I Want to Have a Successful Nursing/pumping Experience with Baby #2 - Big Lake,MN

Persevere. Unfortunately breastfeeding did not come easy for me with either of my kids. I did last longer the second time around. I didn't start supplementing her until about 8 weeks which consequently got her to sleep better but by that time, I was feeding her at least 3 times a day and pumping at least twice to keep up the supply. Around month 5 I had to go back to work full time and I couldn't keep up after that. But definitely, pushing through and being persistent about pumping really helped. I also took supplements and drank Mother's milk tea to help keep the supply up. Good Luck!

If you would like a book I would recommend Breastfeeding Made Simple Seven Natural Laws for Nursing Mothers by Nancy Mohrbacher and Kathleen Kendall-Tackett. This book really helped me relax and trust my body to work for my 2nd child. Good luck!

Check to see if your hospital has lactation consultants on hand. Mine did and it was a free service. Every new mom that was planning on BF was required to see a consultant at least once during their stay. They were fabulous and so very helpful. My daughter was a preemie so I saw one almost every day for the three weeks she was in the hospital and they were so very helpful. If the hospital doesn't provide this service then call your local LaLeche group to see if they can help you out. Remember it is easier for a baby to drink from a bottle than from the breast. It takes time a patience for both you and your baby to get the hang of BF. I think it took us at least a couple of months until we had a good routine going. I BF for 17mo and it was a great feeling of accomplishment that I could.

Treat yourself to a 'hooter hider'. The name is awful, but the product is great for nursing in public. Also, if your baby struggles, you can use a nipple shield right away to help them latch. These can be purchased at Target or Walgreens.

I only made it two months with my first child breast feeding as he had issue latching on and me with a low milk supply so pumping didn't work. I was able to breast feed my second one for the whole first year and only pumped maybe twice. Each child is different. The biggest thing I did with my second was to not stess out about feeding her, as stress lowers your supply. Good luck!!

Don't give up. It is amazingly hard to do something that is supposed to be totally natural. If you can make it the first month, you will be smooth sailing. Also I would definitely feed on demand because that lets your breast know how much milk to produce for your baby. They also sell lactation pills at health food stores that really work. Just to let you know, I had a hard time with my second daughter with latching. She wouldn't open her mouth wide enough. It took awhile for us to get it right. Also ask for a lactation consultant locally. I had one through WIK and she was so awesome and patient. I would probably call her at least twice every other week about breastfeeding. Good luck!

There is an herb called Goats Rue that you are supposed to take in the days leading up to your delivery that actually helps build your milk ducts and will lead to a greater supply. I found it in a capsule at an online health food store. Give it a shot.

I nursed my oldest until she was 3 1/2 years old. I'm now on my second child, he's 2 months old, and we have a successful nursing relationship, but that's not without a shaky start or 2.
With my son in particular, he was lazy and just didn't want to nurse. He would fall asleep at the breast. I did end up supplementing, but with my own pumped breast milk, not with formula. I would pump between feedings and use that. I tried to stay away from bottles and instead finger fed. I also fed him from a cup. The first time I supplemented though I did use a bottle because he was so hungry and had lost almost a pound, but again it was pumped breast milk.
As for supply issues, if you supplement with your own milk that will help with supply. Nurse on demand for sure. If baby wants to go longer between feedings, try to put baby to the breast every 2 hours. The more you nurse the more milk you make. Supplement with pumped breast milk. Take advantage of the hospital grade pump to get some milk stored up. Take it home with you and freeze it if you need to.
Good luck!
Definitely, like the others said, get with a lactation consultant. Once you are discharged from the hospital either make arrangements to continue with the LC after or contact the La Leche League and get them to help you.
I was fortunate and did not end up needing a lactation consultant once I got home. I just kept nursing, waking up my son and getting him to feed. Now he feeds like a champ.
With my daughter I had some latch issues. I simply continued to work on getting her latched on every 2 hours. I used my fingers to open her mouth wide and essentially shoved my breast into her mouth.

There's some great resources on here but I have to agree with Vicki on this one. My first was VERY difficult and the second was a breeze. Kids are different and our bodies change. Good luck and enjoy your new addition.

find a local or nearby la leche league group or leader. support is one of the best things you can do for your breastfeeding experience. :)

one thing about pumps is that even though it might get some milk out, it doesnt stimulate the breast properly to encourage more supply. also, it typically is harder to get the hindmilk when pumping, causing baby to have a lot of gas and stomach issues, the foremilk is thinner and that goes through baby faster, making her hungry more often, and as i said, gassy. that hindmilk is important because that has the fat content, keeps baby full a little longer, and balances the milk out so that the gassiness is less.

anyway, so basically, what you need to do is just keep trying. get la leche league help on positioning and latching, it takes some practice! and nurse nurse nurse. dont panic and put baby on the bottle right away, and even if you do have to put her on the bottle, YOU dont feed her a bottle; you nurse her when you are with her. if you have to be away from your baby for work or something, then you let someone else give her bottles, anything extra after that you freeze or otherwise store so that you can only nurse when you are with her. supply is determined by demand, so you should do all that you can to only nurse when you are with her to keep up your supply.

anyway, good luck
www.llli.org

First off: you CAN do it. I've managed to do it twice (for a little bit more than a year with both). That being said, I cannot honestly say that I enjoyed it. However, I reminded myself every few hours that I made a commitment to do it. Somehow that made pumping easier for me - particularly when I was at work.

