Struggling

My baby is 1week old. I am completely struggling with breast feeding. When she was delivered I got pretty much zero help from the hospital for BFing, had a student midwife who seemed to know as little as me about it.
My midwife who saw me the day after little one came home told me “keep trying or your milk will run out if you don’t” rather than showing me how to latch etc.
I then got recommended by a friend a lactation expert who I saw yesterday who got baby to latch yesterday and told me she had a tongue tie. We did a 2hour round trip to see someone she recommended to get it snip and baby was so strong getting it done.
Since then, I’ve not been able to get her to latch and it’s obviously my technique if the expert got her to yesterday. I’ve tried nipple shields which aren’t helping. I thought I would just try pumping and have just finished a pump there and it looks like my supply is getting much less.
I feel absolutely awful for making baby going through the tongue tie procedure for what seems to be nothing. I feel so guilty I don’t think I can continue with supplying breast milk. I’ve cried multiple times in the last couple of days just thinking about this all for the guilt and feeling like a failure.
Not sure why I’m writing this but I don’t know who to speak to about it. When I mention to family/husband I just keep getting told it’ll come/it’ll happen but it doesn’t feel like it and I don’t know whether to give up but just feeling like I can’t give my baby the best already

Read more on Peanut

The views expressed in community are solely the opinions of participants, and do not reflect those of Peanut.

Learn more about our guidelines.
Add a comment
Avatar

I've had an absolute nightmare establishing breastfeeding too, I relate to everything you've written!! We had a posterior tongue tie which was cut on Tuesday which I thought would fix everything but it's still really painful to breastfeed. I came home expecting to breastfeed but when it hurt again I was devastated.
We were recommended to see an osteopath who taught us so much. He said that although our baby's tongue tie had been cut, she needs time to learn how to feed differently as she'll be adjusting to her tongue's new position. Our baby was also a Ventouse delivery which I didn't know but apparently causes loads of tension in her jaw which can make breastfeeding very painful. We're seeing the osteopath over the next two weeks and hopefully we'll finally get somewhere.
I'm currently expressing and giving via bottles which has been really hard for me, I've cried every day and I'm so worried that she'll start to prefer the bottle to me.

Avatar

Where are you based? My local council provided really helpful support for bf and also drop in sessions. Maybe you have similar where you are? For your supply you will have to pump 8 times a day to make sure you signal to your body to produce the right amount of milk. If you do that you can take time to get to the latch sorted pls don’t fret. It’s normal for it to take a while to figure it out for both you and your baby. The supply is the time sensitive thing and also making sure baby is fed. If you’re introducing a bottle then look up paced feeding and use extra slow flow teets, I recommend getting MAM 0 teets

Avatar

I have enormous feelings of guilt too which I know are irrational but I can't help it. Have you looked up tips on how to improve your milk supply? Make sure you're eating and drinking really well and make sure to express between 1-5 overnight as this is when your hormones are the highest!
If you feel ready to give up then it's absolutely fine to do so, but if you don't feel ready keep persevering and seek further help, there's a very very strong chance you'll get there. Xxx

Avatar

I’m sorry things haven’t been easy, it sounds like you’re doing a great job so far!
Breastfeeding is really hard, despite being ‘the most natural thing in the world’. Do you have a local breastfeeding group that you can get to? A quick Facebook search might help if you haven’t already looked into it
The lactation expert would have managed to latch baby with the tongue tie, as that’s now been sorted your baby will need to learn how to feed again - it could be worth getting back in touch with them to see if they can come out to see you?
With my first I decided to stop trying to BF about a week and a half into it, I really didn’t want to but the relief I felt when the decision was made and he was happy and healthy on formula meant it didn’t matter in the end anyway!
I hope things improve for you either way so that you and your little one can thrive together🥰

Avatar

https://laleche.org.uk/positioning-attachment/

Try here for help, nipple shields are great if your nipples are unbearably sore but do nothing but worsen latch as they only allow baby to leave the nipple not part boob aswell. Midwives are unfortunately not trained in breastfeeding or checking tongue tie. Your HV is, so contact them asap and they have to come and help/show you. Just remember it's hard, so many mums have issues but seeking help can resolve them making it a magical experience

Avatar

Try the national breastfeeding helpline 0300 100 0212 they available 24 hours a day, not sure where you're based but there's also the home start support groups its all free and they can come to your home to go through any concerns you have they may do things like this is in your area too? there's also usually breastfeeding support groups in places like the childrens centre you could look into, your baby won't need a lot a this stage as they still only have tiny stomachs so try not to worry about pruducing loads at this stage either just keep offering them the breast and it will get easier in time

Read more on Peanut

Trending

in our community

Hour night wakes and 5am get up

Can anyone shed some light as to why on earth my child doesn’t want to sleep??? My eyeballs are bleeding!!

