Breastfeeding was one of the worst things I’ve ever been though, and I feel terrible when I say that, but it is the truth. When Drake first latched on in the hospital, I thought I was going to die. I had just given birth to him naturally at 8 lbs 8 ozs, pushed for 4 hours, and had been in the hospital from the previous morning without eating or sleeping. I thought I would have done it all again honestly if I never had to breastfeed him again. I was positive something was wrong but every time the nurses or lactation consultant came, they said his latch looked right and that it would hurt for a little bit. But I felt like that whole area was on fire.
After we came home, Drake would want to nurse all the time for hours until I couldn’t stand it anymore and would just stop. I made numerous phone calls to 24 hour lactation hotlines and felt so utterly alone at night, sitting in the living room nursing this little baby in such pain. Finally after a week of this I called a lactation consultant (I fought with my insurance) and had her come to my home as Drake never seemed to be full, always wanted to eat and never slept. She noticed that he had a tongue tie, which seemed to be preventing him from latching properly, even if it looked like he was doing it right from the outside. We took a trip to the pediatrician where she also diagnosed the same thing, and noted his tongue tie was extremely deep and shallow probably making him clamp more on the front end of me rather than what he ought to be doing. I couldn’t even stay in the room — my husband had to assist the doctor and hold Drake. It took 2 snips.
After that they suggested a nursing shield for a bit to allow me to heal, since my breasts were terrible (I’ll save you the gory details). It did get better after the tongue tie was clipped and I used the shield, but Drake still nursed for hours. I think part of the issue was we lost a week where he couldn’t demand enough, and I just never could make enough no matter all the things I tried liked fenugreek, oatmeal, etc. After watching him go from the 90th percentile in weight at birth to off the charts, I moved to pumping and supplementing at 4 months so I could see how much he was eating. His weight improved and while I hated pumping, it honestly felt less painful than breastfeeding ever had. We made it to about 11 months when I dried up (I never made more than 4 ozs each time combined), and a month later we transitioned to cow’s milk which Drake still loves.
I understand my experience may have been fraught with unexpected challenges, but it honestly traumatized me to the whole breastfeeding thing, and it’s one of the things where Mr. Chocolate and I disagree. While I know breast milk is best, I also don’t know if it’s worth the blood (literally), tears, sleep loss, frustration, and stress I endured in that 11 months. Obviously Drake is a happy and healthy toddler now, but I felt he probably wouldn’t have been worse off if we had just gone to formula sooner. Mr. Chocolate would disagree vigorously with that statement. I believed that a lot of Drake’s sleeping issues (he didn’t sleep through the night till 11 1/2 months) stemmed from his need to always want to eat since his first week of his life. I wonder if had we done things differently, whether it would have been easier all around with him that first year.
As Chocolate Baby’s arrival looms closer, breastfeeding is one of the things I struggle with once again. Part of me knows that we won’t encounter any issues this time and I’ll get that warm fuzzy feeling most women get when feeding their child, but part of me is fearful to live through another painful, guilt-filled, sleepless, stressful year again. The one thing Mr. Chocolate and I agreed to though is as soon as Chocolate Baby is born, the first thing we want is a tongue tie check.
I have a flat nipple, so that made nursing on that side very painful at the beginning. I cried a few times from the pain, especially when he seemed to want to nurse for hours on end.
Liam’s first pediatrition thought he wasn’t gaining enough weight, so that was really stressful until I stood up for myself and changed doctors. Since the switch, we have never had a problem with weight gain.
I drank the tea and ate oatmeal to increase my supply, but I know that thorough and frequent milk removal is the best way to increase supply. I didn’t pump as much as I think I should have at the beginning because I just couldn’t find the time with nursing (what felt like) around the clock.
Ria had trouble getting a good latch at first, and she wanted to nurse day and night. For real, she would nurse for and hour and a half and then take a half hour break as a newborn. It was brutal and I was taking advil for the nipple pain for 6 weeks. I had some hot spots that I was able to deal with before they turned into full blown mastitis, but I did feel myself getting close at one point (I started spiking a fever). I had enough milk though! Then at 6 weeks it got better and by three months it was totally easy. I nursed her to 17 months.
