Breastfeeding General Chatter #13

Hello all!

This thread has been created as a general chatter thread for those who are breastfeeding their babies. It's designed for those who want to support each other in their breastfeeding journey, however long that may be. So let's start a cheersquad for all those who would like to support one another, for as long as they decide to breastfeed.

To view the previous thread, please click here.

Some other useful breastfeeding websites include:

Australian Breastfeeding Association
KellyMom (USA)
Australian Lactation Consultants Association
Register of IBCLC's (International Board Certified Lactation Consultants)

Subscribing to the new thread...

Things are going well here, and I'm very grateful for that. One of the Mums who was in my antenatal class has had all sorts of problems and I think Mr A and I are lucky we've had it so easy. We make a good team :)

We're now lying down for all night-feeds, which is so nice. Only problem is...Mr A falls asleep too quickly on the boob, then wakes an hour later for more boob. I don't like waking him when he looks so content, but I'm thinking that we might have to go back to some sitting-up feeding to get him to wake up a bit more. And we're using BBH night nappies to minimise the number of nappy changes at night, so can't use a nappy change to wake him up anymore! The last few days he's fed hourly between 4am and 8am and it's killing me!

And witching hour is challenging - feed/fart/feed/burp/fuss/feed/burp...it goes on and on! Hoping we can settle down a bit soon.

:hello: to all the beautiful bfing mothers!

:bluecheer: Just found this thread and cant wait to join in and support everyone out there! :cheer:

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We're now lying down for all night-feeds, which is so nice. Only problem is...Mr A falls asleep too quickly on the boob, then wakes an hour later for more boob.

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Yay! you sound like the two of you are going great! Have you tried playing with his ear whilst he is feeding? It can be enough to keep him sucking.

It's about time I say hello and stop just lurking about the thread :) Going well here and really happy about it - one question though - does one's nipples become more sensitive to the cold when BF? When the temp drops and I haven't rugged up or getting out of the shower etc I can get real chills right in my nipples. I've never felt it before BF, and it actually hurts quite a bit. Goes away as soon as I'm warm, and I have no other complaints, but I'm guessing it must be they are just more sensitive atm?

And Persphone, I 2nd Kate's suggestions of playing with his ear, it's enough to prompt my DD to keep sucking.

I have heard breastmilk is pretty good for lots of ailments. Bub has a bit of cradle cap and also a red rash on her face. would breastmilk for any good for these? do you just squirt it on or do you put it on with a wipe?

ta

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It's about time I say hello and stop just lurking about the thread :) Going well here and really happy about it - one question though - does one's nipples become more sensitive to the cold when BF? When the temp drops and I haven't rugged up or getting out of the shower etc I can get real chills right in my nipples. I've never felt it before BF, and it actually hurts quite a bit. Goes away as soon as I'm warm, and I have no other complaints, but I'm guessing it must be they are just more sensitivy .

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This sounds to me like you may have what's called Vasospasm of the nipple. Reason I say this is because you describe it exactly how I did when i had it in the early months BF. It's nothing to worry about and quite a few women do experience this at some point.
Mine seemed to come on in the cold months too when my DD was about 4/5mths old and I would have to cup my hand over my nipple to keep it warm straight away after she pulled off and sometimes even used a heated wheatpack to warm it up! Showers helped too.... eventually it went away after probably 6-8wks i can't quite remember how long it lasted but it was a few weeks. An LC diagnosed mine. I also had a bit of thrush also at the time too.....
I also remember trying to keep a close watch on having good attachment as that can really help too... even babies at 3 or 4mths of age can get into habits where the attachment may not be quite right and that may cause it perhaps.
Have a look at a website called Kellymom (google that) and look up in the breastfeeding section..... vasospasm. It will give you some info on it to help better explain it.
You may not even have that so i'm only suggesting what it 'could' be. :D Best speak to a GP or LC about it if you are worried or if it persists.

:hello: everyone else!! No news from me.

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I have heard breastmilk is pretty good for lots of ailments. Bub has a bit of cradle cap and also a red rash on her face. would breastmilk for any good for these? do you just squirt it on or do you put it on with a wipe?

ta

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Yep BM is wonderful for lots of things!! It's truely liquid gold ;) Depends if you have a good aim or not :rofl: you could squirt it on.... or express some first into a cup and apply it that way? I haven't thought to use it on my DD's cradle cap. She is 17mo now and still has it... :(

Hi ladies - haven't been around this thread for a while... DD and I continue to feed well - I can't believe she will be 1 in a few short weeks. Lately I have been reflecting on how I felt about BF before pg, during pg, after having a premmie bub and now that all has settled down.

