breast feeding vs pumping advice needed- 4 day old...

Help!

When dd was born Friday I tried breast feeding in the recovery room. She latched on right away, and has a strong suck. My son had a tough time latching, even with a lactation consultant helping me(probably cause he was in the nicu).

The next day it seemed more painful. I asked the nurses and lactation consultant, they provided tips, but it still kinda hurts. On the second night, my dd then spit up a little blood - the nurse said its probably a cracked nipple, but it really scared me.

Last night she was fed at 9pm, she then woke up every hour- did the mouth thing where she's looking for food - refused the binky, nursing was the only thing that calmed her down- this repeated EVERY HOUR until 5am( it looks like its cluster feeding from what I googled) .... I'm very sore. This morning I pumped one bottle and it did not hurt like feeding her, and I got 2 oz out in 15 minutes.

I'm so torn what to do now, if I should just switch to exclusively pumping or is it giving up too soon? I worry if I pump I won't be motivated to wake up overnight to pump and end up on formula soon like I did with ds.

Re: breast feeding vs pumping advice needed- 4 day old...

Don't give up yet! I would double check to make sure she is latching correctly. If it is done the right way the soreness and cracked nipples will go away. Has a lactation consultant checked your latch?

breast feeding vs pumping advice needed- 4 day old...

ugh my DS did the same thing and it was so rough! I know this might not be what you want to hear but it's only been 4 days (even though it may seem longer since you're not getting much sleep). I would try and stick it out a couple more days if you can. By about day 5 or 6 my milk really came in and it became much easier. And if she has a good latch, the pain will subside.

I cluster fed DS in the hospital all night every night I was there. I literally didn't sleep and could barely put him down. Just as I was about to give up, my milk came in and it became much easier. Try to hang in there, you're doing great!

P.S. If you can't nurse and decide to pump or formula feed, do not beat yourself up. This is SO hard and a lot of work and in the end you just need to do what's right for you and DD. Good luck!

Re: breast feeding vs pumping advice needed- 4 day old...

I would continue to try to nurse...better at getting the milk out than a pump! They are so little and tiny and that is all they know! If you really want to nurse don't give up yet! I'm not going to lie it is VERY HARD in the beginning! But is so worth it in the end...you may think of giving up often, but it does get easier...I PROMISE!

You nips have never had to do that much work so it does take a beating until they are used to it! Cracked nipples are common and normal in the beginning! It also hurts in the beginning as well! But somewhere between 4-6 weeks it all just seems to magically click...and it doesn't hurt anymore and seems so much easier and natural!

Do not think your LO is not getting any this early on ... You COLOSTROM is enough for a 4 day old..their stomachs are only the size of a golf ball and doesn't need oz and oz

Don't get caught up too much on amt of milk...just make sure you have a bunch between 5-8 pee diapers) what goes in must come out!

Good luck..and don't hesitate to ask more questions! There is a ton of support on here and on la Leche league moms forum!

Re: breast feeding vs pumping advice needed- 4 day old...

I would try to keep going. I think pumping is so much harder than nursing in the long run. Make sure her latch isn't too shallow. Are you using lanolin? I used it after every feeding in the beginning and it worked great. You can also try just putting some breastmilk on your nipples since it's said to heal everything.

I agree with PP about having a LC check the latch if the pain persists.

Re: breast feeding vs pumping advice needed- 4 day old...

Re: breast feeding vs pumping advice needed- 4 day old...

i would nurse...it does hurt (at least for me) for the first week and then magically, it didn't! Lanisoh gel pads (stick them in the fridge) were very soothing.

Also, when they are that young, it's not crazy that they nurse that often. DD was the same way. She is 6 months now and goes 3-4 hours. I never did anything different but follow her cues and she spaced out feedings herself.

good luck!! I have to pump now that I am at work but I'd much rather nurse. so much easier. no bottles to clean, no warming up, etc.

Re: breast feeding vs pumping advice needed- 4 day old...

And wanted to add...

I dealt with bleeding cracked nipples with all three...and unfortunately didn't get this advice until my 3rd child

Bec it worked better than any other remebpdy, creams, etc...

