Question (which i won't wait for you to answer...lol): are your boobs pretty big?
Your lefty problem sounds SO familier to me! Only it was my righty that DD did that with...
My right boob had more milk, so a little suck suck suck then a giant pause while she just let the let-down pour into her mouth, then every now and again a hard suck to keep it flowing without more effort/drowning herself - eventually she would go to fluttery sucks, but it was WEEKS before she could drain my whole right boob that way! When i pumped at about 2 months PP i can remember getting 100mls from lefty and 280 from righty!!!
Anyway, my tips.... Have a muslin cloth with you. Every time she looses grip and hurts and you take her off to re-attach, dry your boob and her mouth/lips (gently). A dry boob is WAY easier to get a grip on and a big wet booby is so slippy it's really easy to slide off and then start doing things like clamping upwards to try to stay on... Re-attach as many times as necessary - remember shes still learning what a "good" latch feels like, and only by being corrected can she learn. So yep, take her off and put her back. On day 3 i counted and in one feed i re-attached DD 34 times! And she was a pretty brilliant BFer, so as you can see these issues are incredibly normal. I never got damaged nipples, which was my main aim, plus she got masses of milk and my supply was good because she got about 5 let-downs a feed being off and on and off and on like that! By the 3rd WEEK i was having to correct her re-attachment about once every 2 days (usually because she began to nod off and slipped off a bit), things get easier fast! One last thought - with DD i wrapped her arms to feed her (just swaddled her basically). You don't mention her wriggling with her arms but i definitely found it helped DD to focus during those early days, without the distraction of her still-largely-random body movements making staying on harder
Sounds like you've got some great advice just wanted to pop in and say
Awesome work babe!!
As Rach said, they get better as they get older (as you can already see with Eden) these days DD could attach to a passing boobie while hanging by her ankles from a chandelier!
Awesome job having her on boob alone for this long!!
Just concentrate on one more day for now. Then maybe you could aim for one more week. Then a month. By then you'll both be right in the swing of things & you'll wonder why it was so hard & you let it stress you so much!
It usually takes 6 - 8 weeks to smooth out all the problems. That seems like forever now, but just focus on that one day at a time & it'll be here before you know it.
Be proud
Yay doing a great job the whole reattaching thing sounds like us as well. In the end Fred would snuggle right in, reattach herself and hold my bb rather than have me interrupt her feeding to reattach! It was so cute, she would almost suffocate herself to stop me from taking her off.
Also I used rescue remedy drops to help my let down. I found it really helped it let down quicker, and then she wouldn't get tired or drop off.
You are doing a great job. 5 hours overnight is brilliant, better than fred who still feeds every 4 hours
Congratulations Mel!! Woo hoo!! I am so happy for you!!
Mel, can you describe Eden's sucking a little bit more? The fast suck, suck, suck usually happens at the start of a feed before you let down, and can happen again later in a feed in between let downs. When you let down, you will normally notice a rhythmic suck-swallow pattern happening. There can be breaks between swallows at times, but usually there is some suck-swallow first. If Eden doesn't seem to be doing this, it might be that she's falling off before you let down.
Attachment in the beginning really is tricky, especially if you are engorged. I had heaps of problems too. It will get easier though. If you are finding it hard to keep her on in the football hold, maybe feeding while lying on your side, or lying on your back with Eden on your chest might help.
If you feel like giving the ABA helpline a call on 1800 mum 2 mum they can actually talk you through a feed and that might help you to work out what's happening a bit better.
As for when to change sides, it is hard to know. Some babies do finish a side very quickly - J never, ever fed for more than 10 minutes, and rarely longer than 5. Others need over 20 minutes per side. It's usually an idea to offer the second side if the baby has lost interest in the first, but it's ok if she doesn't take it.
Keep up the great work hun. I am so proud of you for getting her to your breast.
Congratulations! Sounds like you and Edan have climbed most of the mountain you have to climb already! I have no real advice, just wanted to say it all sounds like issues that time and practice will fix.
I'm really really happy for you! I hope you enjoy all those lovely milk drunk moments
By the 3rd WEEK i was having to correct her re-attachment about once every 2 days (usually because she began to nod off and slipped off a bit), things get easier fast! One last thought - with DD i wrapped her arms to feed her (just swaddled her basically). You don't mention her wriggling with her arms but i definitely found it helped DD to focus during those early days, without the distraction of her still-largely-random body movements making staying on harder
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