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| Stay at Home Moms |
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My daughtet is now 6 mths old and I've always had to supplement because I just don't produce enough milk. It seems as she gets older she will only stay on my breast for a minute or less, unless in the morning when she first wakes up, she feeds the best then. Otherwise she'll just arch her back in protest and whine. I thought that maybe she wasn't hungry, but then I would pump and give it to her from a bottle and she would chug it down. Sometimes I think I should not give her a bottle and "force" her to take my breast, but then I think that's mean and I may be starving her when she really is hungry. I think she may prefer the bottle over the breast because it's easier for her to get the milk out, with the breast she has to work at getting the let down.
Any other mom's with this problem? How are you dealing with it? |
| Posted by lorena on 08/06/2007 01:52 PM
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I had similar problems when I was breastfeeding. I was so sad about giving my son a bottle, even though it was breast milk. Nursing is such a wonderful bonding experience. But if she is unhappy it's not doing either one of you a bit of good. You could try giving her a couple ounces of milk in a bottle, and then nurse her. If she is not so hungry she may have more patience for the slower flow.
If that doesn't help at all, just remember that breast milk is better, even if it is in a bottle. The nutrients are the same. If she is arching her back maybe she is in pain from reflux. Drinking from a bottle may just be a more comfortable position for her when she eats. |
| posted by Marcia on 08/06/2007 02:00 PM
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| I had a similar problem for the first few months I nursed my daughter. She would latch on only for a minute at most even when I knew she was starving. For starters, I wasn't latching her on correctly and then I had a fast let down without realizing it so it was choking her. I felt horrible about it because I thought I was a failure, but I really didn't want to go to a bottle. So, I contacted a lactation consultant and someone from LaLeche League and without them, I probably would have had to give up nursing sooner than I wanted to. They taught me had to latch on properly and techinques to reduce my let down. They can also help you stimulate your milk supply. Are you sure you don't produce enough? Sometimes you might not think you do, but you are. You can contact a LaLeche rep at lalecheleague.org or see if you have a lactation consultant in your area by checking with a hospital. They usually will make house visits. I hope it helps. |
| posted by Jodi on 08/06/2007 02:16 PM
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I breast fed my two children up to a year. My advise to you is to relax...the baby can feel your state of mind. If your angry or stress out they will not eat. I used to watch tv while feeding or after the 7 months old I lay on bed as they get distracted by any noise.
Also look carefully for the food you eat. The breast milk changes it's taste. I found out my baby was alergic to fish because everytime I fed her after eating fish she was cranky, fussy and unhappy. Another tip I got is never to soap your breast went you take a shower, just rinse them with water.oh and don't use cold water or compress on your breast(cold stops milk suply). Went you take a shower spent few minutes putting the water directly to the left side of your left breast and the same with the right one, this stimules the milk suply. Drink a lot of water and warm drinks, soup etc.
Don't give up It is a wonderfull experience! |
| posted by Paola on 08/06/2007 11:18 PM
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| I want to start by saying at least you have made it this far. It's a great thing you are doing but if she has decided that she is done that may be out of your control. But before you give up try different positions and try to relax. You may find that one may help. Also take her in for a check up she could be teething or have an ear infection. Also make sure that you are feeding her often enough she may just be too hungry when you go to nurse. This may also be a time to start some solids if you haven't already. She will be much easier to work with if she is not starving when you feed her. So don't wait for her to cry, feed her when she first gets a little hungry. She may suck her hand, head butt your chest, or bite you to tell you she is wanting to eat. Most of all don't get upset about it. If you do it will become stressful for both of you and she will never go back to breastfeeding. If she gets upset and you can't calm her down then offer her a bottle and try again with the breast next time. |
| posted by Laura on 08/08/2007 05:30 PM
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