Sunny had a good latch from the start and was pretty easy to nurse overall. I had an oversupply with her for the first couple months, which was a bit of a challenge as she was getting a fore/hind milk imbalance. She also reacted badly to dairy in my diet so I had to cut it out until she was 6 months old. Nothing big though, and she’s still happily nursing at 14 months.
They both bit while teething from 5 months till about 9 months. I couldn’t break them of it no matter what I tried, but they grew out of it on their own, thankfully!
With James, I faced the difficulty with dealing with the loss of the idea of nursing. I know that doesn’t seem like much, but there were two things I truly mourned while going though our adoption — I wanted to know what a kick felt like and I wished I could nurse. Mrs. Jacks has written about breastfeeding an adopted baby before. It is possible, but to be honest it just wasn’t for me. The more I bottle fed him the more I realized that he could bond with me just fine and I let go of the idea of breastfeeding.
With the twins I had trouble bringing my milk in. It took almost two weeks of nonstop feeding and pumping. Even once it came in I had supply issues. I had plenty of milk for one baby, just not quite enough for two. They both had some latching issues at first and I had a lot of nipple pain for the first few weeks. By about 3-4 weeks we got the hang of it. I had a few clogged ducts during our year that I fixed with non stop nursing and heating packs.
With my daughter we eased into it fairly easy. On her second day she decided to nurse round the clock. It was about 15-20 minutes in between each 2 hour session. The nurses laughed at us because every time they came in she was nursing. It caused a few cracks and some pain but it went away by 2 weeks. She also was a biter. That was pretty uncomfortable and I could not break her of it.
In the hospital, the Trikester refused to latch, even though my “equipment” looked sufficient. We weren’t allowed to go home until we mastered breastfeeding, so an LC gave me a nipple shield. Best. Thing. Ever. I know that nipple shields are controversial, but it’s worked wonders for us. I’ve casually tried to ditch it here and there, but it just isn’t going to happen. At almost five months, I continue to use one without any regrets.
I had mastitis twice. Not sure how I ended up with it the first time, but the second time was because I spent a half hour laying on my chest during a massage. Both times it felt like the flu. Both times were not fun. I was able to “function,” but I felt like crap as I waited for my heavy-duty antibiotics to kick in.
With Ellie I suffered from low supply and just generally had no idea what I was doing. I saw multiple lactation consultants, got advice from the pediatrician, pretty much everything I could think of. I went on Reglan (didn’t help), took fenugreek, to More Milk Plus… I went back to work when she was 3 months and I think one of my biggest problems was that my body just doesn’t like pumps. Hospital grade, double electric, manual, my body is pretty sure that it doesn’t want to share with them. Like, at all. I remember my first day in training after maternity leave (I was actually starting a new job) there was another mother who went into the breastfeeding/pumping room at the same time as me. She came out with about five ounces in each of her bottles. I had enough to barely cover the bottom of one, and maybe a few little sprays on the side of the other. During the time I was working, I pumped twice a day and fed Ellie at her daycare during my lunch break.
With Lorelei I wanted to be prepared. As soon as she was born I started taking More Milk Special Blend (worked better for me than the More Milk Plus), and I had to pump with the hospital’s pump since she had to be on oxygen for almost 48 hours. I pumped every two hours or so around the clock. When we came home, I dehydrated and ate my placenta (placenta smoothies, yum!) which is also supposed to be a galactagogue, and started taking domperidone. We rented a hospital grade pump for the first three months and I pumped following some feedings, especially at night since she was sleeping for more than two or three hours at a time. I used an SNS System to give her my pumped milk at the breast while she was nursing. Fortunately I had adequate supply and so we were able to exclusively breastfeed.
