how do u breastfeed calm n steadily??

[Mummy2TwoSoon]

I am opposite. Cos supply low bb sleepy very bad. And then he doesn't clear breasts I need to compress before he swallows...lazy bum bum...he's super good at comfort sucking...cf lady says nothing calms him except my nipples.

if your bb is full yeah she prob doesn't wan milk anymore n just wana comfort suck. Give her tutu lor...no harm. Mine hardly wants it...I am the tutu lor..

haiz...the many faces of BFg!

 

[msck]

hahaha... true... cos u cannot give bb tutu when they are hungry. they will suck in air as they suckle on it!!!

 

[Mummy2TwoSoon]

I think you ladies need to lie down with baby on a huge absorbent mat to catch all the milk spilling all over the place.

 

[Mummy2TwoSoon]

Just now suddenly had bad engorgement as baby did not feed on my left boob during the last feed. So left boob was extremely hard.i did a little hand express before latching her. She was very cranky. She did clear the engorgement but she was extremely irritated. I think cos the flow was very fast n forceful.managed to coax her n she zzz. I was clearly panicky n dunno how to bf calmly. Everywhere is messy cos of milk squirts just now.
Sometimes I just feel like giving up latching b do exclusive pumping. Then I won't hv prob with engorgement, milk squirts, having to b constantly ard baby etc.

now my rt boob starting to engorge cos she din feed on this boob. Argh I n just getting so frustrated!!!!!!

Why don't you pump out the milk she didn't drink on the breast she didn't drink? Actually if your supply is stable already, pumping out is also a good idea. Can know how much she is drinking too and can schedule feeding time and pumping time. Mine is all over the place cos I am latching her on and pumping...

 

[rachelleling]

actually i very scared that pumping will cause oversupply. I still want to latch and pump eventually but then i dun dare to start pumping. usu for pumping, i have the strong urge to empty the breasts cos it feels so good but then if i empty the breasts, milk supply will go up and i will feel super engorged and she will feel a forceful letdown which cause her to choke. sigh. Unless I do exclusive pumping like i did for my first son.

Now cos of the engorgement, i have to hand express out a bit before feeding her but then she still gulp down lots of air. sigh....

 

[msck]

O
Haha... Then u must control!! Just pump out 20-80ml depend how much u feel should stay inside ur breast. I always estimate then pump out abit here n there. Dun think will cause oversupply.

 

[lyra]

Yes! Don't need to pump n resist the urge to pump! I had a terrible oversupply problem coz I pumped too much. Trust me, u don't want to undergo this!

And mummy2Ttwosoon, I believe oversupply moms don't need to pump out to check how much bb drinks... Whenever I pumped, I just know ok, bb really drink a lot... The milk will never stop flowing n I don't know how much bb actually drinks. I can fill 2 Avent bottles abt 180ml each n there r still milk flowing out. Anyway pumping is inaccurate to measure how much bb drinks. For oversupply moms, we just can't tell accurately when bb stops. And for low supply moms who can see the milk stops flowing, it'll only make them more demoralized. Just latch n latch n the demand n supply will sort out by itself. It's one of nature's wonders.

actually i very scared that pumping will cause oversupply. I still want to latch and pump eventually but then i dun dare to start pumping. usu for pumping, i have the strong urge to empty the breasts cos it feels so good but then if i empty the breasts, milk supply will go up and i will feel super engorged and she will feel a forceful letdown which cause her to choke. sigh. Unless I do exclusive pumping like i did for my first son.

Now cos of the engorgement, i have to hand express out a bit before feeding her but then she still gulp down lots of air. sigh....

 

[rachelleling]

gals wanna ask, if i decide to pump out and dun intend to empty, will i b only getting the foremilk? for sure if i pump till empty, will get the hind milk as well but if i just empty 20-80ml, most likely will be more foremilk. then if i use this milk, baby not getting enough hindmilk?

aiyo, sometimes really really so tempted to pump exclusively liao.

think my baby is mixing day and night. she zzz well in the day and during night time, at about 3am, she'll wake up and grunts, curl up legs etc. think is wind and this continues till morn at 7plus. very tiring for me. i really hope she can zzz better at night. is realy driving me crazy. then somemore this latching and oversupply issue is killing me too. sigh.... why cant i just latch in peace and baby zzz in peace?

