Breastfeeding - Need Help!!!!

I don't know where you live - but there is a free breastfeeding support group that meets at Memorial West. You can log onto the Memorial West site and go to family birthplace and you should at least find a number to call. There are also free La Leche League meetings you can attend. Do not give up - it's the best thing you can do and it will get easier! When I get home, I will try to find the exact meeting times for Memorial West, but you can find the La Leche League info online although the meeting info is super vague. There will be a phone number and someone call tell you the next meeting time. There is one pretty much every week. Good luck!

Hi R.! I'm not sure if you are having a latch problem or if you might have a possible thrush (yeast infection). I would love to help you. I've breastfed each of my four children and I have some ideas for you. K. Email me or call me. ____@____.com or ###-###-####

Dear R.,
I want to congratulate you for sticking with the breastfeeding even though you've been experiencing some soreness.

First, if the soreness is cracking or bleeding on the nipple then it is a latching problem. Be sure that your son is opening his mouth very wide and taking your entire nipple into his mouth. Once he opens wide, hold him parallel to your breast and push his mouth right on. It may seem like it could suffocate him or something, but he will lift his head a bit and will breathe. Also, at this young age, you are feeding often so as to stimulate your supply and to keep baby well fed. Don't wait too long between feedings (probably every two hours or so now and it will stretch to 3 hours in the coming weeks) as it will frustrate him and affect his latch and your breasts will engorge and get hard which will also affect the latch and make it difficult to get a feeding and cause you pain. For sore nipples: use a product called lansinoh (in a purple tube at your local pharmacy) and air out your nipples after a feeding. Your colostrum and breastmilk are natural antiseptics and are very healing, so after a feed allow your breasts to "breathe" and air out by leaving them exposed for as long as you can. Leave the excess milk on your nipples. This will aide in the healing process.

If your breasts themselves are in pain, that is a different issue. You may be very engorged and your breasts are feeling hard and swollen. This is normal, as your body is adjusting in the first few weeks to the supply and demand of milk for your baby. As you establish an eating routine for baby it will all even out and you won't experience it unless you skip a feeding. If you start to feel achy and flu like with a fever, then you could have a clogged milk duct which could become infected and would need attention of a doctor. This could be avoided by taking a warm shower and letting the warm water run on your breasts and relieve them. Using a warm compress on the sore area helps. Also, to relieve the fullness, you can pump your milk or hand express.

I would recommend that you get in touch with a local La Leche League as they have free meetings and could support you without the cost. http://www.llli.org/

Best of luck to you...and I will say from experience that it gets much easier and is a really amazing experience. Stay committed as long as both you and baby are thriving. Breast soreness is common, and can be easily corrected. Breastfeeding is an art, and there are many techniques. I hope these tips help and that you are able to get the support you need.

Call the hospital you had your son @ the lactation nurse there should be able to help you (free of charge). When you take your son in to the Pedi have them check to see if he is tongue tied.

Congrats on breastfeeding. I do not remember how sore I was when I started with my son (15 months ago) I just remembered how long he would nurse for.

You can also look up LLL for meetings in your area. I am not sure how the meeting work or the fee but I have heard great things.

I am also a member of this website (http://community.livejournal.com/breastfeeding/profile) I lurked there before my son was born and it helped a lot. You can always post a problem and have over 2000 nursing mothers that can help.

Good Luck and do not give up. You can do this. The 1st 6 weeks are the hardest.

first try finding your must confortable position I understand that with a c section is very difficult to find one but at least the one that bothers the less. then bring the baby to you either if you are seating on laying on one side the baby will accomodate either with a pillow, your arm be patient. Try doing it with your baby without a shirt just the diaper His body heat and yours will soothe you both and make it more relaxating cover him slightly with a blanket in case there is an air vent nearby Wish you Good luck

look into the La Leche League. they are very pro breast feeding and will help you no matter what. a friend of mine has been involved with them since she had her firstchild and she is now going on her fourth. they have groups all over the country as well so you should always be able to reach someone. good luck. also use lanolin one your nipples and that should help sooth the pain.

http://www.llli.org/

http://www.lllflorida.com/index.html

Have you tried to talk to your local La Leche group. http://www.lllflorida.com/ I wished I had done that and gone to a meeting instead of going it alone - really NICE women who are super helpful. And know MUCH more than the hospital lactation consultants it seemed to me. Some soreness is common at the beginning but it is GREAT that you are asking for help. If you are in the Broward FL area there are nice people to help you at Nova Southeastern Universitiés Mailman Segal family center (nova.edu/msi) at La Leche or at the Hollywood (FL) Birth center. Best regards. -

Hi R.--
Is it possible that you have cracked nipples? I did. And there is a cream (I think it's an antibiotic but I cannot remember the name) you can get from your ob that will help a lot. No one ever mentioned it, not the pediatrician or the lact consultant, but I called the ob office and they prescribed it for me. I felt much better pretty quickly.
Also, I don't know where you live, but I know they hold classes at Mt Sinai in Miami Beach. Maybe the latch is the problem, but my latch was apparently perfect and I still had problems with soreness. Hope this helps.
C.

