baby, you SUCK! (and that's an order)

If you read this blog regularly, you'll have picked up on the fact that when Little Man arrived we had major feeding issues.

I desperately wanted to breastfeed and Little Man would have none of it. We had one complication after another, until (when he'd lost MORE weight at 2 weeks even with 10 feedings a day) the doctor ordered supplementation with bottles.

I still wanted to avoid formula, so we got orthotic bottle nipples (thanks for the hint on that Lisa!!), and an electric double-sided pump.

Not to replace breast feeding mind you, just to add to it.

Until he got an incredibly nasty case of thrush. And passed it over to me.

With both of us on antifungals, the bottle just worked better. Safer. Quicker. Less painful. You get the idea.

So I worried that after 2 weeks of exclusive bottle feeding, he'd never go back. Until two days ago...

I figured it couldn't hurt to experiment right? Just see if he'd go back? Maybe even like it?

He latched like he'd never left. And like he'd actually been good at breastfeeding in the first place!

Now you'd think those early days of stressing never even happened.

© Sarah K. Asaftei, 2009 unless otherwise sourced. Use allowed by express written permission only.

(Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone.)

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on schedules and routines...

So far we know the Little Man likes a routine, since he responded well to me having one even before he was born. For the first couple weeks I've just monitored his natural rhythms.

Now I'm basing a parent-directed routine on those rhythms, and hoping I can stick to it. It's posted on the frig, loaded into my iPhone's daily calendar and everything. Of course that doesn't mean we won't ever deviate, but it gives us a general guideline.

Most of all, I want to make sure that he gets enough feedings a day, with enough time between eating for adequate waketime and naptime. And that he gets a chance to naturally regulate his metabolism by having a daily rhythm where things happen generally at the same time every day.

Yup, it's extra work right now, but I think it'll pay off. Will have to let you know in a few weeks on that!

© Sarah K. Asaftei, 2009 unless otherwise sourced. Use allowed by express written permission only.

(Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone.)

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things I learned from the lactation consultant...

1:: amniotic fluid has the same smell as your breastmilk

2:: nipple shields are the awesomest invention ever - first try and Little Man popped right on, no fuss

3:: I can do this breastfeeding thing - really I can

4:: Little Man has gained an ounce and a half since yesterday

5:: leaning forward and hunching over for the traditional feeding hold causes tension in the fourth vertebrae where all the nipple and milk gland nerves are located

6:: my instincts are good - most of the suggestions the consultant gave were things I was already trying to do

Copyright by Sarah K Asaftei, 2009 unless otherwise sourced. All rights reserved. Use by express written permission only.

(Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone.)

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