Breastfeeding - Covington,LA

Congrats for wanting to give it the effort!! You've got some great tips so I don't really have much to add. All I want to say is yes, beginning is a little rough but it's soooooooooooooooo worth it. I was not very successful with my first because of him being in NICU his first few days, but I was successful for 18 months with my second. It was the best bonding experience ever!

The hospital should be able to hook you up with a lactation consultant. Let them help - I know it will feel weird at first, but they were a great help with me. Additionally, if you have any questions or problems along the way, they can help as well.

Good luck!!

Kudos to you for thinking about trying to breastfeed this time around. I strongly suggest taking a breastfeeding class BEFORE your baby is born. Most hospitals offer them. Have your husband come too so he can be supportive and helpful once the baby is born. Also, get information on local lactation consultants and resources before the baby is born so that you know where to get help later if you need it. Once the baby comes, you'll be too tired to look that stuff up. : )

I breastfed my son for 14 months and my daughter for 16. Neither one ever had a drop of formula, so it IS possible if you want to do it. Yes, I know sometimes supply can be a problem, but don't tell yourself that from the beginning - give it a chance.

Start breastfeeding as soon as possible after your baby is born. Usually within a few hours is best. Feed her every 2-3 hours. She won't eat much, and you won't produce much for the first few days, but she doesn't NEED much. Her stomach is only about the size of a teaspoon at first, so a few drops will satisfy her. Your milk will probably take about 3 - 5 days to come in, but your baby will NOT need supplements during this time.

Once your milk comes in, it's ok to pump if you want to. Feed your baby first though and let her eat as much as she wants, then pump. Your body will produce enough milk. It can be good to pump both to relieve your breasts and to build a supply of milk to feed your baby by bottle. Some moms choose to pump only so there is milk for their baby if they need to go out. Other moms choose to pump so that dad can help with feedings too, especially at night. Do whatever works for you. I always thought it was easier just to nurse if I was home and save the pumped milk for when I went out without my kids.

Ok, here is the honest truth: for the first few days, or even a couple of weeks, it will hurt. It might hurt a lot. But, if you stick with it, I promise it gets better. The first couple of weeks are the worst, the first month is bad, and by two months, it's starting to get a lot better. By three months, it becomes easy as pie. If you can make it to three months, you can make it as long as you want. You'll notice a big change - your baby will learn to eat faster and not quite as often and the whole process will just get so much easier. So, if you want to breastfeed, just tell yourself to get through the first three months. After that, it'll be smooth sailing.

Finally, I really recommend Mother's Love Nipple Cream. It really helps with sore nipples and it can be applied before you start nursing so that there is some lubrication. It is safe for your baby if she puts her mouth on it while she's nursing.

Congrats on baby #4. Hope all goes well!

Congrats on the baby and your consideration to breastfeed! You won't regret it.
Please know a couple of things:
1. It isn't easy in the beginning; totally worth it, but not a breeze. Nursing on demand and around the clock is the best way to do it. You don't need to worry about ""not giving baby enough". Its so common for new moms to get worried about whether their baby is getting enough in the beginning, but remember that baby is really only taking about an ounce, maybe 2, and that is done over the course of up to 40 minutes, and on both breasts! This is NORMAL, and necessary, as baby learns to nurse.
2. You won't see a feeding "schedule" like you had with your other kids. Nursing babies sometimes want to nurse 30 minutes after they finish. Sometimes they might go 2 hours. But this is also NORMAL.
3. I wouldn't introduce formula until 6-8 weeks old at the EARLIEST, if at all. You will produce all he/she needs, and it will be there in your breasts, when the baby is hungry. If you supplement, you are still going to have to pump, so its easier to just nurse the baby in the early weeks. You can always pump extra if you feel extra full, but remember, the more you pump, the more you make, because your body will assume baby drank it!

