any help with my baby girls feeding habits?

Question

My daughter is 9 weeks old and mum has been breast feeding but cant keep up now so we have to top her up with formula some times , sometimes it is easy to get her to take it and other times it can be a real nightmare and can be almost impossible to wind her any litlle tricks of the trade would be greatly appreciated as she is our first and we are still learning

Answer 1

Has mom tried getting breastfeeding help from a Lactation Consultant or a La Leche League Leader? A LLL Leader will help her for FREE.

When you say she "can't keep up" what exactly does that mean? It's totally normal for a baby this age to still be nursing about every 2 hours around the clock. Maybe one slightly longer stretch of sleep in there somewhere.

Or was baby not acting satisfied at the end of feedings? The more she nurses, the more milk she should make. It's all supply and demand. The links below will be helpful in learning ways to boost supply.

How is baby doing with weight gain? Is she meeting milestones? Is she having plenty of wet and dirty diapers?

Mom might read up on fenugreek and consider taking fenugreek supplements. Taking 3-4 capsules 3x per day helps most moms boost their supply. (But removing milk from the breasts frequently by either nursing or pumping is still key.) Some moms find that if they combine the fenugreek with blessed thistle they get even better results.

Eating oatmeal every day is something very simple she can do that many moms report helps their supply.

Answer 2

When a baby breast feeds a different 'sucking action' is required than when feeding from the teat of a bottle, so sometimes babies take a little time to adjust. It might help to use a soft spout instead of a teat, or try 'cup' feeding with a small sterilised cup; babies are able to 'lap' the milk like a cat would. Also, she may be less likely to take the formula milk from a bottle if she can smell her Mums milk, but mayl be more interested in feeding if some-one else is holding the bottle. Bottle fed babies do seem to be more 'windy' than breast fed babes; usually wind comes up fairly easily if you make sure baby is supported sitting upright with a straight back. If this doesn't work, you can try lying baby back down on your lap and then sitting her up again, this can help to release any air bubbles that may be trapped within the stomach.

Of course you may have already tried all of these things, but it is very distressing when your baby wont settle. It is a good sign if your baby is gaining weight and producing plenty of wet and dirty nappies, but you can talk to your health visitor if you still have concerns. Hope this helps.

Answer 3

the more often you give bottles the more her milk will go down. there are things to work on bringing her milk up, and bottles (unless pumped breastmilk ) should not be part of that.
i know you want advice on getting the baby to take a bottle, but i can't give that, i can give suggestions to increase milk though. for one, drink more water, a gallon a day, eat oatmeal, 2-3 times a day, milk thistle, theres a drug called domperidone that can help also, and some women have success with reglan.
nurse nurse nurse nurse, anytime babe wants to, don't give a dummy, let her suck on mom. there is something called a supplemental nursing system(SNS) two thin tubes that tape by moms nipples connected to a bottle with expressed milk or formula so that baby is getting something while sucking, and doesnt get frustrated. good luck

Answer 4

I can't express enough how great information from Le Leche League is!!! I read the book, The womanly art of breastfeeding, and it was great! you can get the book online or just about anywhere you get other baby stuff....

also, contact your local le leche league group! they can be an enourmous support system for you!

Good Luck!!!!

Source(s):

http://www.lalecheleague.org/