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Chex001 
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 Topic: Breastfeeding Help Please
Posted: 01 August 2010 at 6:22pm |
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Hi all need some advice please.
Having lota of issues with breastfeeding and the lastest one is my daughter doesnt seem to be able to get any milk off my left side. I know there is milk there cause if I hand express some comes out. Whenever she goes on that side she will suck for awhile and then start crying cause she is not getting anything and she hardly swallows. Any reason why this could be happening and how I can fix it??
I posted this in the breastfeeding topic but no replies. Need some help please cause as well as the above problem my supply is also crap and nothing I try seems to increase it. My daughter has been feeding constantly since 1am last night and im exhausted
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Posted: 01 August 2010 at 6:31pm |
DS doesn't like to feed off my right side and never relly has. Most of the time I feed him in the rugby hold, and that seems to trick him lol.
Not sure why he does that but DD used to do it with my left side.
For those times when he won't feed off it at all I just expressed off that boob
For the supply issues you can try just heading to bed and staying there for a day or two and just feed her as she wants it.
And I would also contact your local La Leche League, if you got ot their website they have a list of leaders numbers you can call and they can advise
Try to make sure you eat lots of protein and drink lots, Complan and or Tigers Milk can help as can anything with oats or brewers yeast ( which is GROSS but really works)  You can get brewers yeast from the supermarket but its gotta be the Brewers one not just normal yeast .
HTH and good luck
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HippyMama
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Posted: 01 August 2010 at 6:52pm |
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I second everything misscheeky has suggested, plus you might want to think about taking your wee girl to a good osteopath - I know some babies can be fussier on one side as they are uncomfortable / something is out of alignment.
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Mama to two earth walkers & two angels.
Remember, you are not managing an inconvenience; You are raising a human being. ~ Kittie Franz
Next Slingbabies! Meet - Friday 4th May !!
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Rovic
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Posted: 01 August 2010 at 7:56pm |
The other option can be feeding lying down. That way is a bit more relaxing for you if you are really tired. I know I fell asleep when feeding lying down on more than one occasion in the first month or so. My mum said with her, it was the only way she could drain one of her breasts. And second what HippyMama said about the osteo - DS was stiffer turning one way than the other and the osteo sorted him out in one session.
My supply has always been up and down - has been huge source of stress for me. However have stuck with it and in the last week or so has come right again. Am using some drops from a naturopath which are brilliant, as well as being on motilium aka domperidone. But as well as these things I think that my supply has settled and even if I don't feel like theres anything there, bubba gets a good feed.
Get your midwife to refer you to a lactation consultant. I so wish I had seen someone earlier as would have taken so much stress away and I could have spent more time enjoying my bubba. The woman I have been seeing has given me some really good evidence based information and has restored my confidence that I can do this.
It does get better and easier if you can stick with it! Good luck, and remember you are doing a great job 
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Chex001
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Posted: 01 August 2010 at 8:00pm |
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Thanks guys, I have been drinking tigers milk and eating lactation cookies and taking milk flow spray. I spent the day in bed with her today most of the time only problem is she latches even worse in bed. She got some realinment done when she was a couple of days old becase of her latching/sucking problems so not sure if that helped.
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Posted: 01 August 2010 at 8:42pm |
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I just had another thought, make sure you are doing lots of skin to skin, take everything but her nappy off and lay her on your naked chest. Also are you able to wear her ? You could borrow/make/buy a Moby/woven wrap and wear her. Slingbabies is great and you can borrow slings/carriers to try.
Having baby close helps promote milk production as well.
Edited by misscheeky
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Treen
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Posted: 01 August 2010 at 9:36pm |
Have you got a Plunket Family Centre near you? I've been having some major issues with breastfeeding - even my GP told me to stick bubs on formula. But after spending 2 days at Plunket (and this is after 3 months of issues and caving in to formula), we are back on track. 
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Nutella
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Posted: 01 August 2010 at 9:47pm |
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Not sure if this will help but what about massaging gently towards the nipple when she is feeding. This is supposed to help with clearing blocked ducts etc so must help the milk move about...
Could also try putting a warm compress on that boob before feeding on that side to help with milk flow?
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LeeBee
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Posted: 01 August 2010 at 10:00pm |
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I second going to a Plunket Karitane centre if there is one nearby - they are fantastic, also getting a lactation consultant involved would be good.
For supply issues try expressing milk immediately after every feed. I highly recommend hiring the Medela Lactina pump - lots of pharmacies have them but I got mine from Baby City. You would need to spend about $65 on the personal kit that you use with the hire pump - but I had one for 2 weeks and it made a huge difference to my supply.
Also, try drinking a nursing tea (Weleda?? is one brand I think), and Blessed Thistle - they were suggested to me by my lactation consultant.
I think someone suggested Domperidone? I have been on that since week 3 and it is what finally worked for me - but with luck you may not need that intervention.
For the latch problems all I can suggest is trying different positions, and maybe expressing a little before trying to latch bubs, just to get the flow started. My DD would fuss in the early days if it was taking her too long to get the flow started.
Has your daughter been checked for a tongue tie, as they can cause latching issues also, and if she is not sucking well then you will continue to have the supply troubles.