My very best advice is this: If you are serious, you need to fully commit BEFORE that baby comes. Its too easy to give up when you are exhausted, your nipples hurt, and baby seems hungry again and its only been an hour since you last nursed! Seek out the local hospital's breastfeeding group, or contact a local Le Leche League Group. Use THESE people to support you in the early weeks, not your mom, hubby, or others who might feed into your fear of not feeding the baby enough, or others who might look at your tired, frazzled self, and tell you to give your baby a bottle.
Best of luck to you and your new baby!
~Mama to 5 exclusively breastfed babes, one still going!

If you really want to breastfeed, stay away from formula. The more you use formula, the less milk your body will produce. My lactation consultant advised that I could pump if I wanted to right away to relieve some of the pressure from engorgement. She also said to start a bottle at around a month (using breastmilk, not formula) to get the baby used to it.

The best advice I can give you is find a lactation consultant now and set up an appointment with her for the first week when you get home from the hospital. Mine is amazing and really gave me the confidence to continue. Good luck!

I pumped right after i nursed. It was time consuming at first but i ended up tricking my body into thinking i had twins. I stopped breastfeeding at 12 months and had another 3 months worth in the freezer. Just remember to put time date and child's name on the bag for daycare.

I breastfed both of my kids and gave them bottles. My oldest was in the NICU and received a bottle when he was just a few days old. My youngest had his first bottle when he was 3 days old. I'm probably in the minority here, but my SIL and I both agree that introducing the bottle very early on is actually a very good idea. People talk about nipple confusion, but I've never actually heard anyone say their kid had trouble. I do see LOTS of posts of moms trying to get their 2 month old to take a bottle so someone else can watch the baby. I never had that problem.

Once my ilk came in, I would pump right after feeding. I had to pump for our oldest. While he was in the hospital I fed him during the day, and the nurses gave him bottles at night. I was pimping so much milk they told me to stop bringing it in. With our youngest my husband had paternity leave, so I took advantage of that and pumped after every feeding. I figured it might be hard to pump with a toddler and a newborn, so I'd better stick up while I had the chance. Also, you produce A LOT when your milk first comes in.

Breast feeding can be hard at first, and it's very common to get sore nipples. It's nice if you can give your nipples a break by giving a bottle and pumping instead.

Good luck! I'm sure you'll do great.

The best way to make sure you have a good supply is to breastfeed for all of the feedings. If you want to pump a little to build up an emergency supply in the freezer, then you can usually pump first thing in the morning before you nurse the baby. Supply is usually highest in the morning. This is in addition to nursing, not instead of a feeding.

After nursing and supply were going well, I did do 1 bottle of formula per day with my first - I let my husband take 1 middle of the night feeding so I could get a little rest. But not until your supply is established - so wait a month before you try this, and longer if you are still not sure nursing is going well.

Good luck, I'm glad you are giving it a try. It is really so rewarding once you and the baby get the hang of it.

I breastfed all 4 of my girlz my 1st in 1970 when it wasn't considered, 'healthy' to do so. By the time I had my 2nd in 1974 'LaLecheLeague' was in full force so I didn't have to deal with the naysayers. I believe it IS the BEST thing to do for your child & for YOU! Your baby gets a natural immunization the 1st few days from your, 'cholostrum' (sp) and then your normal breastmilk comes in. While you breastfeed your body responds by putting those muscles that were stretched during pregnancy back into shape somewhat and helping all those other female parts back into working order, you can feel them actually working while you feed your baby. The reasoning behind not using anything other than your breastmilk the 1st few weeks is that this is the time to get your body & your baby into the correct rhythm and producing the correct amount of milk for your child When you get up in the middle of the night there is no preparing bottles or formula, just the quiet time for you & your child. I realize that if you are a working mom there may be obstacles to overcome, I can't speak to those as I was lucky enough to not have to deal with those when my babies were under a yr. old. My milk went away on it's own with each child @ approx. 3 months in about a 2 wk. period when I went to formula little by little. All my girlz were healthy & happy babies, THAT is the MOST important thing of all you know to have a happy, healthy, loved child whatever your decision. BEST to you!

