Breastfeeding Questions - Smyrna,DE

Have you had any issues with spitting up? The pulling away and screaming can be associated with reflux.

If your milk is already well-established, then I'm sure sleeping will do you both some good! You will be more full when she wakes up for a few days if you have been pumping in the night, but your body will make what she needs if she ends up needing another feeding. I especially noticed that with my 2nd...he would keep nursing even after I was empty and sure enough in couple minutes I would feel the milk coming back in. So if you need it later, it will be there. Our bodies are amazingly made to feed our children...I still get goosebumps thinking about it! As far as her screaming during the day, it could be gas...I never used gas drops w/my 2, but they never cried like that either. My sister did, though. Its worth a try, and won't hurt her if its not gas! Good luck, and get some sleep!

Hi E.,

Unless your Ped. states otherwise (based on her weight gain and wet/dirty diapers), I would allow her to sleep. As for the fussiness mid-morning, my initial thought would be that she possibly isn't getting much from your breast at that time. Especially since she wakes once at night and feeds so well in the morning when your supply has built up while she is asleep. By mid-morning, your supply might not have had the same amount of time to replenish itself. I used to have the same problem. My supply was great when it had time to build up, but when she began cluster feeding, she really didn't get as much because of the lack of time to replenish. It's just my initial thought when I read your post.

Others on here could be right about her just being tired and trying to catch her before she gets fussy might help. I just thought she might be frustrated because she isn't getting the amount that she gets the other times that you feed her. I nursed both my girls until 12 months, but I did supplement here and there when my supply changed or she was going through a growth spurt and my supply couldn't keep up. I typically didn't feed them more than a 6-8oz bottle a day.

Hope this helps you and you are able to figure things out. Enjoy your children!

Take care,
D.

I breastfeed both my girls exclusively and I would think your body can adjust to 6-7 hour stretches and would not wake up to pump unless you are really in pain. (8 hours at this point might be pushing it though) But I would recommend getting & reading the book Babywise. I am 4 weeks away from delivery of my 3rd, and this time at my sister-in-law's recommendation I am going to try that book. Basically it advocated intervals of feed, awake, sleep instead of feed, sleep, awake which is what I have done.

I found that I was the only person who could put my babies to bed, and it was difficult for me to get them to sleep without nursing them back to sleep each time. My sister-in-law, who is doing the Babywise method had her 8 week old consistently sleeping 6-7 hours every night and then being able to go to bed happily by herself without getting nursed down. She would nurse during the day about every 2.5 to 3 hours. The baby is now about 7 months old, and it's going very well for them!

The book also talks about dealing with the fussiness you mentioned. I have not tried it yet myself, but have high hopes this time round that things will be much better.

E.,
My DD did that frequently (actually, all the time). I found that giving her a bottle of pumped milk was the ticket. She seemed to have less tolerance for breastfeeding during the mid-morning/early afternoon. Even now, she cries if she wants extra milk, but asks for food. Hope that helps.
J.

breasts are individual and tend not to do what books say they should. the best answer to your question about pumping lies right there before you. are they providing enough milk? then don't worry about it. mine were always delightfully accomodating about my changing schedule and needs, but others apparently aren't. certainly don't wake yourself to pump if you don't need to.
your baby's daytime fussiness isn't as easy. if she's gaining weight it's not a worry, just a puzzle. it does sound as if she's frustrated at the latch-on process. do you use deodorant or lotion during the day that may not be present at night? anything that causes you to smell or taste different could account for this.
khairete
S.

Hi E.. We are in the same boat - I have a 7 week old also. I have also excusively breastfed him. I actually emailed LLL with the same question you have because my son sleeps well at night although he does wake about once or twice - in my question, I asked if I needed to wake him evry couple of hours to eat. The response was no, at this point he will wake when he is hungry and my pediatrician has also told me the same thing. So try and get your sleep - although I still wake even if he does not :(
My son also does the screaming after sucking a couple of times, I have attributed it to possibly gas or fatigue. I try to get some gas out of his tummy and see if that helps - sometimes it does. I am not sure about this one but I do agree with you it is a little frustrating not knowing why he is screaming as if very mad. Best wishes and congrats on the new addition to your family.

It sounds like you are describing my 7 week son!
We have gone through the same exact thing. I saw a lactation consultant and she said he seemed to be trying to make me have a let-down. My milk supply is lowest in the early and late evening when he would do it the most. I started taking fenugreek and we give him a bottle of milk that I pump in the morning in the evening which makes him sleep better (he's not as good a sleeper as your daughter!) and since we started doing this he's stopped being so frantic at the boob.
Another thought, is that you are having overactive let-down (this is what everyone thought I had when I described his behavior) so position her so the milk doesn't hit her so hard and that might help. www.kellymom.com is a great resource on all things breastfeeding and I got lots of help there too.
Oh, about your baby sleeping well, this is excellent and won't hurt your supply at all, you don't need to wake her. Just nurse her as you have been, and have nursing pads in your bra at night so you don't wake up in a puddle :-) My pediatrician said for babies who are gaining well and nursing well in the day, it's normal for a 7 week old baby to sleep 7 hours, and an 8 weeker to sleep 8 etc. You are lucky, my longest stretch is 5 hours :-)

Hi E.,

I just wanted to reiterate some of the really good advice you've gotten, to sort of bring it back up. First, www.kellymom.com is a huge source of information and support, and can be really helpful with questions like this because the people answering are experienced with these situations rather than some on mamasource who might just be offering an opinion.
Second, Babywise has been proven to be detrimental to your child's well-being and develpment. Please please please don't run out and get it!!
And third, it sounds like you should see a lactation consultant, which is free!! You probably, as one person already stated, either have a supply issue at that particular time of day, or have an overactive letdown at that time of day. Both of those would cause the reactions you're getting.

