Breastfeeding help for my sister...

[Fleur]

Consulting the BB oracle for my sister this time

Bub is 3 weeks old. Attachment has been great from day dot, and she was feeding roughly 2 - 3 hourly with a couple of longer stretches for the first two weeks.

This morning my sister has called, things have been going downhill a bit over the last week, bub feeding much more frequently and for short periods of time.

Yesterday she was feeding for 10 minutes, go to sleep... sis would change her nappy, try & stir her & put her back on, with little luck, and then half an hour later bub would be feeding again.

So Sis has felt like she just spent allll day feeding, on top of which she was home alone yesterday with bub & her other DD, 15 months...so by the end of it she was feeling a bit stressed.

She ended up giving bub a bottle of EBM (stored from when her milk came in) and she took it well & then slept well (not sure how long, but a decent sleep).

She then tried expressing last night & this morning & got about 20ml out. So she is worrying that her supply is down.

I did tell her that what she expresses is not a great indicator of how much milk bub is getting. Although she has expressed previously (for her other DD) using the same pump, and found it easy & efficient. Added to the frequency of feeds... I don't know?

I have given her the number for the ABA, but am asking here as well in hopes that someone might have suggestions, advice, BTDT... anything

Oh, and plenty of wet & dirty nappies still.

TIA!

[Lily Dust]

She then tried expressing last night & this morning & got about 20ml out. So she is worrying that her supply is down.

I did tell her that what she expresses is not a great indicator of how much milk bub is getting. Although she has expressed previously (for her other DD) using the same pump, and found it easy & efficient. Added to the frequency of feeds... I don't know?

I wouldnt be stressing too much at this point, especially with wet and dirty nappies. If the weather has been hot then perhaps her DD is thirsty and wanting the foremilk more so to quench her thirst iykwim. At that age I think, from memory, there is growth spurt and loads of bubs will quite happily spend all day sucking away As for the pump, the amount of times I pumped and got soooo much milk and then pumped and got sooo little isnt even countable anymore, pumping and quantity is dependant on so many variables....time of day, how your body feels, if your body knows its the pump and hasnt been tricked, when baby fed and just the plain unexplainable...the boob just didnt feel like it!

Sending her loads of shes doing great

[mummy of 3 boys]

Fleur- my bub is almost 6wks old and at 3wks he went through a growth spurt and was doing exactly what your describing ALL day, i to got stressed i ended up phoning my midwife and she told me its normal cause of the growth spurt they are trying to boost your supply to support their growth spurt, now my bub is 6wks old almost and im going through the same thing all over again its completely normal but i totally understand her frustration
i was also informed at 6wks majority of bubs become more unsettled and this could continue for some time

As with the pumping i have pumped and got no where near the amount i normally would and most of the times it cause bubs just had a feed so exactly the advice lily dust has given i would say is correct the time of day ect....

Tell her shes doing a fantastic job and to try and not stress just go with the flow (from my dr) as bub is doing what they feel is best for them as hard as it is

[~Kim~]

Yep, I'm thinking growth spurt too. My little guy still does this and he's nearly two.
You gave her excellent advise about the pumping, and most of us who have BTDT know how hard it is to trust your body and that it is doing the right thing.
She's also probably starting to wake up a bit from that really sleepy newborn stage and her little body is adjusting to that. I found that weeks 3-6 hardest for both of mine.
She's doing a great job.
Sometimes a sling helps as bub really just wants to be close and snuggled but she still needs her hands free too.

[turtleschell]

Everyone else has said it all really, just wanted to add that my DD was pretty much permanently attached to my boobs 24/7 till about 9weeks, or maybe even longer. I just stayed at home watching movies all day, with DD just stuck to me. It was hot weather too. It was an annoying time, but I think the constant stimulation was really good for my supply.
When I expressed I could only get a few drops, but even up till now, we are still going strong with the breastfeeding, and I've never had to try FF or anything.

[Fleur]

Thank you so much everyone. I have called her & read your responses over the phone & she is feeling very reassured. So very much appreciated

[Kmn]

really boring thing to add - check the pump seals and so on to make sure that it is actually sucking properly! They do need replacing sometimes, especially the little non-return valve flappy thing.