Newborns and Feeding

I posted this in the May thread, but i thought i'd repost here for more exposure! I need some help girls!!!

We're having bad times here :( AGAIN ive been awake for 24hrs trying to get this wee bubba to sleep! I have a fantastic milk supply - yay! - but shes feeding so theres nothing left on either side and then wanting more straight away! shes not sleeping for longer than an hour at a time too. She's packed full of wind which i cant get up for the life of me and shes got the worst eggy farts ever and no frequent poo. Heaps of lovely wees however.
I'm actually really at a loss and I dont know what to do. I see my MW on monday - she's taken a well deserved weekend off! so i'll ask all about it then, but it's always nice to share here isnt it.
My diet is good too - I havent eaten anything that warrants her having a sore tummy. Not that she's displaying any signs of being like that anyway!

i'm so proud that i'm actually able to BF this time, my milk was in on day 3 which is so fantastic. I had nothing with Thomas so he was on formula by this time.

Also on a side note: im falling asleep when I'm feeding her and I gave myself the most god aweful scare this afternoon because I nearly dropped her on the floor. I actually screamed out loud but i caught her by the leg and thank god she was alright. Wasnt hurt or anything but I just keep thinking about what could have happened if i'd not realised what was happening and had dropped her on the floor. I was sitting on the side of the bed feeding too. Is it a normal thing to drop off when you're feeding hardcore? or is it just because I havent slept for more than 6 hours since she was born on tuesday. I actually have no idea how I'm still functioning. I've cut out all my caffiene and everything so nothing is helping to keep me awake.

So yea, HELP! lol

re the feeding i was the same..hence why i have tv on(lots of people dont agree with that) but i also never fed lying down for the same reasons..i was worried I would roll on him:(

Liam was the same and though my diet wasnt great..i think it was just the way he was in the beginning..it was really hard..he would be up for hours and feed all the time.. it only got easier once he was a bit bigger and winding was easier...for him lying him down for a second and pushing using hand like in a c and pushing gently..then sitting up and holding up by head and patting back worked..

hugs to you...i remember how hard it was..i still had caffeine etc cause there was no other way to stay awake lol:) hopefully she settles for you soon...once overtired it's so hard to get them back into normal sleep!

Re winding try lots of different positions and see what works for you, I find sometimes leaving them for a bit after they feed lying down then massaging their tummy gently then burping works.

With the farts this has happened to me recently, at first it was just farts then she got the runs and now it turns out I can't have cheese. Still looking into other dairy though.
I also found eating lots of vegies gave her gas.

Feeding lying down is great! I did it in the early days and was taught how at the hospital. Basically I lye on my side and stick my arm out straight in front of me and then bend at the elbow around the baby iygwim... However I have small boobies so we don't really feed like that anymore coz it's a bit hard!

If I feed in bed I get right in the middle, and sit up right.

I almost dropped Lily in the early days too, was so scary!!

You could try mandarins/oranges/juices to keep awake... I've never had much caffeine anyway apart from the odd coke now and then.

Are you able to ring the back up mw at all?

All the best!!

breasts are funny things, you may think they are empty but they arent...

sometimes if baby has wind they behave as if they are hungry too, so if it is wind then feeding more wont really help.

re the wind definitely give what nkap9 said a go about leaving them lying down for a bit - its something the baby whisperer recomends too. Also i found that just a change of position for bub could sometimes help or giving bub to my husband for a try.

if she is only five days old she is probably still working on getting your supply up and wont be pooing properly yet i wouldnt think. if your milk came in at day 3 then you are probably just getting rid of the meconium poos. BF babies dont always poo regularly.

Definitely dont feed sitting on the edge of anything, in the middle of the bed with lots of pillows for support or lying down with your arm out and bub in the crook of your shoulder if in your bedroom.

make sure you are drinking lots of water yourself and the odd cup of coffee wont hurt either.

I used to feed Isabella in bed or at the feeding chair or couch and I would often fall asleep for a few mins and wake uup with a huge fright, but I had the tri pillow wrapped round her and under my arm so she couldnt go anywhere, and she was always swaddled.

I could never master breastfeeding laying down, I would get sore arms a sore back and it was horrible on my C Section wound too.

Maybe she is drinking too much and too fast, hence the wind? and they can also think they are hungry when they have wind. id try some infacol or a teeny bit of gripe water, thats what we did and it worked well.

*hugs* You'll get there, and it will get easier :)

I used to get that chronic sleepiness when I first had Cooper too but it was only for the first little while so will be gone soon.   The middle of the bed sounds like a good option if laying down doesn't work for you, lots of people really like that position but apart from my first night in hospital I could never get it to work.

We used infacol and gripe water and also went to the baby osteopath and she worked at gently helping things along there. I don't know if it was timing or that but it was after 2-3 treatments things improved remarkably.

With the sleep side of things, have you tried a hammock? Are you swaddling her nice and tight? What about some white noise?

Does she sleep on you or not at all? Any signs of reflux? Maybe that's preventing her from sleeping?

Just a few random thoughts from me:

Cabbages, brocolli, cauli and beans of any kind - including baked beans, hummus etc - were horrible for wind (for H anyway. Chocolate and coffee never affected him. Go figure).

You could try eliminating dairy from your diet and see if that helps? Although will take a few weeks to make a diff so maybe not so helpful in the short term.

Does she take the dummy - as someone said, wind can make them act hungry so a dummy might help?

Infacol before feeds? Or the weleda colic powder?

swaddling is very important - it may seem like they dont like it but until their startle reflex is gone it is very helpful to stop them waking themselves. be careful of using the dummy when she actually needs to feed. they feed so much in the beginning because they need to get your supply up.

yep swaddling was really good, Bella hated being swaddled, but once she was she was much calmer and fed better and slept better etc as she didnt wake her self up with flaling arms.

I just had to be firm with her and swaddle fast! Id have to pin her arms down and wrap tight. I also double swaddled.
One to swaddle her arms down, so the sides tuck over her arms and under her back, and then a normal swaddle over top, worked a treat and was great as she was a winter baby too, so nice and warm.