I have never had mastitis (knock on wood), but I am fairly prone to plugged ducts
Baby Markers was tongue-tied at birth, so she had a poor latch in the beginning. We made the decision to do a frenectomy and have the tongue tie clipped. It seemed relatively painless for her and it was super quick – I’m pretty sure I cried more than she did! She nursed immediately afterwards and fell right back asleep. During the next week, her latch improved significantly and I was in a lot less pain. By taking care of the tongue tie quickly, we minimized the potential for damaged nipples and a hungry-crying baby.
I had an oversupply in the beginning, especially on the left. I saw a lactation consultant who advised that I block feed her. We started doing that and feeding only on one breast every three hours. It helped a lot and at 11 weeks my milk is regulated to her needs.
I’ve had clogged ducts twice, which once turned into a fever, exhaustion and what felt like the start of the flu. I fixed it with heating pads, ice packs, hot showers and constant nursing on that side. I woke up the next day feeling fine.
I feel grateful that our problems have been pretty insignificant!
Sadly, I did not breastfeed for very long. I nursed for 4 weeks, and then pumped for another 4 weeks. By 8 weeks, Baby Checkers was exclusively on formula.
She didn’t have problems latching on; in fact, other than being a little sore, the first couple weeks of breastfeeding weren’t so bad. Then right around 2 weeks, she started to scream/fuss/choke/gag at every. single. feeding. I realized I had an over-active flow, and was advised to express some milk (either by hand or with a pump) before latching her on so that the milk would be coming out at a slower rate when she was drinking. This, however, didn’t help all that much, and feeding sessions quickly became a major source of stress and anxiety. I couldn’t sleep at night (even when everyone else was sleeping) because I was so stressed about having to breastfeed again. And then during feedings, I would wonder if she was actually swallowing anything… after feedings I couldn’t relax.
I’m sad that I wasn’t able to breastfeed longer, and I think my postpartum depression severely inhibited me from attempting to try any longer. I hope with our next baby (God-willing) I will be able be able to breastfeed longer, but I also know not to beat myself over having a formula-fed baby either. She is perfectly healthy, and I know now not every mom is able to breastfeed, and that is perfectly fine!
Little C and I had a bumpy start to breastfeeding – he had a poor latch, and my nipples were a frightening, bloody mess. Finally, around three weeks in, we resolved all latch issues and fell into a more comfortable routine, thanks to my doctor and the amazingness that is Newman’s Nipple Cream (it is a compounded prescription ointment that did wonders speed-healing my poor nips).
About a month in, I got mastitis and a severe stomach bug, and the combination of flu-like symptoms and a real flu bug really crushed my supply. I worked really hard to bring it back up, but ended up deciding to supplement at 5.5 months, and my supply quickly dried up once I stopped pumping and started supplementing.
I was hoping to get to a year, or at least 6 months of EBF, so the abrupt ending was pretty devastating, but I’ve been reassured seeing how Little C has continued to thrive on formula.
With Noelle, she had a very strong latch from the getgo and latched on right away. We were lucky to not really have any breastfeeding issues.
With Jaren, he didn’t latch on right away, and when he did latch I could tell it was weaker than Noelle’s. For the first 8-weeks he had a strong preference for my right breast, but I kept offering the left breast and he eventually got the hang of it. I also struggled with oversupply for the first 8-weeks – I think it’s because I started pumping right away this time around. He would fuss and scream at the breast every few minutes. It was SO FRUSTRATING and exhausting. He would sputter and choke and feedings took forever. A lot of times I would just hand him over to someone and have him take the bottle instead.
The good thing is that I built an incredible stash and even though I do still have a bit of oversupply, for the most part it’s evened out. Our feedings take only 10-15 minutes now, and I’m finally enjoying our breastfeeding relationship. There were so many times the first two months where I just wanted to give up.
I considered becoming an exclusive pumper because he seemed so much happier with the bottle and would suck it down easily while he would cry and scream with me. It broke my heart, but I’m glad we got through it.
