhage after c section

2 x CS and 2 x B/F babies here! My milk wasn’t delayed coming in either, in fact with DC2 it came in at about 36 hours after birth, the midwife didn’t believe me until she saw some expressed bottles! A supportive partner is really helpful, I found that having DH there to pass baby to me and take away after very valuable whilst I recovered.

No issues at all -one emergency and one planned. Milk came in quickly and no problems with supply (and fed twins!). Both times exclusively breast fed.

Hi @NewMummyJelly I've had two ELCSs and breastfed both babies okay (2nd one was 2 weeks ago today). Both times I went armed with lots of syringes of colostrum (22 and 25 respectively - I got competitive!) which on both occasions saved us as both babies had tongue ties. If you don't have any issues with that and the baby latches straight away, you'll be off and running okay.

1st time around I obviously didn't know what I was doing and the midwives on the postnatal ward weren't helpful (claiming he was latched when he really wasn't) - it was because I had a breastfeeding doula to support me that I managed to feed successfully, and knew what to do to hand express because I'd already collected the colostrum beforehand. ELCS was Thursday afternoon and the milk came in overnight Saturday/Sunday.

2nd time around my baby knew more about what to do (as did I) but was struggling to get a proper latch to stimulate the milk supply so I was hand expressing and then using a pump to stimulate supply instead. ELCS was Wednesday lunchtime and my milk came in on the Friday so about 48 hours. Wound pain from the section this time made it really tricky to get into different positions to work on the latch, which I obviously wouldn't have had a problem with if it hadn't been a caesarian birth. I'm still using nipple shields now, but trying to wean off them now the tongue tie has been sorted.

So, from my experience, I'd definitely recommend harvesting as much colostrum as you can before the caesarian date (I started about 10 days beforehand both times) both to provide a safety net, and to give yourself practice at hand expressing.

I excusively breastfed my DD for 10 months after an unplanned c section. It didn't seem to cause any problems at all.

I had a c section and had no problems breastfeeding, still going strong with my little girl at 13 months. Skin to skin is highly encouraged, after they had stitched me up they layed her on me before moving me to the ward, and she found the breast and fed. Make sure you have that skin to skin.

Milk “coming in” is triggered by the removal of the placenta so a section won’t change that. Just need to find the right hold to avoid the scar? Maybe rugby ball would work, have a look at IBCLC pages, local le leche league etc.
Cluster feeding is normal so know what that is, and how to spot feeding is going well - eg nipples not damaged or very sore, correct number of wet/dirty nappies. We’re constantly told our milk isn’t enough - because there is no money to be made from breastfeeding!

I did struggle to get comfortable in a lot of the suggested positions but my DD also had an undiagnosed tongue tie and was very sleepy in the early days and breastfeeding never really worked. She did eventually latch after getting the tongue tie sorted so I think that was a bigger problem than the C-section.