I know that this sounds silly but it really seems as if my son does not like to nurse. He has been like this since like day 2. I have tried it all. No pacifier, low stem environment, etc. but nothing seems to work. If I am lucky I can get him to latch on for about a couple minutes on each side and he does not empty either side. I thought that it was perhaps my positioning and that he is not comfortable on the boppy anymore. Right now, I am pumping almost exclusively. I work part time so I can't cut out the bottles. But he is still solely breastfed so that has to count for something!!! So I guess my questions are:
1. Any suggestions for a more pleasant nursing relationship with my son?
2. Any moms out there that exclusively pumped and how long were you able to maintain your supply?
3. Is there a nursing position that you find easiest for a bigger baby to latch on?
Thanks for your help!
J.
my sister inlaws baby did this about 2 months ago she was about 2-3 months old
Just keep trying and keep offering the breast and pumping to make sure you supply keeps up.
Make sure baby doesn't have a ear infection because if they do it hurts them to SUCk so they don't want to do it.
Also watch your baby if no fever develops or no signs of dehydration( watch for wet diapers) then no reason to worry it shall pass may take 3-7 days!!!
Hi J.! If it's really making you crazy, try a lactation consultant. I used one and she helped me through a really tough time. They see LOTS of babies with nursing issues so hopefully she can pinpoint what the issue is. She may be a snacker, she may be "toung tied" - where the piece of skin that connects the tongue to the bottom of your mouth is too short). whatever the issue, YOU'LL feel better knowing for sure what's going on. Good luck!
Is he crying when he tries to nurse? If this is the case, you might investigate that nothing else is going on. My 5 week old had been having trouble nursing and it turns out she was aspirating milk into her lungs. We had to do a swallow study to confirm this. She would not choke, cough, she just cried and didn't want to nurse for very long. I am not trying to scare you, just bringing another option to your attention. Hopefully this is not the case. I had no idea that this was even a possibility until my pediatrician finally contacted a specialist himself for advice on my daughter and it was brought to his attention that this could be a possibility. Congratulations on breastfeeding exclusively for your little boy and he is very lucky to have a mom that knows something is not right. Hopefully you'll be able to get some good advice and he will have a great big mommy meal tonight before bedtime! :D
With my daughter I exclusively pumped. She and I never got the hang of nursing. I'm not sure why but after weeks of both of us crying and being frustrated I finally gave her the bottle. I pumped for 10 months and had a 2 month supply in the freezer. She got breast milk for 12 months! I did this for a couple of reasons, first b/c it's best for the baby, good for the mother and it's free. Towards the end of pumping I did reduce the frequency of pumping per day but she was also taking less. I know that alot of people are suprised when I say how long I pumped but it was important to me that she get breastmilk. I didn't really care HOW she got it. So it worked for us. My son, who's 9 months, prefers nursing to the bottle. I still pump but have noticed that I really don't get as much as I did when he was a newborn. I would say keep offering the breast but I would offer the bottle after nursing esp if he still acts hungry but won't latch on. Have you seen a lactation consultant? There are some awesome ones at presby plano. very helpful with lots of hints. Keep trying!! If you need any help I am a pedi rn and do have experience helping moms w/nursing. I would be happy to give you a hand (no pun intended :-}) M.
You didn't mention if he had the same issue with drinking from a bottle . . . only eating for a short time or not. With my oldest daughter, I fretted over a similar situation, but it turned out she was more of a "snacker" than a full-out eater. So I was lucky if any nursing session would last more than 15 minutes total. And she was the same when bottle fed. Yet my other two girls were "normal" eaters (actually, my middle child fed like every meal might be her last!). So it may just be his way. But don't give up . . . just keep pumping after breastfeeding to be sure you drain your milk, which will stimulate more milk production.
do you need help with daycare?
Hello J.,
I tried very hard to nurse my son and he just never got the hang of it. so it ended up pumping and formula. If he's drinking breastmilk from a bottle... well, that may be what you'll need to do. I'm sure you'll love him just as much =)
I agree with the suggestions to talk to a lactation consultant--I talked with the ones at Medical Center of McKinney, and they were very helpful. When I had a similar issue, my problem was hyperlactation--my milk was coming out too fast for my DD. There are a couple of ways to deal with this, if this is your problem. You can try pumping for just a few minutes before you nurse, to get the first "spurt" out of the way before your baby latches on. This is a short-term solution, though, as it doesn't address the source of the problem. I actually taught my daughter, over the course of 2 weeks or so, to essentially sip from my breast--she'd get a mouthful, pull off to swallow, I'd leak a bit onto a burpcloth, then she'd come back for more. Eventually her appetite and my production got back in sync, so the problem went away. I was so frustrated that I almost gave up breastfeeding entirely, but was very happy we worked through it. Our problems were at about 2-3 months, but once we worked through them, I was able to breastfeed until 10 1/2 mos. I also worked part time, so had to combine pumping/bottle feeding and breast. Stick with it, and good luck!