I think if I narrowed down the main thing that caused my trouble with breastfeeding it would be just the sheer amount of times she would latch and unlatch during each feeding. She had a good latch generally, but when she was coming on and off over and over again it made me very sore and raw. I would cry out in pain each and every time and I have to say it made me very resentful in the beginning. It took about 2 months for this to finally pass and for Little Tea Cup to realize that once you were on you should just stay on! It took about a month more for me to stop feeling any pain when I nursed.
Latch! Miss H struggled to latch so we had to use a nipple shield… we ended up using it for close to 8 weeks (I think from around 5-8 weeks we were weaning her from it). Because of this, I opted not to introduce a bottle until she was nursing without a shield, because I feared adding one more thing into the picture would confuse her even more. To be honest, while I am grateful that the shield worked for us and that we were eventually able to transition away from it, in the midst of it all I was incredibly stressed out that we would never get away from it, and it felt very limiting. I never felt comfortable nursing in public (even with a cover) because the shield was so hard to use and could easily flip off. I couldn’t navigate that well under a cover. So by the time we were done with the shield I was already too nervous/shy about nursing away from home. I think if I have another baby that shyness will definitely be gone and I’ll be fine nursing (with a cover) wherever I am. But the shield definitely ruined that experience for me the first time around!
I have one inverted and one flat nipple (way to start this off with TMI) and expected to have latch issues from the start. I spoke with an LC when I was pregnant, but she assured me that babies are resourceful little things and to not worry. But she did tell me to make full use of the LCs at my hospital once Little M arrived.
When Little M was born he was assessed by the NICU team and then placed naked on my bare chest within a few minutes. My doula and midwife encouraged me to let him do the “breast crawl” to find my breast and he did within a few minutes. He latched onto my right breast (flat side) and nursed straight away. When we were in the mom & baby unit, I called an LC to my room several times a day to help me with his latch and he seemed to be doing great. I nursed him every time he cried, which was about every two hours, start to start.
I pumped several times a day in the hospital and saved the tiny bit of colostrum I got. My milk started to come in a couple days after he was born – my midwife thought that it came in on the earlier side because my labor was so long, but the pumping likely also helped make it come faster.
When we got home my milk was fully in and I was engorged big time. My breasts were so big and my nipples so flattened out (sorry, TMI!) that there was nothing for my baby to latch his tiny mouth onto. Each nursing session was torture as I tried over and over and over to get him to latch. I had been told the first six weeks would be hard and was very committed, so refused to give up. I just tried to remain calm and kept trying to help him latch. He would eventually, but he was so hungry that it was a battle every time. I’d latch him on my flat side first just because it was a little easier for him than the inverted side.
On a whim I started to use a nipple shield on my inverted side and it was like night and day. Latching was so easy! Little M slept a really long stretch (for a one week old) that night. His little belly must have been so satiated.
And then the next day on Christmas Eve when Little M was 10 days old, over the course of a 4 mile car ride I went from feeling good to shivering uncontrollably. I got into bed with two heating pads and all the blankets we could find. My fever was over 104 degrees and did not respond to Advil. My best friend texted me saying it sounded like mastitis. After several calls to the OB on call, my mom took me to the ER around 3pm. The doctors couldn’t figure out what was wrong so I was put on IV antibiotics and admitted.
My mom went home to get all my post-partum supplies (peri bottle, tucks, and all that lovely stuff) and my toiletry kit, which was still packed from when I was in the hospital with Little M one week earlier. She brought me a wrapped Christmas gift – new PJs.
Around 11:30pm as I was getting into bed in my lonely hospital room I noticed red streaks forming on my left breast – my inverted nipple breast. A nurse called the OB on call and she took one look and said, “mastitis.”
Mr. S could not bring baby M over to the hospital to nurse because there were several babies with RSV on my floor. I woke to pump every couple of hours and my mom came over to bring my milk home to Mr. S. After much begging on my part, I was finally sent home late in the day on Christmas day. I continued to use the nipple shield and nursing seemed to be fine.