Best of luck!! I know how hard it can be to get BF working.
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nathansmummy
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Posted: 01 August 2010 at 10:01pm |
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Pop over to Plunket and see a Lactation Consultant there - I couldn't get my son to latch for the first month of his life but finally he was breastfeeding and he's been exclusively breastfed ever since!!! At this point, you need the practical help. I vouch for them. But if you wanted an alternative, you could try La Leche League.
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Rovic
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Posted: 01 August 2010 at 10:06pm |
I am taking Lacta drops that are made by a local naturopath. They are great! Check out any ones up there and see if they do anything. I think they are one of the reasons I have been able to cut out formula top ups this week. If you can't find any, pm me and I will check if they can be sent by post and send some to you - they usually have to be kept in the fridge.
ETA You can get the pump kits to go with the double pump on Trade Me. I got one on there for 1/2 the price of a new one and my MW said that would be fine once boiled for 20 minutes to sterilise.
Edited by Rovic
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Rovic
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Posted: 01 August 2010 at 10:19pm |
Me again . One of the girls in our April mummy thread has had a problem with feeding recently and her wee bubba has an ear infection. Could be somethiing to check out???
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crafty1
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Posted: 02 August 2010 at 11:27am |
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misscheeky - i would recommend that you get your mw to refer you to lactation consultant urgently. it's free if referred before 21 days post birth. get her advice and try all the great suggestions above. i know some ladies on here have had great success with increasing supply. but after 21 days you have to pay so worth being referred now.
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crafty1
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Posted: 02 August 2010 at 11:29am |
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sorry that was for original poster chex001 not miss cheeky. that's what ya get for bf and typing!
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chocol8
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Posted: 03 August 2010 at 2:26pm |
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Definitely talk to your Midwife as she should be able to help, or give Plunket a call as they will be able to give you practical help. I had a LC come round and spend about an hour with me and it didn't cost anything. Don't be afraid to ask, as they know so much and it's their job to help. Even give Plunketline a call if you need to - I've found them so helpful. Hang in there hun xx
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mammaE
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Posted: 03 August 2010 at 3:42pm |
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Deffinaty go see a lactation consultant as soon as possible. I didn't see one until DD was 6-7 weeks. It was great but I so wish I had gone earlier. By then I had already started with small formula topups on advise from Plunket as DD was losing weight and had to continue with them but I'm happy to say that with the support from the LC I kept BF and only stoped last week, DD is now 13 months.
Ideas for boosting milk supply:
-Blessed Thisstle and Fenugrek together, once milk supply is good drop the blessed thistle.
-Any kind of nuts (I ate loads of raw peanuts even in the middle of the night, had a bowel next to where I was feeding)
-Drink lots of water and breast feeding teas
-Always have a good breakfast
-Spirulina shakes or tablets
-Try to get some rest, have a nap when baby sleeps
-Express milk between feeds if you can but don't stress if you can't ( I found it better to have a rest instead)
-Milk flow spray or tablets.
Try not to stress (I know it's hard not to), your girl is ok as long as she has plenty of wet nappies. And remember you are doing a great job. And it does get easier!
Good luck!
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nathansmummy
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Posted: 03 August 2010 at 7:38pm |
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Yes - just to add my son had a tongue tie - which was not picked up by anybody but a lactation consultant and it needed to be cut before he could feed properly and then retrained how to suck etc. So I agree with everyone about the lactation consultant.
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Rovic
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Posted: 03 August 2010 at 7:44pm |
Ditto Nathansmummy. I was so frustrated by that point, as was he, that I burst into tears when the lc told me. But when we had it snipped was the start of everything getting on track for us. DS was about 2-3 weeks when that happened.
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mcshort
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Posted: 03 August 2010 at 9:55pm |
 LeeBee wrote:
I second going to a Plunket Karitane centre if there is one nearby - they are fantastic, also getting a lactation consultant involved would be good.
For supply issues try expressing milk immediately after every feed.
Also, try drinking a nursing tea (Weleda?? is one brand I think), and Blessed Thistle - they were suggested to me by my lactation consultant.
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Me too me too! I had help from a Karitane nurse, and a Breastfeeding lady from Mama-licious in Wellington, and just some good positive self-talk helped to relax me and help with things.
I also had Weleda and Artemis breastfeeding teas and they helped with supply.
Another thing that helped when things were tricky on one side, despite the 'juggle', was to express the less trusty side at the same time as feeding on the good side, and use that bottle for top-ups later. Expressing while feeding seems to make the let-down loads easier, as either the breastpump or the baby will make life easier for the otherm
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Chex001
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Posted: 03 August 2010 at 11:00pm |
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Thanks everyone for your replies.
Went to LLL on Monday and for the first time managed to get her latched on without a shield YAY. Still need to use a sheild on my left side at the moment though. Also I have changed her feeding position on the left side and that seems to have helped most feeds and she now swallows on that side.
Still working on re training her to latch properly. She sucks herself onto my nipple at the moment which hurts but is the only way she will get on there. I have discovered I have short nipples which is causing most of our problems
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Breastfeeding Help Please
Oct 11
