couple of questions!!

[asand83]

My son is 5 weeks old and I've been nursing and pumping, mostly pumping and feeding him from a bottle. When I do nurse him, he latches on great and doesn't seem to show nipple preference, but he falls asleep very soon after starting to nurse. Even if he's very hungry, he might only nurse vigorously for 10 minutes, then start to doze off. I try everything to keep him awake and nursing actively, but it doesn't work very long. If I pull him off and switch him to the other side, he'll nurse again for 5 or 10 minutes, then the same thing happens. I know he's not eating to his satisfaction because if I just let him stop, he'll starting rooting and eating his hands and crying again within 10 or 15 minutes of stopping. At that point I'll put him back to the breast (and the same thing will happen again), or I'll give him a bottle of breastmilk and he'll gulp it down. I don't know what to do! I feel like I would be nursing ALL DAY long if I let him continue this routine. And the few times that he hasn't fallen asleep right away and he's actually nursed for a good long time, then stopped on his own, he still gets hungry again within the hour! I know he's getting milk because I hear him swallowing and see milk in his mouth, and my breasts feel softer when he finishes. But it just seems like he's not getting enough and not filling up.

I wouldn't mind just pumping exclusively and feeding him from a bottle, but I don't pump enough to feed him for the entire day. I usually end up having to give him a couple of ounces of formula because I'll run out of milk. I know I'm not supposed to supplement because that in itself will decrease my supply, but I pump every 2-3 hours and just don't pump enough to feed him for the whole day. And if I nurse him, he still doesn't seem to get full! I'm at a complete loss for what to do. I don't want to supplement with formula, but don't know what else to do. He's a big eater and I know I should be able to produce enough to feed him--I don't know what I'm doing wrong. Any advice or suggestions would be much appreciated!

[StillSingingMom]

To transition him off the bottle and back to the breast, you are going to have to nurse. all. the. time.

This is the only thing that will get your supply synchronized with his belly. This normally happens with newborns. They nurse all the time. The supply is forced to the level they need. Offering a bottle interferes with this process.

There are a few things that can interfere. Number one is a problem with milk transfer- an inefficient latch, a weak suck, tongue tie, whatever. The way to find out what is going on there is to have your latch evaluated by a lactation consultant. Alternatively, you can check milk transfer by weighing baby fully clothed and diapered, before nursing, and then weighing him again right after nursing. You have to use a VERY precise scale for this. Your bathroom scale won't do. You can call your pediatrician's office- it is common for a pedi to let you use their office scale for this, free of charge.

There are various hormone problems that can interfere with supply, also. But you are pumping most of the milk your baby eats, so that is a good indication that that part of the system is working.

You are pumping every 2-3 hours and not getting enough to feed the baby. Either you can pump more often, or you can nurse, or you can use formula. Any breastmilk you offer your baby is beneficial. You could try pumping more often, and that will help increase your supply, which would smooth a transition off the bottle.

But the easiest way out of your situation is to put everything else aside, and just nurse the baby, all day, for a couple or three days. Don't offer pumped milk. Don't offer formula. Just keep nursing. Switch sides. Switch again. Eat. Drink, change diapers, repeat. Watch TV, talk on the phone. Have a nurse-in. Watch your favorite movies.

If you are offering formula or a bottle of milk, you are most likely overfeeding him. Then he isn't hungry for a while, and falls asleep at the breast, which doesn't stimulate supply.

Vicious cycle.

I repeat the only way out is to nurse, nurse, nurse. It doesn't last forever. The supply will jump to a higher level and baby will get your breasts to where he needs the supply. But it will only happen by letting baby set the demand.

This is hard. You look at your baby and think you are starving him, and that you'll go crazy if you have to nurse one more time.

But the breasts are NEVER empty. They keep making milk. And the way to get more milk made, faster, for tomorrow, is to have baby nurse more often, today. If you can't talk yourself into ditching the bottle cold-turkey, then consider reducing how much you offer in a bottle. Cut the amounts you are giving in half. The next day, cut the amounts in half again. You will see your supply jump.