Two days later at a follow-up appointment my midwife took one look at my nipples and told me to get to an LC; baby M’s latch wasn’t right. The next day baby M’s pediatrician confirmed that I should see an LC since at 2 weeks old he still hadn’t reached his birth weight; I wasn’t “transferring milk” efficiently. I made an appointment for the next day.
The LC showed me how to get baby M how to latch without the nipple shield and I never went back. As his mouth got larger it just got easier. At 3 weeks he was back to his birth weight and things were going great. He started to sleep really long stretches and then after three 9 hour nights…I started getting chills and spiked a fever. This time I knew to get to my midwife’s office straight away. It’s likely that I got mastitis because my body wasn’t used to not emptying my breasts during those long stretches of sleep. My midwife advised that I not wake to pump and that my body would get used to it.
Then, of course, because of all the antibiotics, I got thrush. I waged a battle for months – even a month of difulcan didn’t cure it! I finally got the thrush under control by washing my breasts in a 50/50 solution of vinegar/water before and after every nursing session for months. I still do it sometimes now.
After my two incidents with mastitis I was really careful to always have Little M empty my breasts fully or to pump after he fed if he didn’t. I dropped feedings really slowly and only on his lead. I made sure to always breastfeed before giving him solids too. He’s 17 months old now, I’m breastfeeding him a couple of times day and have successfully avoided any more boob drama!
With Charlie I used a nipple shield from day 1 because the nurses at the hospital gave them to me — they handed them out to everyone like candy. Charlie didn’t have a good latch, and breastfeeding was quite painful — the nipple shield definitely helped with both latch and the pain. After a couple weeks home, I had a lactation consultant come to our home and teach me how to get a good latch, but he still wasn’t removing enough milk even when he had a good latch (She weighed him before and after a feeding).
I supplemented with one bottle of formula a day the first month of Charlie’s life. In order to produce enough milk, I took More Milk Plus for over a month and was able to greatly increase my supply, stop supplementing, and build up a nice freezer stash. I tried to breastfeed at least once a day, but eventually decided to exclusively pump around 4 months because at that point I was already pumping for pretty much every feeding anyway. I wasn’t super attached to the idea of breastfeeding, so I was fine with exclusively pumping because he was still getting all the benefits.
I also had 3 painful clogged ducts in the first 2-3 months, but then no problems until I stopped pumping at 9 months when Charlie became allergic to my milk (after we had our apartment sprayed with pesticides). Despite not really being able to breastfeed Charlie, I don’t have too many regrets. Because Charlie was bottlefed breastmilk, it gave Mr. Bee a great opportunity to bond with Charlie that he might not have had if I were exclusively breastfeeding.
Olive latched on like a champ and had no problems breastfeeding, despite getting many bottles the first week of her life when she had an extended stay in the hospital. She would also nurse for over an hour if I let her, but I never experienced any breastfeeding pain at all with her. It was a completely opposite experience than I had with Charlie! Maybe I was less stressed about it the second time around because I always knew that I could exclusively pump if breastfeeding didn’t work out.
But my breastfeeding experience with her wasn’t without any problems. Shortly after we came home from the hospital, I came down with a horrible case of mastitis — I seriously felt like I was dying! I had a high fever, chills, body aches and no matter how many blankets I put on top of me, I was freezing. A round of antibiotics cleared it up surprisingly quickly, but I got mastitis again a couple weeks later. Luckily I was able to treat it that time without antibiotics.
I also increased my supply again using supplements, but I had to be more aggressive as I was pumping less milk per session than I did with Charlie since I was nursing more. I took a combination of fenugreek, more milk plus,blessed thistle, and mother’s milk tea and was never able to increase my supply to the level I had with Charlie when I was exclusively pumping, but it didn’t matter since I was nursing too. Olive had a little bit of formula when she had jaundice, but other than that she has been exclusively breastfed.