Here's what I suggest, get support. You can do this. Don't think "I'll use formula if..." think, "I'll get HELP if..." Formula will always be there. Your milk will not. Find a certified lactation center and/or a La Leache League group. They will help you if the latch is bad, if there's overactive letdown (my DD was drinking from a fire hose), etc. Be stubborn. Be proactive. Be positive.

A website that really really helped me at 2 AM was kellymom.com.

I would avoid introducing bottles in the first weeks because that's when your milk comes in, that's when you and baby learn to nurse, and the more nursing you do, the better it will be. Once you have some of that under your...bra ;)...then you can think about pumping for things like work and travel and dates. I pumped for my daughter for a year and worked FT.

Your baby's output will tell you about input. Don't fret the ounces. If your kid is going through diapers like nobody's business, the baby is healthy and well-fed. My DD was always a fast nurser. Some babies aren't. But efficiency doesn't mean that there's anything wrong. And don't judge yourself by a pump. A pump, even a good one, is NOT the same as a baby.

Yeah, you'll be tired...but you'd be tired anyway with a newborn. I found it very convenient to just nurse anywhere we were vs having to make a bottle (even a pumped milk one). I used a bebe au lait cover, but using a cover is a personal choice. It's not necessary.

You can do this!

ETA: I took a class for working, nursing mothers. One of the things that came up was that you can offer a baby just about anything and he/she will suck on it as a newborn, but once they get about 12 weeks old, they start to have opinions about what that is. So while I did introduce DD to a bottle just fine around 8 weeks old, she got particular about it around 12. She got past it and she took a bottle during the day til I left that job and transitioned her to a sippy cup when she was not nursing.

I mention this in part bc sometimes what we get upset about is just a normal bump in the road and not a roadblock. A good LC will help you get past it. I called our center's "warm line" several times that first year.

I would pick up a book on breastfeeding or take a class (usually offered for free at your hospital). It seems like it should be the most natural thing in the world, but it really isn't. Especially when its not going well. So educate yourself. There is only so much we can tell you in this kind of forum. I'll just list a few things you want to watch out for.

You do want to avoid "nipple confusion". This is when the baby gets introduced to the bottle nipple too early and develops a preference for the bottle over breast because its easier. So if you do need to supplement with formula in those first few days, learn to syringe/finger feed. But do not let that baby use a bottle nipple the first 10 days after birth.

Breast milk is based on supply and demand. Some women don't struggle at all with milk production. But for those of us who do struggle to get our supply going to adequately nourish the baby, there are lots of pit falls that can ruin your efforts to BF. The worst one is formula supplementing. I could write you three chapter on this topic alone. Try your best not to supplement with formula at all, rather put baby to breast as often as necessary. But this can be very tricky and this is where you really need some professional help. Straight up demand feeding is not going to work for everyone. I for example ended up with a baby who had a week suck, so no amount of demand feeding was going to help us. I had to supplement because she lost more than 10% of her birth weight, was feeding for two hours in a row (which caused her to use more energy feeding than she was getting out of the milk she got. It is critical that you be checking the babies weight in all this. Don't let people bully you into demand feeding only, there are very real problems that you may have to get through before you can exclusively BF.

The key to formula supplementation in the first few days (if you must resort to it), is to only give them a few milliliters to top them off, I'm talking the tip of your pinky the first few days, and only one 10 ml syringe full after the first week. What you want it for baby to make it at least 2 hours between feedings (cluster feeding in the evening is fine ((thats when the baby eats multiple times in a short time frame, like three feedings in two hours)). A baby who eats every hour thoughout day and night, will burn your out and stress your body to the point that it won't even be able to make milk. You as the mom HAVE to get some rest to be able to make milk. Don't make the mistake I made and suppliment until the baby goes 4 hours without eating. A breast fed baby goes 2-3 hours between feedings and thats what you want to strive for. If thats what baby is doing, you are well on your way to success.