Don't wait to do this. Things change a bit after six weeks- milk supply is even more demand driven and less driven by hormonal changes after pregnancy. This is the perfect time to get going!

[madelsmama]

I agree 100% with SingingMom.

[Nipple_nectar]

You need to trust that your body can do this! Your baby is at an age where he will require to nurse almost non~stop to bump up the supply to meet his growing needs. Growth spurts can be often and last for days, making it seem like all you do is nurse, nurse and nurse some more!

It is not a reflection of an inadequate supply but merely a reflection of your baby's growing needs and his fondness of the breast:) You can try breast compression to stretch him out a little: www.kellymom.com/newman/15breast_compression.html

Another thing to consider is that all the work involving removing the milk from the breast tends to tire baby more quickly than sucking from a bottle, I personally wouldn't use a bottle with a breastfed baby, I would choose an alternative that mimics breastfeeding more closely: www.kellymom.com/bf/pumping/alternative-feeding.html

You know baby is way more efficient at emptying the breast than a pump, so realize that what you are pumping is not a reliable indicator of what he is actually eating. The most reliable indicator would be to measure his output, it is the best way to gauge input. You need to see at least six wet diapers in a 24 hour period, if you have that, you are golden.

Couple this in with the fact that newborns have an insatiable need for sucking and even full, he will root on his fingers and suck down an entire bottle, giving you the impression he is hungry and that is not it at all. That is why he naturally falls off the breast after ten minutes, he is full and satisfied. You need to trust his cues.

Yes, an hour later it is entirely possible for his tiny stomach to be empty and the process begins again! Breast milk is so easily digestible, it goes through his digestive tract very quickly.

Are you interested in breastfeeding full time?

[asand83]

OK, thank you for all the sincere advice. I was thinking that's what I would be told. I wouldn't mind breastfeeding exclusively--it's just that sometimes it's so difficult and my nipples get so sore, it's hard to bring myself to do it non-stop all day long. And sometimes he doesn't even go a full hour before wanting to nurse again. He'll nurse for 10 minutes and fall asleep, then wake up just a few minutes later crying and rooting again. It seems like he would eat until his tummy was full, rather than falling asleep. I will give your suggestions a shot and hopefully after a few days, things will settle into a routine that I can get used to and we'll both be happy.

So it's possible to overfeed my baby if I'm giving him a bottle? I'd read that babies really won't eat if they're not hungry. He takes a pacifier, too, and when he just wants something to suckle on he refuses the bottle but will take the pacifier. I hope I haven't been overfeeding him! Also, while he is having plenty of wet diapers every day, his stools seem to have decreased to just one or two a day (when he used to have several). Is this normal for a one month old? Thanks again!

[StillSingingMom]

Oh, yes, it's not only possible to overfeed using a bottle, it's easy.

It's true that babies won't take in any more calories in a day than they need. But that's IN A DAY. It's pretty easy to overfill their little bellies using a bottle. Then, they aren't hungry for a loonnng time because they were overfull!

There's a huge range of normal pooping patterns for babies. What you are describing is a common pattern.

Nursing is a lot more effort than taking a bottle. Give him a chance and see how it goes. Use lots of lanolin, if that works for you; feel free to take ibuprofen if you are sore. Adjust his latch if you need to.

It gets easier, really it does. It is, in the end, easier than pumping, IMO, and easier than constantly worrying whether you can pump enough and whether baby is getting enough.

[crystal555rose]

Put in a lot of work now and you will reap the rewards in the future. Pumping and washing bottles gets old real fast- I quit pumping at a year but have continued to breastfeed until he quits (we are at 21 months).

Trust your body to give him exactly what he needs. My son nursed just as you described and he was a fat healthy baby. I wish you the best of luck!