Please help with breastfeeding?

Question

My baby is 9 days old and I'm having a hard time with her emptying my breast causing severe engorgement. I have so much milk that she can only nurse on 1 breast at a time before she starts choking and throwing up. When she does nurse its anywhere from 5 to 20 minutes and I have to wake her up to eat. I try to feed her every 2-3 hours but because she gets to full sometimes she will go 6 or 7 hours without eating. We even had to take her to emergency over the weekend because it was taking her so long in between feeds. They said everything is perfect. What do I do if she is only taking 1 breast at a time and going almost 6 hours in between feeds? Please help. My boobs hurt.

Answer 1

Try expressing the milk after she has had her feed, that will help the engorgment & if she aint feeding much then it will help keep your milk flow good.
Babies are supposed to feed every 3hours. Try cutting her feeds short & she will gradually have a feeding routine.
Please do not worry because every baby is different & you were right to take her to the doctors. If she is growing well & looking well then she is getting enough food. If you are at all worried speak with your midwife or health visitor.

Answer 2

Your body will eventually figure out exactly how much milk your baby needs. At the beginning it produces extra milk to make sure that the baby is being fed enough, but eventually it will figure out how much is too much and slow down. Do not use a breast pump because while it will feel good at the time to release the pressure, your body will think the baby needs this milk and will continue to produce it. Try taking a hot shower, it will reduce some of the pressure and your body will know its not for the baby-- so it won't continue to produce milk.

I have a 10 month old and when I first brought her home, my breasts were so engorged that I could barely stand for her to eat. I know the doctors say "try to do 20 minutes on each side," but I would do about 5 minutes and switch because I knew my baby would quit eating before I was actually ready to switch...(and then one breast would be really engorged still..) It was really painful and hard to go out in public because of constant leaking but about 4-5 weeks after she was born, my body and her were working together and I am still breastfeeding today. TRUST ME your body will figure it out. Do NOT pump because that will just tell your body you need more milk than you do and your breasts will continue to be engorged... i went through many days where i was waking her up to eat b/c she wasn't hungry yet and many nights where i woke up and everything was wet around me.. so just wait it out, it will be better soon!

Answer 3

Your breasts work on the supply & demand process, but since your daughter is only 9 days old, your breasts haven't had enough time to establish a pattern. You need to pump when she is finished nurisng. You can store breastmilk in the refridgerator for up to 48 hours, in the freezer for 2 months and in a deep freeze for up to 6 months. This might come in handy down the road if you ever need to stop nursing early, or just want to go out for an evening and need some milk for the babysitter to feed your daughter.

Don't worry about how much she spits up. You'd be surprised how much just a 1/2 oz. of milk looks spread out over you or your baby. The reason your baby needs to nurse every 2-3 hours at this age is because breastmilk breaks down a lot faster than formula. It can be hard getting those little ones to wake up, but you need to try.

Also, after you are done nursing/pumping, you can put cold packs on your breasts to help the swelling. A trick the lactation specialist told me is to cut slits in the inside lining of two disposable diapers, put ice inside them and place the diapers on your breasts. As the ice melts, the diaper will absorb the water. Check the hospital where you gave birth and see if they have a lactation specialist on hand. I took a breastfeeding class at my hospital, so I was able to get assistance from the lactation specialist both after I gave birth and after I came home from the hospital. Good luck!

Answer 4

If you pump it is just going to keep the milk coming because you are telling your body that you need all the milk by releasing it. It will take a week or two and it should start to balance out the the babies demands. I know it hurts like hell but just wait it out, I promise it will get better. Use a heating pad and let them sit under the hot shower for about five minutes it will help a little, you can also take tylenol, it won't harm the baby. Wear a tight fitting bra and try to switch breast when feeding. You know about how long she eats so stop her in the middle and try to switch. If that doesn't work for you then just start with the other breast for the next feeding.

Answer 5

When you say she is going 6 hours between feeds, what exactly do you mean? Is she falling asleep for that long or is she awake but refusing to nurse?

If she is asleep, wake her up after 2 hours. At this early age, she needs to be nursing frequently around the clock, at least 12 times per day. Her tummy is only the size of a walnut/her fist and breastmilk digests in 90 minutes.

To wake her, you can try cool wet wash cloths, changing her diaper, removing her clothes, tickling her feet, doing gentle "baby sit ups" with her in your lap, moving her arms and legs around, etc. If she is falling asleep quickly while nursing, try removing her clothes and keeping the lights dim. If she is warm of the lighting is bright, she'll be more likely to go to sleep.

Have you seen a Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) or a La Leche League Leader? Get some help from an IBCLC or a LLL Leader so that you have someone who can see you in person and help you figure out what is going on and work on getting her to wake up and eat.

You can pump between feedings if you need to in order to make yourself more comfortable.

If your letdown is too strong for her, you can take her off the breast for a minute and catch some of the milk in a burp cloth. (When she starts the choking while nursing stuff.)

EDITED TO ADD:
BTW...don't treat engorgement with heat! Heat increases circulation to the area and is good prior to nursing, but NOT between nursing sessions. Between sessions you want to use COLD compresses, just like with any other part of your body that is swollen! Bags of frozen peas work really well.
http://www.kellymom.com/bf/concerns/mom/engorgement.html

Answer 6

Buy a breast pump! Best thing I've ever done. You can also hire them from some pharmacies. Express before you feed her so she doesn't choke on the initial fast flow, and if you still feel full after she is finished, express the rest. Don't worry about her going longer than usual between feeds, as long as she is putting on weight she is fine. My daughter often wants a feed every hour, count yourself lucky!

Answer 7

You will need to either manually pump out some milk with your hands or use a pump. Right now your body makes more milk than needed since your body and baby are both new to nursing. If you use two finger on bottom behind nipple on the dark area and thumb on top and roll them towards your nipple this will make the milk come out. It takes a while to get used to but it will work. I would allow the baby to eat for 10m on one side then however long the baby wanted to on the other side. Baby will gradually start feeding closer, but right now is hard work. Babies are not used to using their muscles to eat. They used to get fed and not have to do anything for it. The baby will come around and so will you mom. Just give it some time.

Answer 8

Get a good breatpump and pump out enough milk to ease the engorgement. The less you nurse or pump, the less milk your breasts will produce, and vice-versa. It's unusual, but not unheard of, for a newborn to sleep so long. Make an appointment with your pediatrician for a check-up, and if everything is fine, all you need to do is pump and store the extra milk. Your baby will eat more as she gets older, and frozen breastmilk will last 6 months.

Answer 9

when your milk first comes in there is usually more than baby needs. in time this will level out and you will make what is needed. try to switch her after 10 minutes on one breast. also a hot shower will help with the pressure. New babies sleep a lot and it is not uncommon for them to go 6 hours or so without eating. I know it is hard but you want your baby to have the best so keep at it.

Answer 10

I have a 15mnth old and he was my first baby to breastfeed and the first couple of weeks it was so terrible that i just wanted to give up. he would either go for hrs without nursing or hrs with wanting to nurse every 10 to 15 min and my breast would bleed and swell because he had a favorite to and the only thing that helped was even though it hurt so bad i just kept nursing on the one that was sore and before i knew it (about three to four weeks) it was all better and sticking it out is the best thing you can do for you and your little one. GOOD LUCK!!