I realised that I have changed my thoughts and stance on BF - I had originally thought I would feed a baby until they turned 1 and like many others, now that I actually have a baby and also the fact that her first birthday is so close... well I just cannot imagine her not feeding.

Mothers at MG have said that they are feeding once or twice a day, some are feeding only 5 times a day - but my DD seems to have about 20 BFs a day and I am fine with that - they all think I am nuts and have said as much to me but it really doesn't bother me how they see my BF relationship with DD. I am proud of how far I have come with regards to BF and I credit you all with a lot of that.

Thank you everyone!

Hi!!

tk1999- everyone seems to have an opinion on b/f...it's all about what works for you and your dd! I think some ppl are to quick to give up on b/f instead of trying to maintain it for as long as it's needed. Good on you!

Kate07- i have also heard b/m is good for cradle cap. Try expressing and then massaging it into her scalp (gently). If that doesn't work...i used 100% pure almond oil for my dd and it was really good.

Afm- thanks for the advice on my dd and her waking at night. I have been able to increase my milk supply and she is now back to her usual 6am wake up! yay!

Hello to everyone!

Thanks for the tips Shanti, and for pointing me to that website, I've spent ages reading everything and anything on there! The info on vasospasm was interesting, I'm not sure if it's what's going on with me, but I'm keeping my eye out for any further indicators. I'm making a concious effort to not get a chill and haven't had a problem for a few days now :crossfingers:

Hi to everyone :)

Just wanted to say that my nipples have also been a bit sensitive to cold since bfing, but not to the extent of vasopasm. Our bathroom is very cold, and I notice an uncomfortable tingling whenever I get undressed to take a shower. It's been improving as time goes, it was much more sensitive in the first two weeks.

Um...tell me about green poos! DS has had green nappies for 24 hours now, and lots of wind. If this is oversupply, am I meant to do anything to change it? I've been feeding him on one boob at a time to try and make sure he gets the hindmilk but no change yet.

My DD was a winter baby and for first few months my nipples were very sensitive to cold, I don't think was vasospasm they just hurt and tingled a bit when cold. When weather changed all went away, now is winter again they are a bit more sensitive again but as only two feeds these days is easier to make sure am warm for those feeds. Another reason to want return of some warmth.

Persephone- My dd had lots and lots of green poo's as well. She still has green poo's at three months. I believe it is quite normal, although i don't know what exactly causes it. I don't stress too much about it, my midwife said it's perfectly fine!

Persephone, I had oversupply issues about a month ago and DD had green frothy poos - they were awful! I had an oversupply in my R breast, because I'd had a blocked duct in it and had fed from it heaps to clear it and then keep it clear. I mainly fed from my L side for a few days, just feeding enough or expressing enough from the R for comfort, and after a few days it all calmed down and her poo went yellow again. I talked to an ABA counsellor and she said it was a balancing act, because whilst I needed to feed mainly from the L, I didn't want it producing too much, iykwim? I'm sure there's much more experienced and well informed people then me that can help you though! That was just our experience :)

ETA I'm not meaning you have to do anything, just saying our experience with green poos, sorry if it came across the wrong way

Green poo bascially means the poo is moving through the digestive tract more quickly. It is not a problem. One reason this might happen is oversupply, or changing sides before the first breast is finished. It can also happen if baby has a bit of a tummy bug. With no other issues it is not a problem so there is no need to do anything.

Argh! Theo and I are sick, so he's basically sleeping all day and now I have an ubersore boob ... he falls asleep before he's finished :( I expressed a bit in the shower (pretty easy - just lean forward and insta-leaking) but nowhere near enough, apparently. My boob size difference is very noticable!

If I don't get him properly awake by dinner I'm going to have to make a concerted effort to express. Can you take a bath at 2.5 weeks post-birth? Expressing has never been one of my strong points, I rely on my little smelly sucking machines to take care of that for me.

DD#2 got her doctor's kit, poked the sore booby with several plastic medical instruments and declared me 'all better'.

And then I suddenly come down with a roaring fever ... I don't think its booby related though, but it will completely mask any issues. I was sitting in front of the heater in a toasty warm room shivering (with toddler on lap of course) but its probably the flu, I have a headache, sore throat, cough, sniff and several sets of sore joints now too on top of the sore boob. Fun fun fun. 2 panadol made me feel somewhat less crap. I can see why Theo is so reluctant to wake up.

What is it with illnesses that just sneak up on you and whack you over the head?