I'm curious; how long after you all gave birth did your milk come in? I was told that mine could arrive as early as Friday evening, but here I am at 5:40am on Sunday morning and it hasn't come in yet. Molly has been getting a little frustrated lately because she's not getting as much out of me as she wants.
I talked to the lactation specialist on the phone yesterday and she recommended that we give her an ounce of formula because she could be dehydrated (symptoms difficulty feeding and extremely dry and peeling lips). I was extremely hesitant because I plan on breastfeeding but her pediatrician had also recommended an ounce or 2 if my milk came in a little late. So, yesterday we gave her an ounce and, even though I still wish we didn't have to, it was so nice to see her so content with a fuller belly. I ended up giving her another ounce this morning around 3am because she was so fussy.
I have this fear that my milk won't come in. I'm sure it will but I have no clue when. Hopefully, I'll post back in a couple of hours with good news cause I don't want to have to use any more formula but I also don't want her to lose too much weight before her first pediatric appt tomorrow afternoon (Monday).
So, I'm curious as to how long it took for your milk to come in. And if you have any advice for a frantically rooting baby who doesn't seem to be getting a lot of nutrition from you. I'm not too concerned yet but it's nice to know there are people out there going through similar issues!
-Emily <><
p.s. she's still the most beautiful thing in the world!!!!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Mine came in sometime over the weekend when I got home... Saturday or Sunday I think. As long as there is something coming out when she eats, you probably don't need to worry about your milk coming in. There are also some teas you can drink that are supposed to aid in milk production. One is actualy called
ReplyDelete"mother's milk" tea, I think. I know it's frustrating, but she will be ok and formula is not going to thwart breastfeeding when your milk does come in; she will always prefer you! Good for you for doing what is best for your little one! Keep us posted.
I had Hadley on a Wednesday and my milk didn't come in until Sunday night/Monday morning. And even then, it wasn't a gush all at once with tons of engorgement like most people have. But I just kept breastfeeding every two hours (or pumping) for the first month and my supply has established itself well (although it was quite exhausting). We are just now spreading out feedings to every 2 1/2 hours. We did not supplement with formula before my milk came in, but it might have made those first few nights easier for us if we had because Hadley also started getting a bigger appetite before my milk came in. I think it should be fine for you to supplement, just make sure you still try to breastfeed her a little at those feedings or pump instead, so that the supply/demand system doesn't get out of sync. Even if your supply doesn't end up being enough to exclusively breastfeed, our pediatrician says you can still breastfeed and supplement with formula. It doesn't have to be all one or the other.
ReplyDelete--Amanda
I feel like it took me a week before mine came it...extremely frustrating, but once it came in every time I would pump the increments were increase a couple ounces a day. We never got the hang of breast feeding, but I pump exclusivly for about 6 weeks, but then his tummy was so messed up that we ended up switching to formula. I will have to explain more once I go back to work on Tuesday...wish me luck ladies! But in the mean time I will give you guys something to google..."lactose overload". That is what we think was our problem with Andrew in addition to bad reflux. Good luck with breast feeding but do not feel bad about supplementing. The important thing is that Molly is feed and happy. She will continue to bond with you regardless of what you are feeding her!
ReplyDeletemel