Strive for no less than 8 feedings a day to establish your milk. Do the math, if your baby eats every three hours (which is normal and ideal for a BF baby) thats 8 feeding is 24 hours. If you formula supplement and baby goes 4 hours between feedings, you won't hit 8 feedings a day and therefor won't stimulate your body to make the milk it needs to make. Trust me, 6 or 7 sessions on the breast in 24 hours in the beginning is a death sentence to your milk supply.

Work with a lactation consultant. Your hospital will likely provide you with one, and you will leave the hospital with her contact information. Don't rely on family, friends, or the internet to get you through troubles with BF. You need someone who acctually observes the baby eating and weighs the baby on a hospital grade scale to offer you any advice worth taking. Also, it takes a good 72 hours for any methods you try to start working. When you take everyones advice, you will get contradictory advice, you will switch methods every 24 hours in exasperation and desperation.

When you start to feel you are in trouble, get help. BF problems can escalate very quickly. stay on top of it and get help right away from a lactation consultant.

Don't trust the nurses in the hospital. when it comes to feeding and formula. Keep baby in your room and skip the nursery all together. Some are great, just angles sent by God. But more often than not the nurses in the nursery care more about keeping your baby full, quite and gaining weight than about your ultimate success at exclusively BF. I had a nursery nurse fill my baby to the max with bottled formula against my express wishes. We never recovered from the insuing nipple confusion. I did not succeed at BF my first baby.

Good for you for trying to make this work and educating yourself up front. I have both succeeded and failed in my attempts to BF a baby. I have made a lot of mistakes I don't want others to make.

BF is hard, but here is the truth, formula feeding a baby is hard too. Its all hard. Babies need a lot. But trying to BF when your supply is down is really hard and adding pumping to the mix doubles the work. So only pump if you really need to. Best to put baby to breast if you can.

In summary here some some of the worst mistakes I made:
letting my baby stay in the nursery at the hospital
listening the the nurses about supplementing with formula
letting nurses bully me into thinking my baby was starving
thinking I could do it alone
thinking it was great that my baby slept 4-5 hours in a row (first baby)
thinking I would demand feed my baby no matter what and never supplement at all (second baby who ate every hour and more day and night almost completely burning me into exhaustion)
thinking I didn't have time or energy to make it to see the lactation consultant after I went home from the hospital

Best thing I ever did to succeed at BF
built up a teem of support
mentally prepared myslelf for one difficult road
saw my laceration consultant frequently even though she was half hour away
had husband stay in the hospital with me overnight so WE could feed the baby
learned how to suppliment with syringes not bottle and to only top baby off to get them to go 2-3 hours, not make them full.
Gave up on le leche style demand feed only, because my baby had real problems getting milk out and only an experience lactation consultant was able to see this and help me through it
Trusting my lactation consultant instead of everyone who tried to project their own personal nursing experience on me, including myself (since I had struggled with different issues with my first child that had nothing to do with the issues i struggled with my second baby)

Breast feeding is a full time job. It's round the clock and you do get exhausted. You want to get a good supply started and it's best to BF exclusively at the beginning. It's setting you up for success. It can be painful at the begining but gets much easier. When you set up a pattern of BF then your milk will let down at a regular interval or even at the hunger cry of your infant. Giving a bottle of formula in between time can be painful for you, if you are engorged. It's not like just leaving the milk in the fridge. You are constantly making milk. Its a matter of supply and demand. You need a while to establish that supply.

You can pump and freeze your milk. And someone can give a bottle of your milk, if the baby will take it. They can be fussy about it. Breast milk gets digested much faster, therefore baby will wake up more with BF.

It's a big decision. It's a great start. It's cheaper. It's less washing dishes. It means you eat more food. You can't be away from baby very long.

I had big boys and they fed every two hours round the clock. You have three other kids. You need lots of patience and help to do this right. Is there anyone to help you?