My second was born prematurely, so I followed the NICU nurses' recommendations to pump initially. Hence, I pumped at least every 2 hours around the clock for the first 2 weeks. Fun? No. Milk? God, yes. In retrospect, that was the best thing I did. Even once my son started to nurse at about 2 weeks, I kept pumping like a nut (6 times a day) d/t to oversupply from all that previous pumping. By the time I went back to work when he was 3.5 months, we had 9 cubic feet of frozen breastmilk. Takes a ton of effort up front, but you'll also get a ton of milk. I ended up donating to our local milk bank, since I had about 24 oz. extra each day. When away from him, I pumped at 5 AM, 8-9 AM, 11 AM, 2 PM, 5 PM, and 9-10 PM (and sometimes more).

If you can, I'd avoid supplementing. Every time you do, you're telling your body that you don't need to make milk then. That being said, some breastmilk is better than nothing, so I wouldn't feel guilt about mixing whatever you get w/formula if it comes to that.

Also, buy/rent a hospital-grade, double-breast pump. I used the hospital's while I was there w/my second son and then switched to a Medela Pump in Style once home. I can definitely tell that the motor is going on mine after multiple years of pumping between my kids. If you think the motor is dying on your old pump, I'd probably invest in a new one. Even if you don't get a new one, I'd replace the old parts (valves, flanges, etc.).

Is your significant other supportive? I told my hubby that this was my priority, and he stepped up to facilitate that. If your significant other doesn't think BF is a big deal, it's a whole heck of lot more difficult. I'd find a friend to commiserate with too. (I lucked out at work, and due to a baby boom in my department, 8 women were pumping with me. Misery loves company.) La Leche League might have a group in your area?

I also had trouble with my first (latching problems and low supply). With my second I had the opposite problem--oversupply and she refused bottles for the first 2 1/2 months! So, I definitely sympathize with the challenges of breastfeeding.

Keep in mind that things may be different this time around. I also agree with the suggestions about LaLeche League. They have a fabulous website with tons of great info as well as supportive groups and consultants if they have them in your area. Also, you may have a hospital with lactation consultants or OB nurses who can give you some good suggestions.

Some things I did to increase my supply were: drink Mother's Milk tea (tastes and smells awful, but might work), drink lots of water (a ridiculous amount), and pump right after nursing (making sure that both breasts were really floppy for lack of a better description). These seemed to work to get a small increase, but I supplemented some with both as needed.

With my first I always had to supplement (but did nurse part-time for 16 months). With my second I supplemented when there was a timing issue (I didn't leave enough milk and she needed to eat before I got home). I had to let go of pressure on myself.to be the only milk supply. So far my kids are doing great and I think I was a better mom (and everything else in my life) when I wasn't freaking out about my milk! Hang in there.

The biggest thing you can do is NURSE ON DEMAND! A pump isn't as adequate in getting a good supply going as your baby is. By supplementing, it will lower your supply as well. Let the baby use you as a nuk for the first couple weeks. Suckling will boost your supply. Drink lots of water too.

Many people have better luck the 2nd time around. With our first, my milk seemed to dry up overnight at about 6 months. But with our second, I NURSED ON DEMAND, and made it to 18 months! Don't let the nurses scare you into supplementing if you don't get a good latch in the hospital. Our second didn't latch on hardly at all there but once we got home and I was relaxed, he nursed like a champ! (He was taken to a NICU at another hospital for the first day of his life so he had NOTHING at all there. The NICU docs were going to give him formula and I said I would pump and send my milk over to that hospital and he said, it's okay. Babies don't need anything for the first 48 hours of their lives! I did NOT know that...... So, when my midwife got him released so my husband could bring him back to the hospital I was at, he didn't latch on at all......And I tried often there.) I think he could tell I wasn't relaxed.

Nursing is HARD work ! Best info I can give you is to try different things - different holds, cradle, crosss cradle, football. Use a nipple sheild at first ifyou have one with a bad latch again - I used them at the beginning with both my kids, and successfully weaned them off the sheild, to bare nipple nursing by 4-6 weeks, and we nursed for 9 months each time. DRINK LOTS OF WATER - every time you are nursing try to drink 8 oz. of water yourself. Nurse on demand, it helps build up your supply, don't worry about a feeding schedule for the first couple months at least.

Get a really good double electric pump - it makes a big diffrerence in how fast you can pump and how much you get - that sad, try to only nurse and not pump for the first couple months, the baby is much more effective than a pump.

And now that you will have a toddler to entertain while you are trying to nurse, make up a basket of special books/toys/snacks that are only for while you are feeding the baby, that your 2 year old can use sitting next to tyou on the couch or bed while you are nursing, so she doesn't feel left out!

Jessie