 

[msck]

Hey rachelleling, would it be possible tt ur bb actually drinks more foremilk? Cos when there's too much foremilk will also cause gassinesss for bb. How about pump out some in alternate feeding?

For me,
- when my breasts feel full n heavy, i will pump out some milk before latching If i forgot to pump out n feed bb, after feding her, i will empty tt breasts n pump out from the pther breasts n pour the milk in a bag.

- when my breasts feels abit full, not too heavy. sometimes i will latch her direct, sometimes pump out 10-20ml just for the letdown to finish. But will pump out from another breast for 10 min. Then, next feeding, i will feed her w tt breast. Dun need to pump.

 

[msck]

Foremilk Hindmilk Imbalance Symptoms
* Green frothy explosive stools.
* Baby spits up a lot.
* Colic symptoms (fussiness).
* Baby wanting to breastfeed all the time; not becoming satisfied.
* Gassiness.
* Blood in stools.
* Slow weight gain.
* Diaper rash due to acidic stools.
* Baby has a bowel movement immediately after feedings.
The Causes of a Hindmilk Foremilk Imbalance
* Oversupply (read more on how to handle oversupply).
* Nursing for short frequent feedings.

Foremilk hindmilk imbalance ~ What causes this and how can you correct it.

Also,
How to Handle an Overactive Ejection Reflex
* If an oversupply of milk is causing your forceful let down, you can start by giving baby only one breast at a time (change breasts only every four hours) If you start to feel discomfort in the full breast, you can express a little milk for comfort. This will also prevent hindmilk foremilk imbalance and decrease fussiness and colic symptoms.
* If you start to feel a letdown, you can gently remove baby from your breast and allow some of the milk to flow out into a cup or cloth until the flow becomes less; then put baby back on the breast. You might need to do this a few times during a feed. Pumping milk before feeds is not a good idea as this will just increase milk supply even more.
* Make sure baby is calm before breastfeeding; read tips on how to calm a baby for breastfeeding.
* Try not to press on your breast with your fingers while breastfeeding as any pressure or massage can increase the flow of milk and cause a let down. Do not try to stop the flow with pressure as this could cause a blockage.
* Make sure your nipple is facing the roof of baby’s mouth instead of the back of his throat…this will help so that he does not choke.
* Lie down while breastfeeding for the first few minutes; this will help because it allows any extra milk to flow out of baby’s mouth.
* Keep yourself reclined at an angle with baby lying on his tummy as shown in the illustration. This keeps gravity at your advantage so that milk is not forced down baby’s throat.
* Another helpful breastfeeding position is when Mom lets baby straddle her leg and sits upright whilst breastfeeding, holding his back and neck for support.
* Remember to burp baby often because baby might be swallowing air which will make baby even more uncomfortable.
* Do not introduce a bottle unless you decide to pump exclusively; baby might prefer the flow of the bottle and then refuse to breastfeed afterward.

The let down reflex in a breastfeeding mother.
[HR][/HR]

 

[rachelleling]

Msck, i did thought if baby had foremilk-hindmilk imbalance but then her poo is normal lei. not green. just that she really does fuss a lot and has alot of wind!

thanks for the info! i think i will try the when i feel let down coming, let baby off the nipple. so far, i only tried block feeding meaning 3 hour block feed on one breast. The last point about the bottle. i also worry later she likes bottle more cos the flow is slower and easier for her to manage. it is an irony. when i had my son and had low supply, i scared bottle too fast flow then he doesn;t want my nipple. now, for my daughter is direct opposite!

i think i will also try alternate pumping then. actually my original intention was to wait till she zzz thru the night or sleep longer hours between feeds then i will pump in between the feeds. rt now, her longest interval is 4 hours but mostly still 3 hours. sometimes she does cluster feeding and can feed every 2 hours. so, a little difficult to keep a schedule. i find if do exclusive pumping, easier to keep schedule. i hope she can settle her feeding schedule a little more then i will start pumping.

