Breastfeeding baby?

Question

How long does it take to learn how to breastfeed?

Im scared to start because how do i know how much the baby got, and what if the baby gets to hungry and isn't really eating i mean how do you tell?

Answer 1

www.lalecheleague.org this site will answer all your questions.

Answer 2

Breastfeed as soon as possible after baby is born. Within the first hour at the latest. Immediately is better. A healthy full term infant will latch on with little problems nearly instantly after birth. The baby will nurse until he/she is satisfied. The first couple weeks will be rough and baby will want to nurse alot. It gets easier, hang in there! If baby is gaining weight and having normal wet diapers and stools, everything is fine.

Answer 3

The baby will eat when hungry. The baby will eat as much as he needs to to fill his belly.

Regular doctors' appointments to check for jaundice and weight gain will make sure he is doing well. Also, your baby would be miserable if he was starving.

Immeadiately following his birth ( I mean within minutes) you could have him latched onto your breast. Sometimes the first feeding can take a few days. My daughter was born at 12pm on a Saturday and didn't officially nurse until sunday at 10pm.

I had my mother who is a lactation consultant and a midwife, along with a mother of 3 and we couldn't get her to stay awake long enough to nurse!
But since I was confident that she wasn't really hungry yet (not crying at all, just sleeping) and I had wonderful support, I didn't reach for a bottle of formula and it worked out fine.

But, there are alot of people who don't have that support, instead that have mother in laws who sneak formula to their child when mom is taking a nap. Thus, ruining breastfeeding for mom. They have doctors that scare new moms into thinking that they aren't doing the best thing for their baby by breastfeeding, since you can't tell for sure that the baby drank 4 ounces....

But if you are confident in yourself and have a good support system (mother in law, mom, husband, lactation consultant, midwife) you can do it.

It takes some time to get it completely down. It varies from mom to mom, but generally it will take 1 full day to get comfortable and then about 2 weeks after that to be great at it.

Also, as soon as it hurts, even a little bit, take the baby off and re-latch. If you don't you will end up with scabs on your nipples (fine for baby, bad for you!) and it will hurt very badly to nurse.

Good luck!
Also:
www.llli.org la leche league international website....where moms in your area can come to your house if you need help.

Answer 4

Breast feeding is a great experience.

You'll know baby has had enough because she or he
will sleep and be content. You'll also feel the let down
of milk and know your milk is flowing plentifully.

I found that about every six weeks baby needed more - I take it that's when they have growth spurts. So you rest up a bit for a day and feed them a bit more often. More frequent breast feeding increases the supply. Your production adjusts to baby's needs.

Also feed a little more often or give a teaspoon of water between feeds when the weather is very hot.

It's all well worth it because the milk is hygenic; healthy, perfectly suited; extremely economical (price formulas to get an idea) and it's a lovely closeness to share with your baby.

My gran advised never to feed closer than 3 hours or further apart than 5. I found that very sound advice and had no problems at all.

I hope you choose to breast feed; I am sure you won't regret it.

Best of luck with it.

Answer 5

It's different for everyone. The piece of information that helped me the most was this: Women in non-developed parts of the world do not worry about how much milk their babies receive. They do not feed by the clock. They do not have their babies weighed every few weeks. They carry their babies close to their breasts (using various types of slings) and they respond to every whimper, startle and lip-smack by offering the breast.

If you offer the breast every time your baby stirs, you can be sure that you will have plenty of milk, baby will get enough milk and the chances of colic will be greatly diminished. This is how infants were cared for for thousands of years, so regardless of what anyone says to the contrary, it works!

I take issue with those who say "feed every three hours." That's what I call "bottle mentality." Some people think that breasts need time to fill up before baby can feed. That's silly. Your breasts are never empty because milk is always being produced. Breasts are not flesh-covered bottles. My grandma told me that too, and she also told me to sterilize my nipples with alcohol before every feed! Ouch!

