First Few Days

[lauramumof2]

Could someone of you breasfeeding queens give me some words of encouragement to get me through the first few days. Im going to print off some of the posts to take in with me as I will be in for 5 days and not able to access a pc and just want something to refer to as I didnt get much realistic support from the mw's the last time.

I want to give it my best shot and feel the minute I go into hospital I might forget my main objective.

Thanks ladies

 

[Dee1985]

has your hospital not got the bedside internet??? mine didnt when i had dior but did with harley

its great i was on here 3hrs after givin birth lol sad i no

 

[Rosieroo]

has your hospital not got the bedside internet??? mine didnt when i had dior but did with harley

its great i was on here 3hrs after givin birth lol sad i no

Mine did aswell but I didn't realise what it was til I left Could have posted my birth story aswell!

Laura - if it hurts, get help for your latch. If bub feeds loads that fine! Don't let the MW bully you, see a bf counsellor if you have any probs and relax If bub doesn't feed much during the first few colostrum days then apparently that's fine too (Ella was like that, only had a couple sucks every few hours, apart from the first night when she was awake every hour )

 

[Lucy]

Hi Laura

Here's a few things that I wish I'd known about breastfeeding:

1) In the first few days until your milk comes in you might feel very insecure about the amount of colustrum the baby is getting - until your milk comes in the colustrum will provide your baby with EVERYTHING they need for the best possible start. Like Kina, Olivia only had a couple of sucks every now and then in the first 24 hours.

2) If anyone asks you when the next feed is - you reply "when the baby tells me"!! Even a midwife at my hospital asked me when she was due a feed at the time I didn't know any better but breastfeeding is on demand! Some babies settle themselves into a feeding routine but otherwise it's unpredictable when they will feed

3) If its sore when he/she latches then use your pinky finger to break the suction and latch him/her on again - bf shouldn't be painful. I'd take some lasinoh cream in with you, it's pricey at £9.95 a tube but it's THE best thing to heal your nips and you'll only need one tube.

4) Ask for someone to help you latch the baby on lying down, you'll really appreciate that position after your CS.

5) For the first 48 hours after my milk came in Olivia couldn't latch on because my boobs were so hard, I hand expressed some milk off and then she latched better. (To hand express make a C shape with your thumb and middle finger, place them about 3/4 cms away from your nipples then push your boob into chest then squeeze)

Latching - remember: tummy to mummy, angle to the danger (great quote from Kina!), the baby's chin should touch your boob first and your nipple should be pointing towards the roof of their mouth, they have to take a good bit of aerola in their mouth to get a good latch.

Sorry if I've gone on a bit, I had loads of problems breastfeeding in the beginning and everyone kept saying it would get better, even though I couldn't believe it at the time they were right!

Best of luck with everything Laura, we're here for you

Lucy x

 

[Rosieroo]

Fab tips Lucy hon

angle to the danger

Think it was angle to the dangle...

 

[lauramumof2]

Thanks folks,
No Lucy, you didnt go on, its great to get all the advice. Was it a c section you had.
Dionne, (welcome back btw) our maternity unit is soooo old. Its just a maternity hospital and thats it. In fact, it closes the week after I have baby .
Kina, the latch was so sore, they told me I had done it okay but It couldnt have been, it was so sore.

Im sitting sewing my bf cushion just now.

Thanks again everyone, your advice is soooo valuable to me.
Laura.

 

[Lucy]

LOL @ Kina

trust me to make such a daft typo! That's very apt though for those days when Olivia was nibbling me !

Lucy x

 

[*saulino*]

Hi

i had a c-section and i swear by the laying down feeding its the best thing i ever did, good luck
Katrina

 

[Lucy]

Hi Laura

No, I didn't have a CS but I had a forceps delivery and had a full spinal block which meant I couldn't pick Olivia up (as I couldn't feel anything from my boobs down) for the first 6 hours after birth. Once I could feel my legs etc I found it really sore sitting down on my stitches for the length of each feed so even if I was downstairs I'd lay down on the sofa and feed her. I found that I felt more rested doing this as well.

I think initially there might be a bit of soreness when they latch on but when I spoke to bf councellors they said it shouldn't hurt after 30 seconds and that pain would be temporary (think it's your nipples changing shape/size as your baby sucks).

Also, as soon as you can after delivery offer your boob to the baby, they say this helps to establish good breastfeeding (again this can be done with you lying down on your bed and the baby lying beside you on their side.

Also thought I'd mention that drugs like spinal blocks travel through the placenta Olivia was quite sleepy for the first few days and didn't feed very often at all, she dropped 9 oz in 3 days but 10 days after delivery she was back up to her birth weight (so be prepared if your baby does the same).

Didn't realise your date was as close as this!

All the best

Lucy x

 

[lauramumof2]

Its a spinal im getting this time. Ohhhhhh. My its ony, 5 more sleeps including this one and I cant wait.

 

[Urchin]

Sorry I only just saw this thread, everyone has given some great advice!

When your nipples hurt, just remember IT DOES get better, lots of people really struggle at first, if you persevere you CAN do it!
If you need help with your latch, just ask your MW or phone a helpline.

We are all here for you...GOOD LUCK!!!!!!

 

[beanie]

Oops only just seen this too sorry.

I second what everyopne has said but just wanted to say that if baby is feeding frequently it is normal. It is not a sign you have no milk, baby is just getting milk supply establishec. On the other hand if they feed in short bursts again that is normal, Serenn would feed for 40 mins, my friend baby fed for 5 miins and he is huge compared to Seren.

Get the bfing growth charts and see if there is a local bfing group in your area.

And most of all good luck, it is tough at the beginning but I am so glad I perservered as now it is so easy


angle to the danger. I was sat here going "what the heck is the danger". Had visions of feeding by a cliff edge or something.

 

[lauramumof2]

angle to the danger. I was sat here going "what the heck is the danger". Had visions of feeding by a cliff edge or something.

Im thick as mince, I still dont get it. Is it something to do with willies?

 

[Hypnorm]

If you can get through the pain in the first two weeks then you have cracked it - at times the pain was toe curling with sore nipples etc until they adjusted - i still had odd occasions where i thought OOOW but then after the first few seconds it went away.

Alway make sure you have a good breast pad on the other side or some thing to catch the leaks in!!

Always carry a second t-shirt/top with you - incase of leakage!!

I used to be sat there baby on one side and a cup to catch the milk coming from the other side!! must have looked a right twit.

And guaranteed everytime you sit to fee the postie will knock at the door!!

 

[Lucy]

Im thick as mince, I still dont get it. Is it something to do with willies?

lol!! Sorry Laura, the saying is "Angle to the dangle", meaning to angle the baby towards your nipple which might mean that their belly isn't snug up against your belly (which is what they tell you it should be generally).

Sorry if that doesn't make sense, I didn't help matters but doing a typo to begin with and saying "angle to the danger"... I should re-read my posts before hitting "submit"!

Lucy x

 

[beanie]

And guaranteed everytime you sit to fee the postie will knock at the door!!

why is that?? Do they have a special breastfeeding radar. I just open the door whilst feeding now

 

[Hypnorm]

Postie or a delievery van! that happened quite alot wiuth me and didnt fancy openin the door with baby on boob -half the time he'd unlatch and i'd leak everywhere!! Also they don't gove you enough time to answer the dooor!!