 

[ilovebbdylan]

gals wanna ask, if i decide to pump out and dun intend to empty, will i b only getting the foremilk? for sure if i pump till empty, will get the hind milk as well but if i just empty 20-80ml, most likely will be more foremilk. then if i use this milk, baby not getting enough hindmilk?

aiyo, sometimes really really so tempted to pump exclusively liao.

think my baby is mixing day and night. she zzz well in the day and during night time, at about 3am, she'll wake up and grunts, curl up legs etc. think is wind and this continues till morn at 7plus. very tiring for me. i really hope she can zzz better at night. is realy driving me crazy. then somemore this latching and oversupply issue is killing me too. sigh.... why cant i just latch in peace and baby zzz in peace?

personally my foremilk is 1/3 of my full pump when i empty my breast. because i can see the different colour of the milk through the bottle. Most probably the first 3 mins are foremilk as my pump session is only 10 minutes.

Can we gauge from how long the baby nurse on your breast = time spend to pump milk out ? Feasible ?

i also think regardless of latch or bottle, baby will be gassy, they will soon outgrow the stage. Babies are just so funny, every little one got their own problem, mine finally poo after 14th day yesterday... PD just refuse to give anything to help him poo, as she believe, breastfeed won't get constipation. Only bowels movement will be slower, they will come naturally...

My baby is now 5months 2 week and still wake up 3hourly throughout. Old people are tellinf me most boys won't sleep throughout like girls.

 

[msck]

Can we gauge from how long the baby nurse on your breast = time spend to pump milk out ? Feasible ?

No, i dun think so. cos usually pumping out is quite different compared to bb nursing. bb is able to clear some milk ducts completely as they suck. but as for pumping, probably all 80%, won't be able to completely pump out. so i just agar agar.. haha.. cos i dun wan to empty also as i dun wish to increase the supply.

jie you rachelleling! every child is different and has her/his own pattern. haha... you should know tt SUPER well. try out here and there, surely one of them will work! if block feeding dun work, try alternate. ^_^ if alternate dun work, try sth else!

and yes, exclusively pumping is definitely easier. but after i started breastfeeding, i feel that the feeling is just very different with her lying besides me, quietly sucking. it's almost magical whenever i think of it. i never tot that i can come this far as i really upset with this whole breastfeeding thing in the first month. Thanks to this forum and all the advice i get from you all, i trial and error here and there. finally i think i can breastfeed pretty calmly and steadily. (though i still cannot imagine bf outside...)

 

[ilovebbdylan]

msck,

that is why i was thinking , since rachelling no need to empty her breast which i thought such method might work if she choose to pump out only partial of the milk. But i totally agree that such method cannot work for those low in supply, or doing exculsive pumping. Breastfeed really need alot of patience and effort .

 

[rachelleling]

we cant guage how long baby nurse on breast = time spend to pump milk cos pumping is not as efficient as baby suckling. I read somewhere that even when we pump full, we are only emptying 60-70% of the bm inside and there is still a reserve of 30-40% which is hard to pump out by the pump. so, if that is the case, if baby nurse for 10 min, she could be taking more than the output that you get from the 10 min of pumping. (that is assuming she suck continuously and not stop)

your baby went without poo for 14 days!? i think i will freak out! just want to ask, during the 14 days, did your baby have constipation signs like mayb trying very hard to kek sai and pass out a lot of wind, some wind is smelly?

actually not true that boys dun zzz thruout. my son slept throughout for 6 hours in the night when he was 2mth plus. think cos i pump exclusively n we really overfed him so much tat he is full n not wake up to feed. generally, my boy follows schedile easier than my gal. i find him easier to take care lei

 

[ilovebbdylan]

we cant guage how long baby nurse on breast = time spend to pump milk cos pumping is not as efficient as baby suckling. I read somewhere that even when we pump full, we are only emptying 60-70% of the bm inside and there is still a reserve of 30-40% which is hard to pump out by the pump. so, if that is the case, if baby nurse for 10 min, she could be taking more than the output that you get from the 10 min of pumping. (that is assuming she suck continuously and not stop)

your baby went without poo for 14 days!? i think i will freak out! just want to ask, during the 14 days, did your baby have constipation signs like mayb trying very hard to kek sai and pass out a lot of wind, some wind is smelly?