R. stick with it!!! I breast fed both our children for at least six month each. Our son has only ever had two antibiotic scripts in his 12 yrs and is 6' 1"! Our daughter, a preemie, is also incredible healthy and thankfully not a giant.

The first was a nightmare getting started and really hurt. Make sure your boy has as much nipple and areola in his mouth as possible as the pain is from a latching on problem. The more areola he and you can get in the better. Squeeze your areola between two fingers before offering the breast so when he latches on he can get more in. If it doesn't feel right, put your finger in between the two to break the suction and start over. Never pull your breast off without breaking suction first.

Place your baby on a pillow under you so you are not hunched over or putting undo strain on the breast. Your baby should face into you. Keep a glass of water next to you and maybe a snack if he takes long to eat. The more relaxed you are the easier it will be.

Try to keep your breasts as dry as possible to prevent cracking. Use breast pads. I had my children in the UK and Mothercare sells breast shields which are great. You put one on the breast not feeding and it collects the milk which dribbles out. No more messy shirts or paper pads and the milk can be decanted into a bottle for dad to do a feed later in the day. Try mothercare.co.uk to see if they can be purchased online.

Use breast creme, the local pharmacist should be able to help you on this one. Let them air out a bit after feeding, putting your shirt or bra over a damp still sensitive nipple will not make it better.

Makes me realize after moving back to the US how lucky I was to live in a place where a midwife came to my house every day for the first 15 days (after coming home from my 5 day hospital stay) to check on the baby and myself. We had 9, 1 1/2 long classes including breast feeding with a real live mom and baby for parenting classes before the baby was born. That was with the National Health Service!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Keep trying it is so worth it in the end!

Hi, R.! Don't give up.

#1, Find a comfortable position that won't aggravate your stitches or staples, so that at least healing from the surgery won't be a problem. You can always sit up and put a pillow or cushion in between your baby and your stomach until it feels better. Maybe sitting up with most of the baby's weight against your leg would be comfortable, or maybe you need to lie on your side and let the bed take most of the weight, at least for now. As long as you are still touching him and supporting his body while he nurses, you will still give him the closeness that babies need. Don't be afraid to find the best position for YOU, no matter what anyone else says.

#2, Breastfeeding hurts your nipples for the first couple of weeks. There is no way around that. Try to make sure the baby's weight is supported so that he's not pulling on your breast and nipple. In other words, position yourselves so that he's not stretching out your nipple while he's nursing. Otherwise, it hurts worse. In between feedings, put warm compresses on your breasts because this helps the soreness, and it also helps increase milk production. Also, rub a natural, edible oil into your nipples such as olive oil, pure Vitamin E, or light cooking oil to soothe them. Wash them off with warm water after baby's done nursing so that any leftover milk or baby saliva won't irritate your nipples. There's a wonderful peanut oil-based cream that works wonders, but you're supposed to wash it off before baby nurses. That can be really inconvenient.

Above all, be patient with yourself. Breastfeeding is natural, and you will get the hang of it if you stick with it. If they are still around, the La Leche League can offer advice by Internet or through books on breastfeeding, and they might even have a group that you can meet with locally.

Be aware, though, that they are pretty radical about breastfeeding. When I had my son 28 years ago, their philosophy was that if you don't do it exactly the way they tell you to do it, then you're doing it wrong and you should stop breastfeeding and just bottle-feed. I managed to breastfeed my 10-pound baby boy just fine without following anyone else's rules, just a few common sense principles like the ones I wrote above. I even gave my son relief bottles (they are completely against that!) because his birth was pvery, very h*** o* my body, and I needed a great deal of rest.

There is no absolute right or wrong with breastfeeding. The main thing is to relax, enjoy this stage of your baby's life, bond with him, experience the miracle of feeding your baby from your very own breasts, and keep an open mind. Every baby will nurse a little differently; amazingly, their personalities first begin to emerge in their suckling styles. Some of them want to be positioned in a certain way. Some don't like being on one side of their body while nursing. Some will prefer one breast and not nurse as well on the other one. Don't miss these little details, because they are so precious!

If you can get through the first couple of weeks where your breasts get used to this new function, then the rest becomes much easier.

I hope this is helpful.