Get disposable nursing pads, gauze pads, and saline solution ( the ones to flush out cuts)

After a feeding completely saturate the gauze pads in saline..and put on nipples in your bra in the nursing pads (nursing pads keep from leaking the saline on your clothes) and don't let it get dry..so re dampen if necessary...a lactation consultant told me to do this in the hospital and I swear when I went in to change them before the next feeding they were pretty much a 1000 times better...it was amazing..worked better than anything I ever tried...

It is a lot more effective and a hellava lot neater than creams and goops..lol

I did this for the first two weeks .... And then when my nips were used to feeding..I never had to do it again!

Message edited 10/16/2012 4:14:44 PM.

Re: breast feeding vs pumping advice needed- 4 day old...

I ep'ed for 3 1/2 months... It's not easy. In the end I was grateful to have given dd as much BM as I could, but I was soooo done with being a slave to that machine. My dd has a tongue tie so that's where we ran into bf issues. During the night, I would pump while DH would give her a bottle of pumped milk. I had to make a conscious effort to get in those late night pumping sessions... You really have to be dedicated. That said, only YOU know if you will or can keep up with it.

Good luck with your decision!

Re: breast feeding vs pumping advice needed- 4 day old...

Ugh those first few days/weeks can really hurt! With DD2 I could not take the pain of her strong latch so I would alternate pumping and nursing for about 3-4 days. It felt sooo much better after a few days of giving the nips a lil rest. Since then she's been ebf with no problems.

breast feeding vs pumping advice needed- 4 day old...

since I'm not SAHM, I will have to pump at least some when I go back to work at 6 weeks.....

I tried another BF and it still really hurt... She seems to be latched correctly. Its probably partly that I'm a wimp for pain.They told me I could pull back the nip with my two fingers - and then I started getting more pain in my arm. They told me to keep her bottom lip out which I can't always see.


I then tried a pump before next feeding since I was starting to feel engorged on part of my right one. I pumped out in 20 minutes - two 2 oz bottles and it didn't hurt like hers did.

I have tried gel pads(frustrating to have to wash off before next feeding), lanisol ointment(seemed like it scabbed up) and breast milk with pads (seemed to smooth out the cracking, but they still hurt)

breast feeding vs pumping advice needed- 4 day old...

Dont give up. my DD does the same thing and she's 4 weeks old. She had a terrible latch and I was able to get advice from a LC. She said let DD smell my nipple then when she opens her mouth and tilts her head back, put the nipple close to the corner of her mouth (not directly in her mouth, like a bullseye) and she will latch on that way. For some reason it worked and breastfeeding has been less painful.

I did pump one side until the nipple healed and froze the milk so I can build a supply. Good luck!!

Re: breast feeding vs pumping advice needed- 4 day old...

I EPed for a little over a year, dont give up! it is soo much work

Re: breast feeding vs pumping advice needed- 4 day old...

I intended on trying to BF and I did for the first couple days. I remember that constant feeding the first 2 nights. Then my DD went to the NICU. Then, I was too emotional to BF. I ended up EP for 7 1/2 months. EVERYTHING is hard in the beginning with a new baby. Don't give up, you will find what works best for you!

Re: breast feeding vs pumping advice needed- 4 day old...

Dont give up!! I know it's hard at this point. It's exhausting, but if you push through, it's worth it and so easy. She was nursing every hour or two those early days. It does get better. I would pump sometimes if I was really sore. My one nipple was badly cracked, so I would pump my left side and nurse on my right to give myself time to heal. That really helped me. Pumping exclusively is more work IMO and harder! I hate pumping, though in those early days it did help to relieve the pain.

Kellymom.com has some great tips!

Good luck!!!

breast feeding vs pumping advice needed- 4 day old...

its just odd pumping is seeming like less work... I again cracked and bled on a BF which took over 20 minutes(sometimes 30-40) and felt sore, yet just now got 2 bottles pumped in 10 minutes & let down and dont feel sore and it didn't take dh long to feed her the pumped milk either.

