Breastfeeding problems.. I dread every feed
My baby is just over 3 months old and I have been breastfeeding from the beginning, and in the last month have also had to pump and give him the breastmilk from the bottle sometimes.
There are days where he will not have ONE feed from the breast... he arches his back, screams, flails arms, turns head, refuses to latch on, or sometimes will latch on and then stop after a minute and refuse to go back on.
Initially, like most people, I found breastfeeding difficult but after the first 3 weeks it was going really well. Then when he was around 6 weeks old things went downhill from there.
I have tried swaddling him, picking him up, burping him, rocking him, gentle shushing, giving him to is dad for a break then trying again, putting him to bed then trying him again either after a few minutes or after he wakes up, giving him a bottle then trying to swap it for the breast. I sometimes spend over 2 hours trying and trying, for nothing. I even tried going without the pump for a day but the only outcome was that he got hardly any food and was then up all night trying to feed.
Most of the time nothing works. I have actually been so persistent and if I didn't really want him to be breastfed I would have given up a long time ago. Its really hard and frustrating.
I hated myself when i first pumped and gave him a bottle. I felt so guilty and I cried. There is so much pressure to breastfeed and even giving him breastmilk didn't seem right with a bottle.
I haven't really had any choice so I've used the bottle a fair bit lately.
He will usually breastfeed for his midnight feed but all the other feeds are a huge challenge.
I want him to exclusively breastfeed but he won't
Does anyone have any suggestions?
There are days where he will not have ONE feed from the breast... he arches his back, screams, flails arms, turns head, refuses to latch on, or sometimes will latch on and then stop after a minute and refuse to go back on.
Initially, like most people, I found breastfeeding difficult but after the first 3 weeks it was going really well. Then when he was around 6 weeks old things went downhill from there.
I have tried swaddling him, picking him up, burping him, rocking him, gentle shushing, giving him to is dad for a break then trying again, putting him to bed then trying him again either after a few minutes or after he wakes up, giving him a bottle then trying to swap it for the breast. I sometimes spend over 2 hours trying and trying, for nothing. I even tried going without the pump for a day but the only outcome was that he got hardly any food and was then up all night trying to feed.
Most of the time nothing works. I have actually been so persistent and if I didn't really want him to be breastfed I would have given up a long time ago. Its really hard and frustrating.
I hated myself when i first pumped and gave him a bottle. I felt so guilty and I cried. There is so much pressure to breastfeed and even giving him breastmilk didn't seem right with a bottle.
I haven't really had any choice so I've used the bottle a fair bit lately.
He will usually breastfeed for his midnight feed but all the other feeds are a huge challenge.
I want him to exclusively breastfeed but he won't
Does anyone have any suggestions?
Comments
@amab13 thanks, i do have a nipple shield, i tried it a few times but still the same result
i'm wondering if maybe its some sort of colic or whatever, because as soon as you lay him down he screams.. i think its the position but i can't get him to breastfeed in other positions either, however he will take a bottle if he is propped up
i agree, i will probably just have to continue pumping.. i know it sounds bad but i can't wait til i finish all of this and he can just eat solids
This page has lots of great information
@mommyfor3 nope i haven't, i'm going to take him to the doctor tomorrow to rule out an ear infection or something and if he is fine then i will try a lactation consultant
@Alwayzbeenurz2008 nipple shields are like a teat thing that you put over your nipple to help your baby to latch if your nipple is too small or sore or something. but i heard babies can get used to them and refuse to feed without them which can be annoying
@ta2edblondie i live in australia and la leche league seems to only be in parts of aus that are not near me! lol but thanks
@firstTimeMommy0928 i haven't heard of that, maybe i will try that too! thanks
@Proudmommy8789 he has been doing it for about a month and a half i think.. but like it gets worse some days and better on others. thanks for that link, i found it really helpful!!