Have boobies... will travel

When I had my DS, I had no milk... so he went onto formula before I left the hospital. I tried so hard to increase supply and supplement, but even the lactation centre said I should stop worrying and stick with the formula.

So... 18 months later I've had a DD... and I wanted to do the best I could to breastfeed. I was in doubt when there was no increase in my breast size at any point before or after the birth. And then she was losing weight (more then 10%) in hospital - and they didn't hesitate to suggest formula (although the same hospital barely whispered the word formula 18 months ago).

I started giving her formula top ups (after LONG breastfeeds, and EBM top ups)... because she is a little piggy and drinks heaps - then sleeps for ages!
But I have persisted with the breastfeeding and don't hesitate to flop the boobies out when needed.

My MIL has come from o/s... so we are doing the tourist thing.
In the last two weeks I have breastfed:

- in the middle of Caulfield Park at the Chanuka festival - surrounded by 1000's (yes thousands!) of Jewish people (mostly religious ones!)

- at the Zoo... outside the monkey enclosure

- on Puffing Billy steam train.

Until yesterday, I didn't own any "breast feeding" tops - and my boobies are huge (even when I'm not pregnant)... so it's a bit difficult to be 'discreet'. But I have managed to feed her with a nappy covering us up - and no comments or looks.
I was given a breast feeding singlet for Christmas yesterday... so that will make things a little easier in future.

But I'm really happy that I am able to feed my darling DD whenever she has got hungry. And I've not had to stress about heating up bottles.

I must admit... there are times when bottle feeding is a blessing. After feeding DD for nearly 2 hours on the boob - it's nice to hand her to daddy or MIL for some bonding. Or when there are times I can't be around... like today I went to the boxing day sales - and left DD sleeping like an angel... and daddy fed her when she woke up.

Hopefully my milk will increase so that the booby feeds will satisfy her. I hate it when she feeds for ages... then starts crying and sucking on her hand because she's still hungry. I wish we could tell how much booby milk she was getting.

Well done for feeding in so many places! Ii also had a lot of trouble but it sounds like you are really getting the hang of it and i'm sure your supply will increase and you'll be able to ditch the formula!
Good luck!!!!

Great job, I hope it just keeps getting better and better. They can take a long time to feed sometimes in the early days but soon the feeds should be quicker as she gets stronger and more efficient. Well done :)

Good to know that the feeding should get quicker... and hopefully more milk supply come in.
All the nurses have asked me if I've felt the 'let down'... which I haven't... until the last few days. My boobs have felt "full"... and if I can't express or feed - then I leak! This is such a different experience from my first baby.

Hi,

You are doing a gr4eat job - good on you. I wasn't sure if you were looking for advice or not...
But, babies LOVE to suck - they are hardwired to do so. The fact that they want to suck *all the time* does not always mean that they are hungry. The first few weeks are so confusing. But as a rule, babies lose *around* 10% of their birthweight in the days after birth. Losing more than 10% does not mean that we *have* to give extra milk - but we need to have a good look at what is going on - ie, baby may have been sleepy and jaundiced, but now recovering and feeding well. So, no need to give complimentary food - just make sure that baby continues to feed well and often. Babies, generally, regain their birthweight by 2 weeks, then gain 150-250g per week. Usually a newborn would have 8-12 feeds per day. Babies get the biggest quantity of milk in the first 10 or so mins after a mum's milk lets down - but we try to avoid timing feeds - it's so individual. I wonder, does your baby have one or both breasts at each feed? How much formula is she having?If baby is gaining weight well, and having plenty of wet and dirty nappies, many mothers find that a dummy can help satisfy a baby's need to suck, and when mothers are able to shorten the length of feeds, they can add in a couple of extra feeds. Breastfeeding works on a demand and supply system - the more you feed, the more milk you will make.
Hope some of that helps.
Warm Regards
Barb

Wow... thanks for your comments Barb!

I wasn't really looking for advice... but your comments are REALLY helpful!

The nurses were a bit concerned as DD didn't regain her birth weight until her 3rd week... and they were all aware of the feeding problems I had with DS - which had been 18 months prior.
I was surprised how keen the hospital were to give her formula (after the first baby)... but they said I couldn't go home from the hospital if she wasn't within the 10% range again. I stayed in hospital 4 nights - so I wasn't really keen on staying any longer.


I try not to give DD comp feeds if I can help it... but sometimes she is booby feeding for 1-2 hours - and then she seems really hungry after that. I give her between 60-100mls of top up formula which sends her off to sleep. I don't have to top-up after every feed... probably every 2nd feed. There are occassional times when she doesn't get a booby feed - and she gets around 120mls of formula then.

She sleeps for LONG periods... anything up to 6-7 hours. Which makes "regular" feeds difficult. At first maternal nurses were saying to wake her every 3-4 hours to feed. But in her early weeks - she wouldn't wake up at all. We would have her naked, running cold water on her legs... and she would sleep through! But she had no jaundice/yellow at all.... and when she was awake - she was very alert. Because my DS had such horrid sleeping problems (and still does)... my regular MCHN said that as DS is gaining weight, alert, wees & poos, and no yellow - then it was fine to let her sleep - and feed her for longer periods.

She wee's & poos a lot! (runny, mustard poos)

90% of the time DS has both breasts during a feed. Having said that... I just fed her, and she sucked for 15 minutes on one boob and fell asleep. But most of the time it's both.