Good luck!!
B.

I don't think anything you have described sounds unusual. At night I would let her sleep and during the day you might watch for signs that she is getting tired so that you can put her to the breast a little sooner but the truth is some babies fuss more than others and she really doesn't sound very fussy. I would say every baby is different. Also at her age you might consider that she is going through a growth spurt. All in all just remember that this phase will pass quickly and breastfeeding is more than worth it.

I agree with everyone & would let him sleep. Your body will adjust. You could use the long period of time in between feedings to pump & build up a freezer stash so you have milk on hand in case of emergencies. I do want to add that you should not read the Babywise books. The AAP has issued a warning against the feeding policies outlined in the books. They flat out give false information about breastfeeding. You can read more about it here: http://ezzo.info/feeding.htm .

maybe the fussiness is just that she is going thru a schedule change, trying to adjust herself. maybe trying to let go of that nap or move it earlier/later... or it could just be her fussy time, you know, like some kids do it in the evening for no reason.
her nights sound great and if your boobs can make it then you just sleep thru the night too. unless you have serious milk issues your supply shouldnt be affected. if it makes you happier then you can always get up and pump a couple of ounces.

I would go with your childs rhythym and let her sleep 6 or 7 hours if her over all weight is good. My son slept 4 hours from birth in the hospitol at a stretch. The pediatrician convinced me to wake and feed every 2 hours. I think that was unnecessary and unwise.

Don't worry too much about waking yourself up, unless if you get so full overnight that it's uncomfortable. Your body will adjust, and it should keep up it's supply with out any problems. About the fussiness, I don't really know. My second son did the same thing. He's always been impatient, and I think if the milk didn't let down quick enough he got mad. However, if she's gaining weight, there probably isn't a problem. Sorry I don't have any better suggestions. Good luck.

Hi E., I am breastfeeding a three week old at the moment. I have had a lot of problems with breastfeeding and gassiness in my little girl. So as you can imagine I have gotten lots of advice. I have also done my own research. I read from a doctors advice page that if the baby is healthy and gaining weight it is ok to skip a meal. I also think that going a long time with out pumping is for working mothers that may go days without pumping or bf. You will produce as much milk as she takes. My baby will also scream when I put her to the breast then sometimes fall asleep. Her problems have been all related to her gas. I usually burp her and she will eat more. I have found a lot of good answers online if I didn't offer any advice that helped. Good luck

I am a stay at home mom with a three month old son who behaves the same as your daughter. He started sleeping for 6 or 7 hours at night around 6 weeks old. I have found that my milk supply had adjusted to produce more when he wants to eat and less at night while he sleeps. Some afternoons he will get very fussy, sometimes it is because he is tired but sometimes it is because he is hungry again even though he ate an hour before (thats when he would spit out the boob and cry, because it wasn't full yet). I am really pro breast feeding but I couldn't stand having my child be hungry either, so I will sometimes give him a bottle with 2-3 ounces of formula in it. He has not had any nipple confusion and he is doing really well. I figure that a couple of ounces of formula is not going to undo all the good breast milk my son gets and my husband likes to have a turn feeding him as well.

E., with a brand new baby, in the first few weeks i would recommend waking her up to nurse every 3 hours, but with your 7 week old, ENJOY IT! around 8 weeks, babies' internal bio-clocks begin to establish themselves, and they often start sleeping longer periods. BUT many babies begin to wake up more in the night around 3-4 months, even babies who were sleeping 7-8 solidly before. so get what sleep you can now, as you never know what kind of nights lie ahead!

as far as fussy daytime feeding, it could be gas/needing to burp. could also be something you're consuming. could be nothing, or tiredness. sometimes it's so hard to know and the eventually becomes clear. if it persists you may want to check in with your local La Leche League group for some hands on help.

I would take her to her pediatrician (or address it at her 2 month appt) because it sounds like she has reflux. As for her sleeping through the night, count your blessings and pump if you need to. Good luck.

You are doing great and so is your baby! If she sleeps a lot, you are lucky and I wouldn't wake her up to eat unless she was losing weight. She's gaining and sleeping which is perfect. The mid-morning discomfort is probably her little version of colic, as she is in the peak weeks for that right now. I also think you are correct about the fatigue aspect. Don't trust the book advice as much as your own observations. Your baby is doing well and so are you. i hope you re sleeping when she does, my boys never slept regularly until they were 10 or 11 months old, so goof for you. It's hard these early weeks but you're doing great.
Good luck!