Re: breast feeding vs pumping advice needed- 4 day old...

Don't give up!!!!!!!!! Be sure baby is latching correctly bc that could be cause for pain, but, to be honest, ur nips are gonna hurt regardless. I saw several lactation consultants who said DD's latch was great & mynips still killed me until around 1 month. I also started using Earth Momma Angel Baby Nipple Butter (u can get it on amazon) ... I liked it better than lanolin for in between feedings to help my nips feel better, as well as for pumping. I still use it to pump but do t need it in btwn feedings bc like I said, my nips got way better after a month or so.

Bfing is VERY hard & , in the beginning, painful but it does get better & it's so worth it. Hang in there, ask questions on here for help, see a LC, & check out kellymom.com for answers to any question you could possibly have on bfing. GL!!!

Re: breast feeding vs pumping advice needed- 4 day old...

Dont give up!!!! I have beed EPumping for my twins for 13 months. It is really hard work and I so wish even one of them could have nursed effectively.
It is all very difficult at first. Doing saline soaks really helped things heal up for me. I was told to literally put my nipple in salt water for a few minutes after nursing/pumping. It made a huge difference. I also used saline on gauze pads.
Good Luck!! Hang it there. It is so worth it.

Re: breast feeding vs pumping advice needed- 4 day old...

Try not to give up yet. It is really hard in the beginning and it will hurt a bit, even if the latch is right, b/c your nipples just aren't prepared yet.

I thought nursing was the hardest thing ever, but after 10 days it got SO much easier and I nursed DD for 14 months.

Re: breast feeding vs pumping advice needed- 4 day old...

Don't give up yet!!! It will get better and easier...

keep nursing DD and more milk will come in and you will then have an easier time with pumping...

Message edited 10/17/2012 10:29:04 AM.

Re: breast feeding vs pumping advice needed- 4 day old...

Re: breast feeding vs pumping advice needed- 4 day old...

Posted by MaZz

Posted by butterfly20

its just odd pumping is seeming like less work... I again cracked and bled on a BF which took over 20 minutes(sometimes 30-40) and felt sore, yet just now got 2 bottles pumped in 10 minutes & let down and dont feel sore and it didn't take dh long to feed her the pumped milk either.

I really think its less work in the beginning when bf seems so overwhelming but trust me, in the end pumping is prob the most time consuming thing one will prob ever do and it becomes old VERY fast... When you are leaving your child for like 2 hours everyday to go hook up to some machine, you really start to wonder if its worth it

Re: breast feeding vs pumping advice needed- 4 day old...

Breastfeeding is hard, pumping is harder in my opinion. The pains of breastfeeding will go away in a few weeks. The first month in feeding my little guy was torture. He would nurse every 1.5-2 hrs for first 6 weeks. My nipples were sore and cracked. I even had blisters on my nipple. I used lasinoh creme for soreness and when they had blisters I used warm clothes, and it would go away in a day or so. For days it was bad, i pumped. But it all went away after 4 weeks. After that, it was a walk in the park. When i went back to work, i had to pump. I hated every second again. I felt like a slave to a pump and it was so stressful because I always felt I had to get a certain amount. I recently became a sahm, and I love breastfeeding him again.

I would try and continue breastfeeding and pump when you need a break.

Re: breast feeding vs pumping advice needed- 4 day old...

Re: breast feeding vs pumping advice needed- 4 day old...

Posted by Priscilla10

Posted by MaZz

Posted by butterfly20

its just odd pumping is seeming like less work... I again cracked and bled on a BF which took over 20 minutes(sometimes 30-40) and felt sore, yet just now got 2 bottles pumped in 10 minutes & let down and dont feel sore and it didn't take dh long to feed her the pumped milk either.

I really think its less work in the beginning when bf seems so overwhelming but trust me, in the end pumping is prob the most time consuming thing one will prob ever do and it becomes old VERY fast... When you are leaving your child for like 2 hours everyday to go hook up to some machine, you really start to wonder if its worth it

ITA!!

Message edited 10/17/2012 1:44:58 PM.