You will know if your baby is actually eating properly because you will come to know the feeling of a proper latch. In the beginning, learn to watch the baby. Watch for wiggling ears, wide open mouth and listen for gulping and swallowing sounds. You will probably feel your milk let down, too.

After a few weeks (or months), your milk supply will balance out. Don't mistake this for losing your milk. It will still be there, but you may not feel engorgement, leaking or letdown. Totally normal, but many women lose confidence at this stage.

I'll leave you some great internet resources for breastfeeding.

A few more thoughts: Some people say that learning to latch on is easy for baby, some say it's difficult. One thing you can do to give your baby a head start in learning how to breastfeed is refuse pain medication during labor. If you need it, then accept it, but try not to use it until you really need it. If you're like me, you won't need it until it's too late anyway! Maybe you don't need to know that . . . anyway, unmedicated babies are more likely to know how to latch on naturally. If you have pain meds, you can still breastfeed. I'ts just easier to use natural childbirth methods, in my experience. I've done it both ways, and I would never choose an epidural again. (I sense some thumbs-down comin' my way!)

Another idea: A support system is essential. Gather your biggest fans and let them know that formula is not an option for you. If they can't support you in breastfeeding, they can visit with you after breastfeeding is well established. Lactation consultants are very important members of your support network, as well as experineced family members and neighbors.

You can do it, and you can do it successfully! This time next year you will have a chubby breastfed baby crawling around! Keep that picture in your mind for encouragement! I believe in you.

Answer 6

It takes about 10 minutes on each side every 3 hours. The 3 hours starts at the beginning of each feeding to the beginning of the next. In the beginning the time put in is the easy part its keeping the little angel awake through the feeding that's hard.
The hospital is there to help you. Take advantage of the nursing staff's offers to help and ask any question you have while they are there. Nurses are glad to answer questions! Congrats on the baby!

Answer 7

This is a concern for many breastfeeding mothers. I assure you, your baby will do fine. At first, the baby will not get much because your milk will come in about 2 to 4 days after you deliver. This is the time to nurse your baby so he recieves colostrum and learns how to latch on. Later, when your milk comes in, you will hear him drinking and swallowing, plus, sometimes, you can see the milk in his mouth. This is an awesome way to feed your child. No bottles, no formula, it is conveinant, easy and on the go. Consult the La Leche League or someone with experience breastfeeding to help you out. Feel free to email me if you have further questions.

Answer 8

You should get help from the nurses at the hospital or call your local la leche league. They can help with all your questions.
Your baby will eat till he/she is satisfied. And if he/she is still hungry, you will know. The baby will cry or be very fussy.
I am very happy that I breastfed both of my kids. There are too many pros not to try.

Answer 9

Breastfeeding is really easy on you and the baby. In the middle of the night you do not need to get up and make any bottles. You can lay your baby in bed with you, let them nurse and you can go back to sleep. My first ate non-stop but that was because I was not producing enough milk for him. I increased my water consumption and voila! More milk was produced. Also, it is really good for your baby to get the colostrum that you produce first. That is full of mothers antibodies and will help your baby from getting sick very often. My kids didn't get sick until I quit nursing. Also, the weight comes off of you so quick when you nurse because nursing helps your uterus shrink back fast and you burn lots of calories producing milk. I would highly reccomend breastfeeding. Just use Lanolin cream on your nipples from day one and that will help with chapping and soreness.

Answer 10

It is a very challenging thing to get the baby to latch on initially. Both of you will have to learn how to do it together, but don't wait! Do it as soon as possible after the baby is born, and get a lactation specialist to help while you are at the hospital.

Answer 11

Good for you for wanting to give your baby the best possible start. Believe it or not it isn't that difficult and if you feed on demand your baby will always get what it needs.

Check this #1 site out for breastfeeding and you'll get all the help and support you need to get you started:

http://www.breastfeeding.com/


All the best Jasmine