Does it get easier?!

My dd is 2 weeks old today. I have good moments and overwhelmed moments. I'm ebf right now and it's overwhelming. I feel like Im constantly either nursing or pumping. I'm pumping to get bottles for dh to help with the night(early morning) feedings.

On top of that dd has had bad gas and gets inconsolable. I've used colic calm and mylicon drops. They seem to help, temporarily.

She is almost back at her birth weight so the. I don't have to wake her every 3 hours to feed her at night.

I'm so exhausted I could cry at the drop of a hat.

Re: Does it get easier?!

Yes it does get better.
How soon it gets better really depends on the baby.
DD didn't sleep through the night until over 6 months old BUT by around 3-4 months I finally felt like we had a good groove going on, I was used to not sleeping all night, we had a routine, etc
It gets better!
The beginning is so so so hard though.
Harder than you could ever imagine before having a baby.
But there is always light at the end of the tunnel!

Re: Does it get easier?!

It does!!! The lack of sleep killed me - I cry at the drop of a hat to begin with and once I was on virtually no sleep, it was awful (not looking forward to this time around either.)
You will make it and it will get better. Give yourself some time to adjust - and don't be too hard on yourself! Hang in there!!

Does it get easier?!

It does but we all will have a different opinion on when.

My DS cried 24/7 for the first 4 months and then only when I was home for the next few!

I FF so I can't comment on the BF part.

You will be amazed at how you adjust to havign very little sleep. I ran on max 4 hours for the first 4-5 months. I went back to work at 8 weeks and thats when it got tough for me.

Does it get easier?!

I didn't bf - I choose not to. I do hear ebf is quite challenging as your day does revolve around pumping and feeding to maintain supply.

However, it does get better! There where days where, dh would come home and I would be waiting at the door with dd. I would tell him I just can't, hand her over, and hide upstairs for a few hours to have some me time.

Did you Try gripe water?

Message edited 7/12/2013 10:34:02 AM.

Re: Does it get easier?!

It absolutely does get better. Those first few weeks are SO grueling. I remember my DH would come home from work and I'd be in a ball on the floor crying. DD was colic, so I feel your pain.

For us, it got better when DD was between 3 and 6 months old. At 3 months old she started STTN. I also went back to work, which helped us tremendously with getting into a routine.

Hang in there. You'll get into the groove of things. Your DDs body will adjust to eating, which will help with the gas. It really does get better...promise.

Does it get easier?!

It does get a lot easier and much better. Make an appointment with a gastroenterologist if you are at wits end and your pediatrician isn't helping.

I have twins and ended up supplementing with formula. I never had enough to build a supply and feed both. In some ways breast feeding is a whole lot easier than bottle feeding. For me pumping was a lot of work. I had to exclusively pump for the first few months. The sleep deprivation is the worst part of it all. It also doesn't help that your hormones are trying to balance themselves out. Everything seems so brutal when your hormones are a mess and you are sleep deprived. Try your best to lay down every time your baby dozes off. Even if you don't sleep you need to recharge.

Does the swing or vibrating chair help at all?

Re: Does it get easier?!

It does get better! Especially when you're ebf. Hang in there, there are magical changes that happen around 6-12 weeks.

Also, you may want to stop pumping right now if it's too stressful. It may be easier just to bf. Plus it may create an oversupply at this point.

Message edited 7/12/2013 10:55:40 AM.

Re: Does it get easier?!

I think 2-3 weeks was the absolute worst time for me. It got to the point where I would dread holding DD because she just kept crying.

It gets better. You just have to get through this time. Have SO help as much as possible - you need the break more than he does right now, you're body is going through more - physically and emotionally.

Also, and I know it's not for everyone, but when I finally gave in and started co-sleeping at around 3 weeks DD finally started sleeping for longer stretches again and we transitioned to the crib at 2 months with no problem at all. It also made nursing a lot easier when I could just whip out my boob while we were both still semi sleeping.

Re: Does it get easier?!

6 weeks is a turning point...hang in there! It gets better. My third DS is 7 weeks today, he is my easiest baby so far (thank God!!) but my first was so rough. I cried every day and felt like it would never end but we made it through and even had two more.

Every week will get a little easier. I almost didn't have a third because DH and I did not want to do the infant stage again but I really wanted three kids, but kids not babies. I'm taking it one day at a time right now but really looking forward to a few months from now when DS will be STTN and more involved and fun.

Re: Does it get easier?!

I promise you it does. I EBF as well, round the clock every 1.5 -2 hrs for the first couple of weeks. By week 3 or so, I began pumping so, DH could feed him at least once during the middle of the night. The first 2-3 weeks, I'm not sure how, but I survived on a maximum of 2 hrs of sleep ( I could never nap during the day if DS napped). Once DH started giving him pumped milk, I slept about 3-4 hrs a night. For us it wasn't until 2- 2 1/2 months or so where DS gave us 5 hr stretches.