Hi E.!
My now eight year old used to sleep through the night. I would wake him to feed him and the pediatrician thought this was a joke big enough to share with the other docs! Bigger babies have the fat source to sleep through the night without becoming dehydrated. My milk would become so abundant it would leak and I felt like I was so full!

she is fine. If youa re breastfeeding you can be sure she is getting as much as she needs. She will not starve hersle. My 19 month old is only 18 pounds but she is just little. She does not go hungrary but she also doesn't eat much. My point is that you don't hae to worry, she will be fine

E.,
Sounds like you could use some extra support.
Here is the La Leche League website: http://www.lllofmd-de-dc.org/index.shtml.
On the right side scroll down till you see, DC metro area. Call the leaders in and close to you. They will come to your house and help free of charge, and will speak to you on the phone. There are also meetings held in the day and the evening.
L.

At 7 weeks if she doesn't want to wake up to nurse then don't wake her up. It's always good to give the pediatrician a call. The reason she is getting fussy around mid-morning is most likely because she is starting to get ready for a more set nap schedule. She is a bit young for that, but that does happen that early as well. What you want to try to do is about an hour and a half after she wakes up in the morning nurse her again (she won't nurse like a full feeding in the morning though) and then put her down for a nap. Her first nap should be about 2 hours from when she wakes up in the morning. So if she wakes up at 7 am, put her down at 9, but nurse and change her before. She should sleep for about an hour, maybe even two hours. Then, her 2nd nap should be around 1 0r 2 pm (remember, I'm going by her waking up at 7 am) unless she's like my son was and he took 3 shorter naps so his 2nd nap was around 11 or 12 and his 3rd nap was around 4 pm. And of course nurse her and change her before the nap. The 2nd nap if she ends up only taking 2 should be closer to 2 hours.
Another reason for the fussiness could be that she's having gas (very common for babies) and there's an easy fix for that. You can use Mylicon drops every 2.5 hours (the dosage is according to weight and is on the box and you can also check with the pediatrician first but I'm sure he/she will recommend it and by the way, it works better when given regularly!). But to me it sounds like she's getting fussy because she is tired.

Good luck!

To your first question: Don't worry about not nursing at night. Count your blessings that you have a child who sleeps. My son slept thru the night when just 2 weeks old. I still had plenty of milk. He was a good nurser and grew very rapidly. We called him our cute little chubby. Your body will adjust to the daily scedule and provide milk at the time the baby wants it. AF

Her waking up once should be fine, as long as she is having enough wet/dirty diapers (6-8) and is gaining well.

As for your milk supply, I don't think it will be affected, since she is waking up once. Since your nipples are being stimulated often during the day (nursing on demand) your body should produce what she needs on her pattern.

As long as you aren't uncomfortable during her sleeping periods, probably fine! If you notice a dip in supply, you can put her to the breast more often, that is the best way to increase supply.

During the day, see if you can put her to breast before she cries, looking for early hunger cues (turning head alot, sucking fingers, smacking lips) or, see if you can predict when she will be hungry and offer before that. Sounds like she is hungry and frustrated because of that.

You should contact your local La Leche League. The responses to this thread I've not read through but Often times there is inaccurate breastfeeding advice.

You can also post on llli.org forums.

Good luck!

You are very lucky that she sleeps for that long without waking up at 7 weeks, and she would wake up to eat if he was hungry. Don't worry about that, you would know it if she was hungry, so as long as she is gaining the appropriate amount of weight keep sleeping while you can. I would only pump in the middle of the night if you are uncomfortable/too full, otherwise you are stimulating your breasts to make more milk and then they will adjust to making more milk every night. If you are uncomforatble and pump, just pump enough to make you feel less full, don't empty the breasts to stimulate more milk to be made.

You can test if she is hungry and is not getting enough milk from you during her fussy hours in the afternoon by giving her a little bit of expressed milk in a bottle. That will tell you if she is hungry and not getting enough at that point. If so, you still need to let her suck to stimulate more milk to be made during this time of day. She may just be tire though, you could try putting her down for a nap maybe 30 minutes earlier to try to avoid her getting over tired and fussy where she can't fall asleep easily. Good Luck and enjoy your sleep!!

you will make enough for her if she eats 4 times a day you will make enough for 4 times why pump for a feeding she doesnt want or need.

as far as her being tired have you tried a paci maybe she just wants something to suck on while tired.

Hi,

My advice is not to look a gift horse in the mouth, and enjoy those hours of sleep at night! (I'm totally jealous, because my boy didn't sleep through the night until he was more than a year old!) :) It won't be bad for your milk supply in the long run; you can be confident that your supply will meet your daughter's needs.

I know mornings are really busy and hectic, but perhaps you can anticipate a nurse and try to get your daughter to feed before she gets too tired or hungry. Perhaps if she's too worked up she won't feed well. Or have you tried hand-expressing a little milk before she starts those fussy feeds, just so that your milk is flowing, and she can then quickly settle in to the feed?

Just my two cents, and I'm sure you remember how quickly even these frustrating times fly by!

--C.

Your baby is feeding fine. The attention turns to you and whether your breasts swell and become uncomfortable causing you to pump.