Prayers & blessings,
Syl

Look online for the La Leche League website. I needed help with weaning a few years back and they had a service where you could email your questions/concerns/problems and get advice free of charge. A very caring woman stayed in contact with me and guided my son and I as long as we needed her! I have much empathy for your situation. Remember, unfortunately, that being sore is normal. I think it lasted a few months before my nipples toughened up. I'm the sensitive type, though. If your baby is getting milk, I say hang in there... the pain will eventually subside...Good luck!

Start with the hospital where you had your son. Many times they will continue to offer breastfeeding support even after you've left the hospital. Some even have free seminars/classes.
Contact the local LaLeche League. They generally have free support.
Also, some Babies-r-us have breastfeeding seminars.

Good luck.

Dear R.,

Here is some information on yeast infections/thrush. I had horrible breast and nipple pain and my pediatrician identified the problem at my son's two week appointment. She told me about this herbal remedy and it worked!
http://www.asklenore.com/breastfeeding/gentian_violet.html
Gentian violet will stain your clothes, but it is super cheap (less than $2.00 for a bottle) and super effective.

Some other hospitals with breastfeeding support groups: Broward General in Fort Lauderdale and Holy Cross Hospital (also Fort Lauderdale). I think that all of the Memorial Hospitals have groups (MH in Hollywood as well as MHW in Pembroke Pines and MH Miramar). Good luck!

Hang in there...I PROMISE it gets easier. I also had a lot of problems breastfeeding. When I was at a low point I called a friend and I am very grateful for what she told me and I will share with you what she told me. She said don't give up, you've done the hardest part. There is no sense giving up when you've already done the hardest part things will get better as your baby gains weight and gets stronger. She was completely right. Some babies get it...yes...mine didn't. But as my baby got bigger and stronger he became a pro and we breastfed with no problems until he was 10 months old. As far as getting help I would check with the hospital about a possible class or maybe some nonprofit woman's group. I had my baby at Memorial and I know they had some group of breastfeeding mommies that would meet to talk about frustrations and exchange advice so that could be an option. As far as the sore nipples...again I PROMISE they get better. I think it is just takes time for your body to adjust to its new purpose. There are creams that are safe to use while breastfeeding and believe it or not your own milk is not only great for baby but great for you too...if you pump or leak take the extra milk and spread it around your nipple. Sounds crazy I know but it works. So hang in there, you are not the only one who has found themselves discouraged...it's very common and the sleep deprivation doesn't help. Hang in there, you are doing great! K. R.

Hi R.,
DOn't give up! Breastfeeding is one of the best things you can do for your baby and it sure doesn't come naturally! My advice would be to put the baby to the breast, not the breast to the baby and to hold her completely parallel to your breasts (her face facing your breast). Also, there is an awesome breastfeeding support group at Mercy Hospital (They have a great lactation consultant team), every Tuesday and Wedneday from 1.30 to 3pm for only $5 (plus free Valet if you bring a lactation slip). Every mother gets to ask two questions and you will see that there are many mothers with exactly the same questions you have. It was a lifesaver for me during the first 3 months.
Good luck!

Don't give up. My son is two today and I had him via c-section. He would only be about a 1l2 hour old as we speak two years ago at this time.

Due to the drugs, they can make a newborn sleepy; not sure if you're still on any pain meds. You can put warm compresses on your breasts. Once in a while, I put nipple ointment on my breasts. Ethan has a full mouth of teeth but I do remember in the beginning how sore that I was but that goes away.

Any other questions, don't hesitate to contact me at
____@____.com

there are videos you can watch to see how your latch is doing...google jack newman videos

also call la leche league
The La Leche League Breastfeeding Helpline - US began on June 1, 2007. Everyone in the U.S.A. has access to toll free breastfeeding help 24 hours a day. Just call 1-877-4-LALECHE (1-877-452-5324).

R.,
The hospital should have complimentary lactation consultants. Check the hospital where your son was born. You can also rent a breast pump at most hospitals. It is a lot of work, but besides being healthier for the baby, you save soooo much money. Good luck!

Hey R.,

I understand your frustration, I was there with my first 4 years ago. Give yourself a pat on the back for trying to stick with it and doing the best thing you can for your baby. Hang in there, you need to tweek your position most likely.

I would first try calling the La Leche League and find out how you can meet with someone ASAP. I used to belong to the group and they helped me and many others out. Sometimes the leaders will come to your house or meet you somewhere to help you. Here is the number: Broward/Boca/Miami-Dade Phone Line: ###-###-####. Call them and they should be able to help you. If you aren't familiar with the group they are a Breastfeeding support group.

Have you tried the Lactation Consultants where (the hospital) you delivered? Most times they welcome you back if you have problems. Hopefully that works. Hang in there.

C.