Olive is now 20 months old and we’re still nursing. She accidentally bit me very hard in her sleep a couple months ago and drew a lot of blood. I was in so much pain I went to the doctor, but it eventually got better on its own in about 10 days. Who knew I could have problems that late in the nursing game! She would also bite me from time to time when she was younger and teething, but luckily it only happened once in a while and usually wasn’t too painful.
My biggest breastfeeding challenge of all may be weaning a toddler who loves nursing!
. . . . .
What breastfeeding challenges have you faced? Or was breastfeeding easy for you and your little one?
clementine / 948 posts
this is terrifying to me. eek. why did i read it??? whyyyy
pomegranate / 3160 posts
@ChitownRo: Agreed…maybe we could do a follow-up with great breastfeeding experiences?!
Haaahaha.
grapefruit / 4235 posts
I think it’s great to hear about breastfeeding challenges – but I agree, great experiences would be helpful too! @ms.janedoe: @ChitownRo: My LO is 5 months old – and i’m probably jinxing myself by posting this – but breastfeeding has been an absolute breeze. My milk started to come in before I left the hospital, he latched on correctly right away, and I’ve had plenty of supply now that I’m a WOHM and only pump twice, maybe 3 times a day, max.
I did have an oversupply issue at one point but I figured it out.
squash / 13764 posts
These are so interesting to read! I am always struck by how common tongue ties/lip ties are–my LO had both–yet they don’t seem to be routinely checked for at the hospital! We didn’t find out about LOs until he was 10 days old and I had already created major trauma from nursing with his poor latch, followed by a horrible case of mastitis. Luckily by 8.5/9 weeks, we had things under control and now he’s still nursing at 8 months–I seriously never thought I would make it this far.
Like Mrs Chocolate, the first thing I’m doing for LO#2 is having them checked for tongue tie!
pomegranate / 3414 posts
DD suffered from poor latch and I had nipple trauma due to it. We nursed (with some pain) for 14 months. I suspected a lip/tongue tie but everyone I had check her said she was fine. I was hopeful that the experience with DS would be different but alas it really wasn’t at first. I insisted he be checked for tongue tie by the hospital pediatrician who said he was fine but after the same nipple issues I self-diagnosed him with an upper lip tie and had it corrected at 5 weeks (he also had a posterior tongue tie which was also corrected). I’ve rechecked DD and her upper lip is definitely tied so I’m guessing she also has a PTT but we’ll wait until she’s older to see if it causes problems with her speech before having it fixed since it would be more traumatic now that she is older.
squash / 13764 posts
@purrpletulips: that’s exactly what I mean! It makes me so frustrated that it’s so difficult to get a fairly common issue properly diagnosed, especially one that can really damage a breastfeeding relationship.
admin / watermelon / 14210 posts
@ChitownRo: @ms.janedoe: i had a positive experience with olive! and though some of us had challenges in the beginning, many of us went on to have positive experiences like mrs high heels. mrs train nursed her youngest until very recently (15 months). mrs superhero nursed beyond a year for both kids, and mrs stroller and mrs tic tac toe are still nursing at 1 year+! mrs. twine weaned at 5!
clementine / 948 posts
@Mrs. Bee: I’m just being dramatic. BF has always scared me – two months of painful nipples is not appealing while also dealing with a host of new mom issues. I’m still considering exclusive pumping vs breast feeding. I know you struggled with that with Charlie and that supply would then be an ongoing issue.
admin / watermelon / 14210 posts
@ChitownRo: maybe if you know that you can pump, it will be less intimidating! it was a lot of work to increase my supply with c(took over a month) charlie, but after that it was pretty smooth sailing. i pumped 5 times a day and had more than enough milk.
breastfeeding is easier than pumping (esp when you have two), but i don’t regret my experiences with either child. and who knows? you may end up having one of those kids that latch on beautifully and get it from the start!
pomegranate / 3401 posts
Such a good swarm! I think people think breastfeeding is easy and natural….when it is actually a lot more challenging!!!
cherry / 208 posts
Wow, if I had read this swarm before I had tried breast feeding, I would have been terrified! I think it’s great that people are being honest about their experiences but it might be nice for some readers to chime in and tell some positive breast feeding stories as well.