I actually wrote a post once about "when did mums give their babies dummies..."
I have resisted giving her a dummy as she never cries, and has no trouble going to sleep.
But I thought I would offer her one a couple of nights ago. And she just kept spitting it out. She had no interest in it at all.
She actually resists the bottle teats too... until she works out that there is milk coming out of it. But she latches on really well to the boob. Sometimes she is restless and moves her head from side to side, getting frustrated.

Well done Jodie :)

It's funny.. I did my first "proper" public feed just the other day in a cafe LOL. I've never had a problem feeding in public, but I think I've never really had the need to before! LOL. So anyway.. whipped the boob out while I had my lunch :) It's definitely handy having bub's food on tap. Why anyone is in a hurry to give their baby solids is beyond me.. so much more convenient to exclusively breastfeed as long as possible! hehehe.

As for dummies - DS wouldn't have a bar of the dummy, but Kayla uses a dummy. I'm not a fan of dummies, so we restrict it to the cot only, and it doesn't get packed with us when we go out. So even if she needs to go to sleep while we're out - tough - no dummy hehe. Mean aren't I.

Well done on your successful feeding this time around though, you must be so pleased :)

Hi,
Glad you found it helpful, Jodie. I wonder what would happen if you fed her say, i5, 20 mins on one side then took her off when she starts to doze a bit (she may make a desperate grab for it!) and then burped/give her a nappy change and then give her the other side? After she has been on for say 20-30mins that side, take her off (she'll do the "grab for the nipple thing again) but hold her tight and cuddle her til she goes back to sleep. The net effect is that she may wake up more frequently. I was a little confused b/c you were saying that she has no trouble going to sleep, but then giving her formula helped her go to sleep. (It can be different every time, that's for sure!) Sometimes they don't really *need* the extra food to go to sleep, but need the extra sucking. That's where a dummy can be useful - it satisies that need for extra sucking, and between rocking and cuddling you can get them to go off to sleep without needing that really, really full feeling. You will probably have a time of the day or night when she wants to feed *a lot* over a period of 2 or 3 hours. Usually in the evening. This can be hard for mums to deal with, as it's often when we are tired as well. You are doing a great job, and breastfeeding doesn't have to be an all or nothing thing, but, more shorter feeds will help you make more breastmilk, if that is what you are after.
Regards
Barb

Jodie, good on you hun, you're doing a great job :)

I think Barb's advice is excellent. It sounds like you and I have had very similar problems with BFing. I had a very sleepy bub (premmie) and had to wake him to feed etc for many weeks. I also used to let him spend an hour or so on the boob. In hindsight it would have been better if I'd done as Barb has suggested to you - feed for approx. 20 mins on one side, then burp/change, and then offer the other side......doing this around every 3 hours or so. The idea is to get as many feeds as possible into these little ones, not necessarily spend a long time on the boob each feed. That's not to say that all that sucking is a bad thing though!

Sleepy babies are not necessarily babies that have full tummies. It's hard to see it that way, but sometimes it's better to wake them more frequently, even though we feel 'mean' doing so.

I have always had to comp feed with formula, and TBH, although I'm ecstatic that we have continued to BF this long, I wish it could have been exclusive BFing. I think if I had done as I've describe above we would have had a better chance at weaning off the formula early on. I have a reasonable supply these days, but DS is so used to his bottles now, it would take alot of work to get rid of them......and I don't want to jeopardise our BFing realtionship.

If you want to chat at all, feel free to PM me. And keep up the good work! :D

Funny you should mention this Barb...

In the last couple of hours DD has woken up had a 15 min feed (on one boob) and gone back to sleep. Then an hour or two later... woken up and had another 15 minute feed and gone back to sleep again.
This is REALLY unusual for her. Normally she will suck for ages... then I swap boobs, and same again on the other side... then when she's finished with the boobs... she cries out and sucks her hand and seems really hungry. Whens she pulls off the boob I will squeeze the nipple - and no milk comes. And I wonder how long she has been sucking with no milk.

I guess I'm in a catch 22. With a very active 18mo and a business to run... it has been an absolute blessing to have a little one who sleeps for such long periods. But it is she that is changing her habits at the moment and sleeping shorter and feeding more often. I'm just going with the flow at the moment.

I can keep trying with the dummy... but if she is sleeping well without it, then I won't push too hard with it. I've never thought of it "helping" with the breastfeeding. It seems that most people say "no dummy - it causes nipple confusion (?)". But she's had an occassional bottle since day 3, and that hasn't deterred her from the boobies.

Thanks again for your advice Barb. It's much appreciated.

and yes Liz... I'm really pleased. :)

Janie... thanks too for your post. I missed it as I was writing up my response to Barb.

I'm really easy going... so I don't mind if my baby breast feeds or formula feeds. I am happy that I have been more successful this time with the breastfeeding though. I know that it's 'best' for my baby (although I never had any health problems with DS).
I think there are benefits of b/f & f/f. Both are convenient at different times. I am happy enough to offer both breast or formula. But I would prefer it to be one or the other - rather then a marathon 2+ hour feeding session with breast, EBM AND formula! It seems that DD is starting to change her eating/sleeping habits on her own now... but the advice that's been given is great.