breastfeeding advice required - no milk supply!

jellyhead

thanks carol :-)

those 'bitty' sketches are horrible lol! my aunt (younger than me, we're an odd family lol!) was still breastfeeding her daughter at 2.5, i wouldn't do it for that long though - a full set of teeth clamped onto my boob, no thanks lol!

margaretclare

Hi all

As a former midwife, can I make a few comments:

It's well known that pethidine given a fairly short time before the birth can result in a sleepy baby for the first couple of days. It's also well known that breast-feeding gets off to a flying start if you put the baby to the breast as soon as possible after delivery. You look into each other's eyes, instant bonding. fantastic. The baby is alert, awake, 'pre-programmed' if you like, to start feeding and getting to know its mum.

Personally I would never have given pethidine if the birth was that imminent. You can always use Entonox for pain relief - it doesn't affect the baby but it does give you the bit of extra pain relief you might need at that point. If you're going to have pethidine I would give it a few hours ahead of the birth because think about it - you need it during labour NOT when the birth is about to happen and you won't be in pain then, will you?

Put the baby to the breast straight after delivery, within the first half-hour ideally. Drink plenty, eat good nourishing food, try not to be anaemic, and good luck!

Best wishes

Aunty Margaret

Jay-Jay_4

jellyhead wrote:

thanks carol :-)

those 'bitty' sketches are horrible lol! my aunt (younger than me, we're an odd family lol!) was still breastfeeding her daughter at 2.5, i wouldn't do it for that long though - a full set of teeth clamped onto my boob, no thanks lol!

LOL.... they only bite you when you're not paying attention

They put their tongue over their bottom teeth and because their head is tilted back, their top teeth don't 'cut into' your skin.

I've only been bitten when baby had finished feeding and I was either engrossed in conversation or watching telly.... then they would start 'playing' and CHOMP!!!!!! :eek:

Oh and whoever mentioned the book 'Breast is Best'... is it the really thick paperback with the green and red-ish cover? if so then that's one of the ones that I read. It's a fantastic book and I recommend that anyone hoping/trying to b/feed reads it. It explains ALL ABOUT EVERYTHING from a scientific rather than anecdotal point of view. I can guarantee that it will help you to persevere in adversity.

carol_a_3

I didn't want the pethadine, I'd fought off pain relief all the way through and my mum had a bad reaction to pethadine during a miscarriage. It was the midwife that insisted on giving it to me, my blood pressure had gone dangerously high and she said that I would "have a stroke" if I didn't have it!. From then on it was as if I was drunk, I nearly fell off the bed, didn't know what the hell I was doing and couldn't feel when to push etc.

jellyhead

i didn't have pethidine. i had gas and air and lots of novocaine (i don't know why - is it similar to pethidine? they kept topping it up, it wore off really quickly) because the epidural didn't work. the only thing i had written on my birth plan was no epidural but they said i had to have one to bring my blood pressure down.

something, either the drugs or the pre-eclampsia made me pretty out of it. i couldn't move, not even my arms and i don't think the epidural affects your arms and i only felt 2 pushes. i felt pain in my back, from the contractions. i know that it hurt, i screamed all the way through and kicked my feet but at the same time i was almost asleep. it's a bit like having a bad migraine i suppose. was that the novocaine? if so i'll avoid it next time. the actual birth didn't hurt so i see what you're saying about only having drugs early on.

a doctor told me the drugs to induce contractions make labour more painful than natural labour, so maybe it won't hurt so much this time. i'm planning on hiring a tens machine, has anyone used one? i didn't wake up for 3 days after the birth. the baby had been bottle fed by my family and by midwives and i hadn't even held him. they put him on my tummy after the birth for me to hold him but i couldn't move my arms and couldn't see much, so we hadn't bonded.

well, i'm feeling much more positive that i'll be able to feed this time :-) fewer drugs during labour, skin contact and feeding straight after birth and keeping my iron level up should all make a big difference. when mum mentioned not having milk for any of her children i worried that the same would happen to me but from the sounds of it that won't happen :-)

thanks everyone :-)

carol_a_3

You're sounding really positive, I think that's half the battle. You'll be so much more relaxed this time round too as you are already a mother, I wish you all the luck in the world!! :-)

quietheart

My little boy was really anxious about feeding after the midwife held his face down so he couldn't breath thus forcing his mouth open (her attempt to latch him on.....) He didn't feed for days and ended up dehydrated. With the help of an NCT counsellor we got him feeding again, he basically needed retraining, remove all stress and the best thing was the skin to skin, I had him in the bath lying on me and didn't try to feed him and eventually he started to route. I ended up feeding him for 9 months but the early weeks were awful.
Though it sounds very unscientific, I think your body just works better second time round, I had every problem going first time and sailed through with number two.
Wishing you lots of luck and if in doubt get baby in the bath with you, it really chills them out!

Savvy_Sue

jellyhead wrote:

i'm planning on hiring a tens machine, has anyone used one?

YES, marvellous machines! Had a very on-off labour 3rd time around, used up the batteries over the week so had to replace them but worth every penny.

1st labour was epidural, in hospital, because I started throwing up when I went into labour.

2 and 3 were at home, think I had the TENS machine for both but maybe it was just the 3rd, all so long ago ...

Matron_2

Hi jellyhead,
There are lots of women who when pregnant never leak milk, it doesn't mean you haven't got any, it all depends on the way you are made. Such as muscle and duct firmness in the breast and hormone production. Also not everyone leaks milk when they are feeding for the same reasons. I think breastfeeding can be quite emotional - I certainly found that it was - and not everyone is able to do it. You know years & years ago thats why they had wet nurses so if you had a problem you got someone else to feed your baby! Anyway you may find that this time things are different.
As for pre-eclampsia, no-one really knows why women get it or what causes it so try not to worry about something that may not happen. And if it does at least you know that help is available.
Just to say I am a practising midwife and we are trained in breast feeding(yearly in fact) so i'm sure your midwife will be able to help you or at least give you some tips!!