NEED HELP WITH MY BREASTFEEDING!!

Iv had constant problems with breastfeeding since day dot! but now Astin wont feed at all!!! except for his very first feed in the morning. Hel scream and pull off over and over again until i give up!

I dont want to give up all together!!

I rung the la leche league today and felt worse afterwards!! she just made me feel terrible about giving him formula and she said that i had pretty much shot myself in the foot by giving him formula and if i really wanted to carry on breastfeeding then im going to have to stop giving him formula and put up with the crying until he takes the breast!!! ...i rung up for help and support but i got nothing but critisism and told things i already knew!!

I KNOW!! that keeping them on for longer will bring in more milk BUT he wont stay on to bring in more milk!!!!...I have tried the expresser!! and it doesnt make any difference!!.....i have taken Brewers yeast, alfa alfa, blessed thisle and Maxalon and still no luck!! I also only use TT closer to nature bottles

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE can someone help me out?????

What a bitch!! That lady should not have tried to make you feel so bad!!

I agree though, try plunketline. I even tried healthline while I was having problems. Both gave me some really great tips. What worked in the end for us was sitting in his room, with no distractions for him and making it all about feeding and nothing else. The curtains were closed. DH wasn't allowed to come in the room and be a distraction and eventually once both Daniel and I were completely relaxed he took boobie. That's the only thing I can really suggest.

oh and totally agree with stacey about the no distraction thing. He's at that age...

Hi Amber, do you have a plunket family centre in your area, if so you could go to them you can spend all day there and they will give you tons of help and advice. I think LLL are so pro breastfeeding that they loose site of everything else that can go on, afterall they aren't at home with the screaming hungry baby. You could always try another lactation consultant in your area as well, they cost about $70 down here. Perhaps ask plunket or some mums in your area if there is anyone that they recommend.

Best wishes and big hugs.

i wish i could ring my MW but shes in new york for a few months

i know i shouldnt have given him the formula in the first place and i balled my eyes out everytime i fed him for a few weeks because i felt like such a failure all over again!
he seemed to be doing so good on having both but now its all gone to custard!!

oh man i wish i could fix it somehow!!


the nearest parent centre we have is in Hamilton 2.5 hours away

i think you need to build up your milk hon! esp after bottle feeding him for so long...it can be done but then if your body has switched off then not sure - mine did over a week or so when ella self weaned and hasnt gone near these boobies again!

can you hold off the bottle and kept trying him on breast first - make sure no bottles in sight...and make sure you relax as much as poss - not easy i know

tricks to add - protein drinks (up and go is great) bananas, oatmeal, all build up milk. Add yeast also and you should be overflowing....if not then i think it might be too late. Give it a go tho.

i would be aiming to get him feeding at night, when he is sleepy and relaxed. even if you have to get him up several times he should still feed ok then.

and one question - does he have a dummy?

I am also about that lady on the phone!

Have you got a breast pump? See if you can pump up your milk, even if you have to chuck out what you pump, it will boost your supply and he won't get so frustrated with it. Then I would suggest giving him the EBM by bottle a couple of times a day as well. You can also get a tighter teat for when you do give him formula, so that he starts to associate good feelings with EBM and bad feelings with formula hehe Another idea to make him not like formula as much is to serve it cold.

The thing with the morning feed is that you are fuller and the milk flows more easily. We recently weaned Kryssi's day feeds onto formula with evening and night feeds as BM (cause I'm back to work), but she has started mucking around with the evening feed - when I am less full. Considering I only plan to feed her until about Christmas time, I have now introduced a bottle before bed as well and she only gets the morning one. But we're a few months ahead of you and about ready to wean.

Is there a particular reason why you don't want to keep up with formula btw? Not that I judge you, my eldest two only had BM until 11mos.

There's tons of ideas here and I don't have anything new to add (and putting him on a slow-flow teat for his formula does seem like a stroke of genius!) but I just wanted to say - PLEASE don't kick yourself for this, you're doing such a great job, and it sounds really really stressful with those feeding issues going on.  You deserve a break if you can get one!

Wow! what a response thankyou!!! Im going to try all of the things suggested!! im even going to go to docs and get some Domperidome!

Kelly - i texted Sue and she said to ring Kathy Boyd at the annex so thats what i shall do (been flat out today so havnt had time!). Hes still having his Ranitidine and gav.

Bombshell - i tried holding off on the bottle last night but he wasnt having a bar of it! and screamed till he lost his voice but im chugging down the bananas!

Busymum - my aim was to fully breastfeed after failing so bad with Bay and i figured (after much beating up!) that if i have to give him some formula then hes going to have breast as well!! and i really enjoy the bond i have that i didnt get with Bay so im not willing to go soley formula...im a stuborn mule! lol

He does have a dummy but he really only takes it at night when hes wraped and in bed until he dozes off to sleep.

Sorry if i missed anyones questions

This morning he woke up at 8.45am and i was as full as anything!! and he wouldnt feed!!! so i expressed and gave him that. Then he woke up at 3pm and breastfed perfectly fine!!

Hopefully i can get things back on track! i really appreciate everyones advice and support thanks heaps.