MSE Newborn to 1 year Baby Club 1

Gillyx

Id empty both boobs every time you do it, as that is what will stimulate your milk supply xx

dizziblonde

Bamama the best people I could suggest to contact would be Bliss - their message boards are on the quiet side but if you're after people who've done the tube feeding/pumping/sleepy baby gauntlet - there'll be people there who have (it's not just for prems but all babies who've been through special care etc). If nothing else - they saved SOME of my sanity (I still have flashbacks and wake up crying every night) dealing with the emotional aftermath of it - and we had a relatively "easy" time compared to lots of families (just the unit behaved like something unprintable).

Off the top of my head - your numbers with the breast pump sound much better than I was racking up when we went through the hell of it all (daughter was prem, tube fed - only they forced me to do all of those when I really wasn't comfortable doing it, and never did get the memo of how to latch). With the sleepyness thing - have they suggested the really obvious things like changing BEFORE or even in the middle of feeds? Poor Erin would get clothes shed like a game of strip poker to try to keep her awake for an entire one! (If it's any consolation - she's gone from being a sleepy baby who wouldn't feed to being an utter food dustbin who'll tackle almost anything now)

moneypenny21

Thanks Marta she feels a nice temperature. As for uncomfy - possibly but we don't really have an alternative to the Moses basket. MW coming today so I'll mention it then as we can't continue like this! She has got bags under her eyes today but of course will sleep all day! Six hours from start of bedtime until actual sleep time! Maybe I'm expecting too much of her?!

Just reading Kiras post to bamama I don't think I understood block feeding so didn't do it right last night, must try that properly tonight.!

Katiechoc- tonight we are having a Chinese with the grandparents & no doubt an all night party with the baby lol!!!

Thanks everyone for the advice

turtlemoose

Bamama your quantities are fab, well done! We are all telling you to do the frequency though as in these early days, it's the frequent stimulation that tells your body there's a baby that needs your milk. If you don't get enough stimulation, it's could affect your supply (breastfeeding is supply and demand - the more you do it, the more millk you make....which is why babies feed like crazy during growth spurts!). Also early days what generally happens is when your milk first comes in your body makes tons, then settles down to what your baby needs.

Ref timing....it's a little trial and error to see what works for you. For me, I started pumping in 20 misn blocks 5 left, 5 right, 5 left, 5 right. Then I found that, for me, I got more doing around 10 mins one side then 10 mins other. But I didn't do strict timings, just watched my output and if I was in the middle of a letdown (when the milk comes out faster) at the "time up" point then I'd carry on a while longer, or if I'd had a letdown or 2 and then not had one for a while, I'd know to stop and switch to the other side.

You do need to do both sides - as gilly has said,for the stimulation to tell both breasts to make milk.

You are doing a fantastic job! :T:T:T

sexymouse

Hi Bamama - sorry I've only just had a chance to post a response since they flagged this on the facebook group. I had problems with Jonathan latching on - he didn't latch on for the first time until 3 weeks and then I couldn't reliably get him to latch on, then I got mastitis twice so have pumped through those times too. I still pump for the night-time feeds as I find that it's quicker for me to express whilst DH feeds Jonthan and changes him rather than me feeding and changing him through the night, so I get a bit more sleep.

Amount in each bottle: In the early days (birth to around 4 weeks I think it was) I was giving Jonathan bottles of 90ml expressed milk. At 5 weeks we upped it to 120ml a time and then at about 8 weeks it went up to 150ml (he's still on this amount now at 3 months during night feeds and sometimes doesn't finish it all).
When to pump: I was expressing every 2 hours as he was demanding food every 2 hours, including during the night (I would express on demand like feeding on demand so if DH was feeding him a bottle, I'd pump to replenish the supply, or if I was on my own, I'd pump after I'd fed him). I was quite lucky in the early days in that I was producing lots of milk thanks to a double electric pump - I would thoroughly recommend getting one of these if you can - and we bought loads of bottles (MAM anticolic starter sets) as milk can be stored in the fridge for 3 days. I have the Ameda Lactaline pump which you could possibly get second-hand as none of the milk actually passes through the pump (it stays in the bottles which can be sterilised easily). The night-time pumping sessions (I know this is the last thing you want to hear) are the most important as this is when you have the most milk production. Definitely empty both boobs each time as you don't want to end up with blocked ducts from getting engorged, and as others have said, it will keep your milk supply up.

Any more questions, send me a PM - I don't go on here as often as I used to, but will try to check in when I can. Good luck honey and congratulations on your little boy. xx

*Nutella*

Fluff, we have the Microlife NC 100 non-contact thermometer and it's brilliant, has really good reviews and won numerous comparison tests too. I love the non-contact bit as you can even take LO's temperature whilst asleep

Kira000

Bamama wrote: »

Thanks so much Kira. Do you think I'm ok staying at every 3-4 hours with the expressing? I'm matching it to his feeding times and noone here has mentioned doing it more often.

Also I don't think I have a strong let down though most of his feeds have been in between my expressing times. They just tend to dribble down him lol.

Sorry i couldnt get on before, Small wiggly shouty person wouldn't give me 5 minutes peace!

Just had a catch up, and would second what has been said, definitely express from both boobs, express during the night/early morning.
I would actually suggest maybe upping frequency with which you try and feed him yourself to 2 hours whilst you are trying to establish BF, even if they tube feed less frequently. That is what i was given as a regime in hospital to get CJ up and running with BF. They are so small, get tired so quickly, and have such small tummies that little and often is the way to go, before gradually moving to 3 hours and then 4.

moneypenny21

After reading the replies to Bamama I wonder if I'd be better off expressing through the night and feeding her from a bottle? Would she get the hind milk more easily then?

I do wonder if thats whats happening, she is only getting the foremilk? She only stays on about 20 minutes maximum then falls fast asleep (usually more like 10 minutes in the night), gets winded and wakes up - I'd assumed that the milk would be all gone from that breast so swap sides then feed her again. If I put her back on the same side, I guess thats when she gets the hind milk?

Interesting how much in ml you said you fed Jonathan sexymouse - I thought her 80ml expressed bottle (after multiple feeds!) would be way too much for her but seems not?

Thanks for all the advice, I'm so glad there is someone out there to help :o

Gillyx

Hind milk is more easily got by baba as far as I'm led to believe. I could be wrong though x

ikkle87

moneypenny21 wrote: »

After reading the replies to Bamama I wonder if I'd be better off expressing through the night and feeding her from a bottle? Would she get the hind milk more easily then?

I do wonder if thats whats happening, she is only getting the foremilk? She only stays on about 20 minutes maximum then falls fast asleep (usually more like 10 minutes in the night), gets winded and wakes up - I'd assumed that the milk would be all gone from that breast so swap sides then feed her again. If I put her back on the same side, I guess thats when she gets the hind milk?

Interesting how much in ml you said you fed Jonathan sexymouse - I thought her 80ml expressed bottle (after multiple feeds!) would be way too much for her but seems not?

Thanks for all the advice, I'm so glad there is someone out there to help :o

Have you tried block feeding Hun? x