Our DS also had gas issues, and silent reflux. I swear he cried the first 3 months of his life like non stop. What helped the most (we also tried colic calm and mylicon) was bicycling his legs, to help expel the gas, laying him on our knees and burping him alot during the feeding. The prescribed him Zantac for the silent reflux, but since i didnt see a difference, after 3 weeks I stopped giving it to him. He eventually outgrew the reflux by 6 months.

Re: Does it get easier?!

It definitely gets better once they get a good stretch of sleep during the night. I think the gas issues get better too as they get older (if it's only gas). Hang in there, BFing is hard. I couldn't do it, and I think having a NB and breastfeeding is a big challenge!

Re: Does it get easier?!

YES x 100000. I wanted to return my DD at around 2 weeks. I have no shame in admitting that. It does and WILL get better, hang in there!!

Re: Does it get easier?!

it will get better in the begining she will want to nurse around the clock thats a good thing she is building your supply i also heard not to pump just put baby to breast for the first 4-6 weeks. it will get better one day at a time

Re: Does it get easier?!

Re: Does it get easier?!

Posted by MissJones

Posted by cateyemm

It does get better! Especially when you're ebf. Hang in there, there are magical changes that happen around 6-12 weeks.

Also, you may want to stop pumping right now if it's too stressful. It may be easier just to bf. Plus it may create an oversupply at this point.

This! The first 6 weeks are SO hard, especially when you are bf'ing. But it DOES get better!!!

See if you can get out, just for an hour. By yourself. Get a pedicure! Order in dinner. Put on your favorite shows. And hang in there.

Re: Does it get easier?!

I agree around the 6 week mark! I EBF and it does get soooooo much easier, once LO starts sleeping longer stretches and you don't have to worry about weight gain. For me, we eventually fell into a pattern that worked for us and I really started to enjoy EBFing. I didn't pump a lot though, I found it easier to just get up w/ DD at night too, and rest when she rested instead of spending my down time pumping. I also hated pumping so I avoided it at all costs. Hang in there, you will find what works for you!! :)

Re: Does it get easier?!

It does get better! Hang in there! I have two kids (one four years old and the other almost 5 months old). My first DD had colic and would scream all day long. I thought I was going to lose my mind. The only thing that would calm her was long drives (I spent many days driving up and down Ocean Parkway). Try going for walks during the day. Walking will refresh you (even if your tired) and give you a change of scenery. Being a new mom is very overwhelming. You can do it. Before you know it the hard times will pass.

Re: Does it get easier?!

Newborns are tough. It's stressful. It gets easier soon. Sleep when the baby sleeps! The mess will be there later and you can handle it better when you are well rested. You are also healing yourself. Physically healing and also your hormones are all over the place so please, cut yourself some slack. I couldn't imagine EBF so you are really doing a good job if she's almost back to her birth weight.

Re: Does it get easier?!

Yes Yes Yes. it gets better. My baby's first weeks of life was rough. I didn't think I would make it one month breast feeding but it gets so much better. Now she 7 months old and we are still breastfeeding excitingly wait to make it to a year.

The lack of sleep sucks and I cried so much her first two weeks of life.. she wanted to nurse so much I thought it would be like that forever. But it didn't last long I think maybe 6-12 weeks like other people I said.

Just keep up the amazing job and it will get better.

Re: Does it get easier?!

yes. by 2-3 months it became much easier. hang in there and accept help from friends or family when u can. Getting yourself out of the house with baby will make a world of a difference too. It made me feel empowered and confident when i started getting out more.

Re: Does it get easier?!

Oh, we've all been there, but as the others have said it definitely gets much easier...and even enjoyable! Right now you're exhausted and your hormones are all over the place. But eventually your hormones will even out again and you WILL SLEEP AGAIN! Can someone watch the baby for a few hours so you can sleep? It will make all the difference.

For me, it got easier around 5 weeks, then from 7-9 weeks it just kept getting better. If you are really have a tough time, rely on those around you as much as you can. And maybe take a week or so off of pumping just to get your sanity back!

Re: Does it get easier?!

it def does!

Does it get easier?!

Thank you all for taking the time to respond! Reading your posts have def helped.

Does it get easier?!

The first two weeks are definitely the worst. You are adjusting to life with a new baby, they are adjusting to life outside the womb, you are beyond sleep deprived and your hormones are absolutely crazy. I had baby blues for two weeks with both of my DD's and I cried a lot. And EBF is not easy - especially those first few weeks when you and the baby are learning and your nipples hurt like he!!. I promise it will get easier. Much easier.

As a PP said - I know many people are opposed, but co-sleeping makes life so much easier. When DD wakes up at night I only change her if her diaper is really full or she has a poop and then we nurse in the bed and both fall asleep - I get a lot more sleep that way and it makes the nighttime feedings much quicker since DD falls right back asleep.

Hang in there. Luckily the first few months will become a blur in the not so distant future!