Hey moms! I am stuck on what to do. I have breastfed my 10 month old boy from day one. He has had formula (one sip) and hated it! My milk is going away. It could be due to when he got sick, he stopped nursing (but it was slowly going away before then). He got a cold and got frustrated one day and bit me!!! I screamed (it more startled me than hurt). When I screamed, he panicked and bit down harder and held it. I had to mess with him to unlatch. After that, he (and I) are real hesitant on him nursing. He is just now feeling better and my milk supply is almost gone. I still pump (what I have) and use the frozen milk to give him. I wanted for him to have breast milk until he was a year old, but it doesn't look like that is going to happen. I have a problem. I am physically ready to stop breastfeeding him, but not emotionally. I love the closeness. I also don't know what to give him to drink if there isn't any more breast milk and he doesn't like formula. He is allergic to dairy right now, so I can't go to cows milk early. Also, he doesn't drink that much milk any more. I am worried that he isn't getting enough. Can anyone help me figure out what to do?
Sorry for the longness of this!
Thanks!
If you stay hydrated and he nurses till your empty, your supply will go back up. If the little monster bites you again, pinch his nose until he lets loose (to breathe). Can he do Soy milk? My lactose intolerant son went from breastmilk to Vanilla Silk.
S.
I nursed both of mine to their 3rd birthday, so I hear you on enjoying the snuggle time... even when you don't especially enjoy the process.
Given his allergy to dairy and the fact that soy formula has been found to be very unhealthy, PLEASE don't stop breastfeeding. This really is a temporary problem. Just get him back on the breast. For the biting down, I learned to be ready and just stick my finger in even before the "clamp down" and unlatch them. For my boys, this would happen when they were just about to fall asleep. As far as increasing your milk supply, nursing more frequently is best and given his recent cold, it is SO very important to give him the fantastic immunity that is provided by breastfeeding. Breastmilk or formula MUST be a babies primary food for their first year for optimal nutrition. I don't want to lay guilt on you as we mothers get too much of that already, BUT of all the choices I've made for my sons in the past 16 years, I know that breastfeeding was the one decision that I have no doubt was right - all the others sometimes leave me wondering, like if I did the right thing sending them to a tough private school, being a strict mom on some things and a hippy mom about others, etc. So, please do contact La Leche League - there are local groups everywhere and the leaders are trained to coach you through these problems.
Also, that emotional connection is equally as valuable as the nutritional one for breastfeeding. Both my teenage sons remain close to me and still talk to me about so many things. With my personality, I know that absolutely would not have been the case if they were not BF babies. Certainly, YMMV, but PLEASE don't ignore your mother's instinct in terms of the value of the emotional connection.
Best of luck!
M. B.
I know a couple that transitioned to feeding their daughter goats milk because she could tolerate it better. Ask your pedi is goats milk is a good option.
You can go to a health food store and get Mother's Milk Tonic. Mother's milk tea is good as well, but I don't think it's quite as strong. If you take it, it will probably help your milk supply go up (and pump every couple of hours to help). It sounds like the best thing for both of you is to continue for a while longer. If you contact Kay at the Nesting Place in Grapevine, you can get some really good advice. She is a lactation nurse, and she can definitely help you more than I can. Good luck, and I hope all works well for you.
ditto to the kellymom. You might also contact La Leche League -- they are extremely helpful. Chances are, you're milk is not as depleted as you think. Pumping is not as effective as a baby when it comes to getting milk out, so don't use that as your sole guide.
kellymom.com,
kellymom.com, and
oh, did i mention kellymom.com?
;D