Here’s mine: It definitely took me a few days to figure it all out and it was uncomfortable until my milk came in. I ended up going onto YouTube and watching videos on different latches (remember there are a lot of great resources online!). After a few minor adjustments, things have been wonderful. I started pumping after I went back to work and while a bit inconvenient, it’s been fine really. DS is starting to ween at 16 months and I’m truly going to miss our time together. All in all, it’s been a fabulous and rewarding experience.
blogger / eggplant / 11551 posts
@ChitownRo: @ms.janedoe: @dagret: @Mrs. Fox: overall, both my breastfeeding experiences were pretty positive! the 2nd time around, i did have an oversupply issue because i started pumping so early on… but that allowed me to build a great stash. i would make the same decision in a heartbeat!
GOLD / eggplant / 11517 posts
Latch issues, supply issues, bottle flow preference, and PPD were my difficulties. I also really struggle with feeling touched out and don’t like having my nipples constantly stimulated 6+ times a day, everyday. It is kind of like torture for me.
We are 7 months in now…and have been combination feeding breastmilk and formula. She nurses in the mornings and I pump the rest of the day (I WOH so that isn’t a huge deal)
Neither of us have been huge fans of the nursing experience. But I’m hoping to provide her with breastmilk in some capacity until she is 1.
bananas / 9357 posts
@ChitownRo: @ms.janedoe: I’ve overall had a very positive breastfeeding experience. I feel very lucky though! I had minimal pain that only lasted the first couple of weeks. No bleeding or cracked nips. My son had a great latch from the beginning. But the first 4 weeks for me were still so hard! I think that’s to be expected with any first time mom though. We’re still going strong 8 months later!
grapefruit / 4291 posts
I think it’s important to remember that every Mum has a different set of challenges it’s just that they probably aren’t all as hot button as the breast / bottle debate.
Yes, I had some challenges with breastfeeding (late milk, tongue and lip tie, thrush and just a plain ol’ bad latch) but I feel grateful that I didn’t have to deal with MSPI, hip dysplasia and a Pavlic harness, NICU stay, reflux etc.
And whilst I had to work hard and persevere to overcome our difficulties I LOVE breastfeeding and wouldn’t change or give it up for the world
pomelo / 5628 posts
I had my baby at 25 weeks and so started ep’ing the day he was born. I knew from my sister’s experience and from research that I needed to pump religiously and I did…every 3 hours for 30 minutes each time for almost 3 months. I was able to get plenty of milk, but it took dedication!
Lo was allowed to try latching starting at 32 weeks gestational age and bfing at 34. He latched great, but after awhile starting refusing the breast and bottle due to extreme reflux. I chose to abandon bfing to concentrate of feeding so that we could get out of the hospital. It was an agonizing decision and I’m still upset about it. In the end, he needed thickened feedings and I had to accept it. I’m still pumping 3x a day at almost 9 months.
honeydew / 7283 posts
I’m kind of wondering now if M had (has?) a tongue tie. I had so much trauma from her nursing. She was late pre-term and with a tiny mouth and we used a shield for a while. I weaned at 3 months mostly due to postpartum anxiety. I just couldn’t handle a colicky newborn and a different BF challenge every week. M is healthy and happy on formula but I wish our circumstances had been a little different. Breastfeeding is one of the things that I am most anxious about when I think about having a #2 someday.
guest
For those of you who are struggling with clogged ducts and mastitis, 1200mg of the supplement lecithin 3x a day has completely stopped my recurrent clogged ducts.
honeydew / 7504 posts
@ChitownRo: @ms.janedoe: I had a great breastfeeding experience! D latched perfectly right away. The worst part for me was the cluster feeding, and that was mostly because I didn’t know what it was and I thought for sure I was starving D. But other than that, we had a great breastfeeding relationship from the start. I count myself extremely lucky, because most of my friends have had rough moments. But I’m here to tell you it’s not always bad!