Never been a good sleeper, but the problems always changing. He’s nearly 9 months old.

Beginning of the month he dropped to 2 naps. We could put him to bed at 7pm and he’d get up for the day at 6am, with multiple wake ups every 2/3 hours.

Now we put him down at 7pm, he can do a good 4/5 hour stretch, but come 1/2am he’s up every hour then getting up for the day at 5am. This then completely messes up the day because I can’t keep him awake long enough to even get to 7pm, let alone later.

He has 2 naps, roughly about 1hr10 each but it changed based on when he wakes and trying to get him to a reasonable bed time.

What could be the reason for this? 6am is fine, but 5am is not 😩😩

Avatar

1

6

AITA

In the uk there is an outbreak of meningitis, in a specific area mainly. My BD has family from that area and decided to go and meet up with them, I said if he does then he cannot have contact with the kids for 7-10 days after incase he picks anything up. Am I being over dramatic? I reallyyy don’t want my young kids getting anything serious

Avatar

21

I think its fair

Me and my partner agreed to sleep in 1 day of the weekend.
He doesn't find it fair to look after both kids (my 4 year old isnt his) while i sleep so he looks after the baby while i sleep and my toddlers at his dads and ill look after both the next day.
Straightaway it was pretty unfair as i let him sleep in until he wakes up 10-12
He wakes me up when baby starts fussing because he wants milk (doesnt need it)
I cant pump as i dont supply enough.
So i get woken at 9/9:30 to feed baby then i get him sleep then theres no point sleeping in as my toddlers being dropped off.
I also find it unfair that i get both kids to sleep most night, i get my toddler to sleep everyday hes home (4/5days) and i get my baby to sleep most nights with the exception of maybe twice a month as his dad struggless then about 95% of his thru the day naps.
I have also been unwell for a few months (tumor scare) and am waiting 18 weeks to see a specialist so im obviously petrified for that, so unbelievably tired and alot of aches and pains, specifically these pounding headaches ive been having.
After i had been up til 11:30 getting both kids to sleep lastnight and my partner falling asleep at 10 then him ignoring the baby cries all morning until my toddler woke up im fed up slammed to door and rold him not to expect to sleep in unless he gets the baby to sleep the night b4.
I keep having issues with him not feeling the wet from baby being sick or weeing himself or being able to smell it do about 98% of the time hes given to me i have to clean him up n change him.
Including at night, we agreed my partner would change nappies (1 a night at 5am) while i feed (2,4,5,6:30) but every night when i get him hes pissed through and my partner gets annoyed when i wake him up n moan about it.
Then the morning after hes annoyed at how much washing there is (thats his job) and moans about how often i change myself (baby constantly shits thru and sicks on me) and baby
Honestly im just so tired all the time

Avatar

8

Over supply of milk

I am nearly 5weeks postpartum and I have such a big over supply of BM.
Has anyone donated / sold their supply, if so where do you recommend for this?

Avatar

7

Crawling and walking

So my girl is 9 months now and shes great at sitting up and stays on her tummy for awhile but she seems to have no interest in trying to move or crawl or bum shuffle. Shes a big baby always has been but I'm disabled and I feel like it's my fault she's not hitting milestones I feel like there's something I'm not doing and it's making me a bad mum

Avatar

4

Night feeding in sleeping bag

Do you guys keep your baby in their sleeping bag when you feed them in the night, or do you take it off? I take it off as don’t want him to be too hot but then sometimes when he’s sleepy after his feed and I go to put it back on him he wakes up and is fussy. Not sure if I should just keep him in it?

Avatar

5

Read more on Peanut