Breastfeeding..

Hi everyone,
I have been a little stressed at the thought of breastfeeding again.. It wasn't successful with my son and I begun expressing when he was 2 weeks old... I went on to express every bottle until he was around 8 weeks, then stared introducing formula 1 feed a day.. he was on full formula by 12 weeks.
This time I am really tense at the thought of feeding again and have decided i would like to express again as this way bub still gets the B/Milk for at least the first few weeks..
My questions are.. Has anyone express fed from the start??
Any infrormation and thoughts would be greatly appreciated!!!!

Hi

I cant help you with expressing from the start - but would recommend you speak to a LC prior to get organised and all that sort of thing.

As you already know - expressing is a hard job and is very time consuming with having to express & still feed - with a toddler around as well you might find time very, very limited especially in the early days. So if you really want to express from the start - best to be set up before the birth.

Are you an ABA member? I would recommend talking to them also.

Good luck hun :)

i had a similar situation, b/f with top up forumla for 6 weeks, then, 100% expressed for another 4weeks, then, full on formula.
This time, i am determined to give b/feeding a better go, so, have started attending my local aba meetings, as well as reading as much as i can. I have found Pinky McKays "100 ways to calm the crying" really good, and i so wish i had of read it before i had my first son. I feel my b/feeding relationship with him would of been so much better.

If you are determined to 100% express, still contact ABA, they will be able to give you some useful tips on expressing, as well as some info books.

Flossy, as the others have said, the ABA are a fantastic source of information for pregnant mums wishing to bf. Many women struggle to bf their first baby but go on to bf successfully with subsequent babies. You can call the ABA helpline on 1800 mum2mum or check out the information on the website www.breastfeeding.asn.au. There you will find information, and a schedule for Breastfeeding Education Classes for pregnant mums in your state. These classes are really fantastic and give you a heap of information, as well as contacts in case you need some more information or support after the birth (as most of us do!).

It's so great that you are starting to think about this now and prepare. That will be a huge help when the baby arrives.

I had trouble bfing my first and was scared out of my wits about number 2. Thankfully number 2 was a completely different feeder and I ended up feeding her for the double the time I fed DD1. I will be having DD3 in July and this time around I have joined the ABA, I am going to start meetings and possilbly use a LC for support.

Definately check out the ABA and if you still decided to express feed exclusively I would get a LC to assist you.

Goodluck:)

def get an LC in if you can. I have already asked my hospital to arrange to have an LC come and see me after the birth, which i am really looking forward to. Also, my hospital, and perhaps others do it as well, run a short re-introduction to breastfeeding course just so people can touch up on their info, and ask questions etc, so, i will be doing that as well.

I think sometimes the biggest mistake we can make as first time mums, is to pretend we know everything, and dont ask for help soon enough. i wish i hadnt of made that mistake.

Flossy, I had a very sick DS who wasnt able to BF at all. So I expressed from the start. I expressed exclusively for 12 months. All DS got was my EBM down his nasogastric tube. It had to be mixed with a booster to give him more calories but made it to 12 months with no formula.

Because I knew before he was born that he was going to be so sick I went to our hospt and had lessons from the LC on how to use the breast pumps and got that all organized before he was born. I had to go on Maxalon to keep the supply up and I tried a few different pumps until I found the Avent Isis hand pump which was great.

I think getting a LC was really good for me as it helped me feel more in control of getting this expressing going. Also I tried BF with DS for months but he was just too sick. I had a private LC outside the hopst for that and she was very encouraging. The ABA wasnt much use to me unfortunately as my DS was very sick and so the normal BF support wasnt what we needed.

You can express full time for as long as you want. As someone else said the next baby might just be completely different and you may not have any issues. I am pg again and I really want to be able to BF this next one. Wont have the nasogastric tube this time but I am prepared to express and bottle feed. I know how to do it now!

Good luck and ask away if you want to know about expressing full time for a longer time.