guest
I would hate for anyone who hasn’t had a baby yet to read this and fear breastfeeding! Like some others, I have had a fantastic experience. My baby latched within minutes of birth, it never hurt (until she got teeth and thought biting was funny), I never worried about my supply or anything. I only ever pumped in preparation for a night out and that was because someone who didn’t really understand BFing bought us theatre tickets for when she was 4 weeks old and got offended when we suggested we might not be able to go, so I bought a pump. Otherwise I don’t think I would have bothered, I don’t think it’s necessary for a healthy woman with a normal supply unless you want to build up a freezer stash. Now my daughter is nearly 10 months and I’m still BF ing twice a day, but introduced formula at lunchtime at about 8.5 months in preparation for returning to work next week. I come from a long line of breastfeeding women, gave birth at a hospital that was very gung-ho about the whole thing, had heaps of support from my husband, etc. I’m so grateful that we didn’t have any troubles and I just want people to know that sometimes, it IS perfectly natural and easy and lovely and without knowing how your and your baby’s body is going to cope it’s definitely worth trying. It’s certainly cheaper and more convenient, if nothing else
pomegranate / 3388 posts
In contrast with some other posters, I am so thankful for this post. I wish I had seen more information like this before I gave birth. My breastfeeding difficulties and my ultimate inability to breastfeed came as a total shock to me. I also come from a long line of breastfeeding women, but breastfeeding was essentially impossible for me — not because I experienced severe pain (DD’s latch was always pretty good) — but because I never established any sort of supply that could sustain my daughter. I never had the feeling of having my milk come in, and the only time I ever felt remotely engorged was at 3 months when I finally weaned DD off of breastmilk entirely, since 90% of her food was already coming from formula anyways. The mental trauma and flat out depression that I experienced from my lack of ability to breastfeed could probably have been lessened if I had understood from the get go how challenging breastfeeding can be!
pineapple / 12053 posts
I too think this is great! It shows that it’s not easy for everyone but so many of the bees were able to work through their difficulties! We’ve had a relatively easy time BFing but the first 6 weeks were tough! Engorgement, tongue tie, roughened up nipples, post partum hormones all does a number on a new mom! But I think if people hear, hey, it’s normal, there are things you can do to get through it and if it’s all too much, then formula is a viable option. It can lessen the guilt/shame/fear a little when you hear that others have been there too!
pear / 1837 posts
I have had a great BF experience, despite a tongue tie. DD latched on in the recovery room after my Csection (that was where I had some issues) and we haven’t looked back. She’s 11 months and exclusively breastfeeding her is one of the things I’m most proud of. It’s becoming more of a challenge now that she’s mobile and a busybody- there is no sweet gazing into each other’s eyes moments- she’s standing and climbing and sometimes biting, and it’s honestly more of a challenge now than it was when she was little. But I wouldn’t trade it for anything, and I also won’t take it for granted- who knows how it will be with #2.
nectarine / 2797 posts
We were so blessed to have an easy time BF. The only issues I dealt with were when my milk first came in, I was so engorged on one side LO couldn’t latch, but I was able to deal with that by hand expressing in the bathtub to soften things up. I also got mastitis at a month pp which was awful, but in the grand scheme of things not that bad. Tomorrow marks one year of BF!
grapefruit / 4770 posts
Thanks for sharing! Y’all have been through a lot!
GOLD / nectarine / 2884 posts
@Mrs. Fox: @ChitownRo: @ms.janedoe: somehow I neglected to respond to this swarm, but I have had some BFing issues: oversupply, undersupply, stalled weight gain, which definitely threatened my nursing relationship. But at 10 months we are still going strong! Choosing to BF is by far the most gratifying goal I’ve ever set for myself. It isn’t something I take for granted, but it is also something I take pride in! Best of luck with your BF journey!
GOLD / nectarine / 2884 posts
@LulaBee: love your story!