Breastfeeding

is it bad to still be useing a nipple shield when babys 7 weeks old?

My son actually nursed 4 times yesterday. I FINALLY got a break from pumping. We only ever nurse in the morning on weekdays and I pump throughout the day. On weekends usually he doesnt have the patience to wait for a letdown, but this weekend he was all about it! I think because he wasnt napping very well and he was constantly tired and looking for comfort. I’m just glad I didnt have to break out the pump on my day off!! I feel refreshed haha.

I think that all babies are definitely different. We introduced the bottle right away because for the first week we were commuting back and forth to the hospital an hour away and it was hard breastfeeding at first especially in public. We never had problems going from bottle to breast. I was actually more afraid that he would refuse a bottle later on when I went back to work. We also used a pacifier right away, no nipple confusion here. I did always use slow flo nipples so they bottle wasnt too easy. We are almost at a year and still breastfeeding. All situations are different but I bring this up because I dont want people to think that if they decide to give a bottle they have to quit breastfeeding. There are a lot of ways to get it to work and the most important thing is breastmilk. I admit, pumping is a drag but my son has gotten breastmilk for an entire year and that is definitely an accomplishment.

Sarahbrooke-Just keep on feeding. If your LO is only getting a 1-2oz at a time, just feed again in an hour or so. What is important is the total amount that baby gets during the day, not how much at each session. Your body will adjust, it is slow going in the beginning. Sadie ate like a mad woman, some days I seriously felt like my shirt was off all day. I joked that if the UPS guy came I’d prob. open the door half naked and not even realize it my shirt was off so much. As long as baby is gaining/wetting/pooping you’re fine!

dulcianasmom – Why dont you try to give her something very ‘important’ to do while you are breastfeeding. Something she can look forward to each time and that she can really be involved in like a specific activity. Since she knows you have to be still and tied down when you are breastfeeding maybe encourage her to help you with something… like hide some things and ask her if she can find all the crayons for you or put all the dirty clothes in a laundry basket or something like that. Maybe just prepare a task ahead of time so she feels important and independent. She may begin to look forward to doing that special thing to help you out. You could tie the ‘chores’ into her baby too. Find all the doll clothes or prepare the doll lunch.

nikki- you probably have a clogged duct. It is very painful. You need to get the milk flowing or it can turn into mastitis which is an infection that makes you feel like you have the flu. You’ll probably notice that once the clog breaks, that side will be tender for a few days and you’ll also notice a a dip in supply on that side too. Nurse that side first and massage the breast during your letdown to help encourage the milk flow. Make sure you empty your breast fully to keep this from happening in the future and try not to go too long without nursing or pumping as this can cause clogged ducts or a drop in supply. Remember, supply and demand…if you don’t demand the milk, the body thinks it doesn’t have to make it. Hope you feel better soon!

HannahKay – I make stuff. I make diapers, jewelry, clothes, scrapbooks… Anything, really. I was the same as you, if I had (or have) too much time to think, I tend to become an emotional wreck, but when i am doing some kind of craft or hobby, I don’t have time to think about stuff that makes me upset!

As for building supply. I know many of you have heard me talk of fermented oatmeal. How it doesn’t taste the greatest but it works and is cheap. Well, Alexander is 10weeks and I believe he’s growing again (which is incrediable since he’s already over 16lbs). I got sick when he was 3 weeks and hadn’t leaked since then. Well, I have been eating fermented oatmeal for two days just to help build supply while he’s growing and this morning I leaked!! It was crazy. Thank God I was at home in PJ’s! HAHA! Anyways, it’s awesome. I haven’t worried about supply this time around because I know that oatmeal will come through for me!