actually not true that boys dun zzz thruout. my son slept throughout for 6 hours in the night when he was 2mth plus. think cos i pump exclusively n we really overfed him so much tat he is full n not wake up to feed. generally, my boy follows schedile easier than my gal. i find him easier to take care lei

during the 14 days, he got no sign of constipating, eat and sleep as usual. How i hope he got those "kai sai" reaction, at least i can help to motivate the shit out. But only on the 9th-10th day, he started to pass out smelly wind, then at that time i know more or less coming soon. Really headache, since 3 mth old, he is like that , his bowels cycle is like 10 days, 12days and now the max. 14 day. I tried so many methods like vasaline around the anus and use cottonbud to motivate, diluted prune juice no use, until on the 13th day, i tried own made pumpkin puree. Not sure whether did the pumpkin works.

I really envy babies who can sleep thrgout for at least 5-6 hours, mine just refused to take any more milk i gave at last feed. Very very fussy boy, tummy just like a measuring cup.

 

[Mummy2TwoSoon]

No, i dun think so. cos usually pumping out is quite different compared to bb nursing. bb is able to clear some milk ducts completely as they suck. but as for pumping, probably all 80%, won't be able to completely pump out.

Msck, can u explain this again?

When u mention the 'bb nursing', are you talking about effective nursing, ie with sucking then swallowing? Do all your babies suck very well from day 1? I don't think my boy did, he got better now, but still only swallows at the first few mouthfuls on my breast, then it becomes comfort sucking. I really don't know to change his sucking pattern to stimulate more milk supply. Really not happy. After he sucks, I will pump and get 10ml in total (b4 mastitis could get 20ml, my left is now dodgy boob). I do get demoralised. How come keep pumping and latching bb on 2-3 hrly still like that? Feel like I am a freak who cannot bf my own sons.

I don't dare to reduce formula supplementation, am scare he may starve anyway don't how to since he's already on it since day 1.

i really don't know what to do. Already tried fenugreek n motilium (mot just ran out).

 

[Mummy2TwoSoon]

For all of you ladies who managed to have good supply of milk for bb, did all of you experienced the 'boobs like hard rock' in the early days? I wonder if that is an indication of successful bfg. I don't rem myself having that with this bb. My milk just came in late third night but rem boobs became sore but never hard rock.

i really want to know if I am the BFG FREAK.

 

[rachelleling]

mummyto2, i think you are overly stressed. i believe that all babies have the instinct to suck and they can suck well. just mayb latching not proper.

I have a feeling the reason why your boy is not so called sucking actively is becos he is also on formula and he prefers the flow of the bottle. That was what happened to my elder boy also. when my supply reduced, i gave him fm and ebm thru bottle and since then, he will be very fussy on my breast cos my milk flow not as fast as bott. so, it could be this reason that he is not suckoing actively.

If latching is wearing you out, do you want to try doing exclusive pumping? thru pumping, you can manipulate your supply much easier and you wont get tired and stressed up cos of his latching. Breastfeeding doesn;t just mean latching. as long as baby is given bm, bottle or latching is just as good!

I do experience hard rock boobs but that's not an indication of successful bfg. it just means that our body is adjusting to the demand of the baby. cos when the body does not know the demand of baby yet, it will overproduce milk. i read that a woman can produce enough milk to feed twins at the initial stage n will adjust accordingly after tat. For some women, stress and other factors will affect the supply. my gynae once told me tat not all women can bf successfully cos of many factors.

I dun think oversupply is sucessful bfg cos oversupply also has its prob. like baby gagging during latching, baby doesn;t like to latch cos of the strong letdown etc. not to mention blocked ducts and pain.

I dunno if you dare to try this. reduce qty of fm. let him be a little hungry and he may suck more from your breasts. I know this is taking a gamble but seems like this is one of the better ways. Or just go with exclusive pumping. If you want to try exclusive pumping, I am happy to tell you how i increased my supply from zero in week 3 thru exclusive pumping and managed to bf for 1 yr.

 

[rachelleling]

BTW you are not a freak! there are many women out there also have prob with bf. at least u tried your very best. I have frens who din even want to try bf and just give fm. so you shd be proud of yourself for hanging on till now!