I can't breastfeed my baby on breast?

Question

Its the hardest part of motherhood till now but I'm not able to breastfeed my 10 days old son on the breast. He is not latching on. Whenever I take him for nursing ... he simply starts screaming and eventually we have to offer him bottle ( cup is not working too. Since he wants that 'sucking' thing and keeps crying all day ) I'm expressing milk as much I can but I know that this is extremely tiresome for me and I have to use at least some formula through the day.
What should I do ???
I've talked to lactation consultants. My son has no physical problem at all. Its just that he's lazy and fussy. I've tried using shield, diff. positions ... nothing is working. And I can't see my son crying vigorously.
Please help.
Helpless mom.

Answer 1

First of all, you've got to decide if you're going to breast-feed or do the bottle. In my personal experience, it's difficult to do both with a newborn. My 1st baby was preemie and in a hospital an hour away from my home for a month. I pumped and processed and transported breast milk over there the whole time. When we brought him home, I tried to breast-feed and supplement with bottles, but when I took him back for a check-up they said the poor thing was 'bout to starve to death.
Also, your body doesn't produce as much milk when you are nursing that breast pump as it would a living child. It's a miraculous but complex physiological interaction.
If you can't breast-feed, don't feel like a failure or feel guilty. Yes, breast is best but not at the expense of your child's health and your sanity.
Call your local health department right now. They should have lactation specialists who can see you immediately and help you out. [And it's free.]
Hang in there, girl. It does get better. A little bit, anyway.

Answer 2

My oldest daughter is now nearly 28 years old and has a newborn son of her own, but I remember like it was yesterday the frustration of breast feeding her in those early weeks of being a first-time mom. She was a very sleepy baby and I had to practically feed her naked so she'd stay awake long enough. Then when she was good and crying, I couldn't get her to latch on. I was always too engorged for her tiny mouth, so I learned to express some milk out first before trying to nurse her. I tried every hold suggested by the lactation consultant (who made 3 visits to my home to help me). It took me 6 weeks before I felt like both she and I finally knew what we were doing. My newborn grandson is giving his mom the same run for her money that she gave me. He is now 4 1/2 weeks old and just last week began to nurse pretty well. Something they learned from a nurse in the hospital that worked for them was this: You'll need an extra set of hands for this. You get baby positioned the way that is most comfortable. While you try to get the baby to latch on, another person (your husband, mom, good friend, etc.) stands by ready with a bottle with a little expressed breast milk or formula in it. As the baby's mouth is wide open and ready, they squirt/drip a little from the bottle down your breast onto your nipple so it drips into his mouth. This gives your baby some instant milk to drink and helps him to latch on to get more. The nurse said it helps him to know what it is he is there for. It is a time consuming process and we worked on it for several days at every feeding before we began to notice that it took fewer and fewer squirts to get him to latch on. There were a lot of tears, the baby's, my daughter's, mine, my son-in-law's, but we got through it. He had some bottles of both breast milk and formula throughout the process and that is OK. Sometimes she was just too exhausted to do it anymore. My daughter found that skin to skin worked really well - she'd take off all but his diaper and bare her tummy so that they were skin to skin. He liked it, it calmed him considerably. He is a snuggler and she still finds him falling asleep before a feeding time should be done. If the lactation consultanat has not come to your home to help you, ask if she will. It helps a lot to have someone show you and not just tell you how to do it. I know you feel tired and frustrated, but keep trying and it will happen for you and your baby. You need some support to be there with you. If you have a La Leche League in your area, they may also be helpful and they will send someone to your home. No matter what happens, you are trying your best and your baby will be OK with either breast feeding or formula feeding.

Answer 3

I think you should continue pumping your milk so that you can continue to give your baby the best nutrients possible! But make sure you have a good quality electric pump.

Pumping is exhausting sometimes and gets to be quite annoying, but it is worth the effort! Breastfeeding in general is worth all the hard work, so don't give up.

If you let yourself get so tired that you crash and burn with the pumping, then your baby will be 100% on formula, and that doesn't sound like what you want.

So, try supplementing your baby with formula occasionally (1-2 times every 24 hours) and if that helps you relax, take a break, get rest, and do a better job of pumping throughout the rest of the day - then it is totally worth it, because it will allow you to continue your pumping (breastfeeding) schedule for a much longer time.

You have to do what works for you, but I think there are plenty of options to choose from, rather than giving up and going to 100% formula. Good luck!

Answer 4

try to get a breastfeeding close friend to come help you get him latched on. Call a consultant to actually come help you get him latched on.

I remember with my first child having those same frustrations.

Make sure your boob isn't too full, pump a little before it's time to feed so that it's not rock hard and he can taste the milk on the nipple.

Hold your boob in one hand and hold his peanut screaming head in the other hand and when he's screaming, push him forward onto your nipple making sure to get as much of the outer nipple area in his mouth as possible.

Try and try and try. I would try for a solid 10 minutes. You will be frustrated and so is he, but you can work it out. I believe you can.

If you don't want to breastfeed then give him formula in a bottle, but I would not continue to do a bottle if you want him to nurse b/c a bottle is easier for him and he may think he prefers it.

Answer 5

Buy a hospital grade pump and just pump. It's still cheaper than formula and at least you'll know that you are giving him breastmilk.
I don't say give up, but no one can force you.
Just remember that the first two weeks are the hardest, so keep trying trying trying until at least then OK? Try another lactation consultant.
The biggest piece of advice I can give you is try to feed him BEFORE he starts crying--crying is a LATE sign of hunger. He may be more willing to work with you.
Very, very few babies are not able to nurse at all.

Answer 6

I had the exact same problem with my daughter, and feeding became such an awful experience instead of a bonding time. Sometimes it take a little while for a baby to learn how to latch on, but if you hold your breast a certain way, it's easier for them to latch on. I promise! Look through baby books and magazines for the positioning of your hand, and try both breasts. My daughter would only take the right nipple. Still don't know why. Good luck to you both!

Answer 7

The baby has nipple confusion. This happen to me when my daughter was a week old. My breast hurt so bad I gave a bottle to supplement and she liked it. I still wanted to breastfeed, I spoke to my lactation counselor and she said offer baby breast when she's not hungry. She latched back on. Its been 21/2 months now. We are both happy.

Answer 8

If you want to make the breastfeeding work, stop giving him a bottle immediately! He will further more become lazy because the bottle is so much easier. Does the baby seem in pain, and maybe that's why he initially stopped wanting to eat? Try deleting things from your diet to see what is addefting him. Start with all dairy and dairy by-products, beans, brocolli, and whatever else you feel could possibly be the culprit. Lay down with him in your bed with no one else around and have sim suckle himself to sleep. That'll help with the sucking that he so desperately wants. You say you've talked to them, does that mean you also went in to physically get hands-on help? I wish you the best of luck!!

Answer 9

Not breast feeding your baby is not the worst thing in the world.
However, try again in a few days after he has gotten used to being full and happy from the bottle. He is young and just may need to mature into latching on to the breast.

Answer 10

i had the same trouble trying to breastfeed my son. I had difficulty latching him on and i wasnt producing enough formula. Have a consultant come to your home ( catholic charities in most communities have licenced concsultants that come to your home). They have a tube you can supplement formula in while you breastfeed if your are not producing, and it helps train the baby to latch on. Remember they dont know their job either. Keep trying and remember ur not alone.