OUR BREASTFEEDING JOURNEY | poor latch, a&e, honest difficult journey!
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- čas přidán 18. 02. 2023
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Well done Amber you breast fed your baby boy for 4 months and it's a great achievement, keep enjoying your baby it passes to quickly 💙 xxx
Thank you xx
You’re so right, it is SO hard and there’s not enough support for us mamas!! but you’ve done AMAZING! It’s so easy to throw the towel in but you really have done so well!! It took us 5 weeks to settle down.. we’ve had so many issues too but we’re almost 9 weeks in of EBF and doing ok apart from the blocked duct that developed overnight 🙄
Xx
Ooooh blocked ducts are nasty! I had one at around 9 weeks too, horrible things. Hope it goes soon as doesn’t turn into mastitis for you xxx
@@AmberIzzo oh gosh we’ve already been there 3 weeks ago with 10 days of fluclox 🤦🏻♀️🤦🏻♀️
Well done Mumma! You have been through so much and done EVERYTHING you could for your beautiful little boy. Nipple shields really helped me with breastfeeding both my boys. It's such a hard thing to do, both physically and emotionally. My 3 week old was refusing the boob at the weekend and I got so upset by it. It hard to not get offended when they don't want the boob. It's okay to feel that way. But know your body did NOT fail you. Breastfeeding is a two person activity, and it has to work for both of you. Thank you for sharing your story it will so many others. Xx
Thank you so much xxx
It’s so so hard.. and the fact that you don’t really know what to do, what’s best, all the contradictory advice, the fear that your child is not getting enough nutrition.. as a first time mum it’s just crazy hard. We struggled with feeding for months as well, and the first weeks were mental, the feeding issues really made those early days so stressful and I honestly don’t know why I pushed forward. The chiropractor info is really useful, if I’m lucky enough to have another I will definitely go do a chiropractor/osteopath from the get-go. Breastfeeding seems like a huge thing after you give birth and in the first few months but after a few years no one cares anymore.
Well done you! ❤️ My baby is 3 months now and I have been exclusively breastfeeding her. Our journey has not been easy either. My daughter didn't latch right away and we started using the nipple shield already at the hospital. I found using it a bit inconvenient but it was crucial for us the succeed in breastfeeding. For us the milk transfer was good enough since we had at least 5 wet diapers a day and my daughter was also gaining weight on average 200 grams per week. We bought a baby scale at home to make sure she was growing enough (140grams a week is the minimum where I live). A couple weeks ago my daughter finally latched without the nipple shield and we haven't used it ever since. I hope the best for you and your family.
Sorry to hear you had such a struggle breastfeeding. I am still exclusively breastfeeding my nearly 1 year old and feel very lucky that we have got this far because we had a very hard start with bleeding nipples as well but his latch just took time to figure out. I think that’s why nipple shields aren’t really recommend because they stop baby from latching properly. I don’t think you got the right support, which is a shame but you did your best as a mother and that’s what matters. Your baby is blessed to have such a wonderful mum that cares so much!
Nipple shields can absolutely be vital, the issue more than anything is the milk transfer. @nurturewithlydia who is an infant feeding coach and breastfeeding counsellor has done some great posts recently on Instagram about them. Unfortunately there’s not much more support we could have had, from the GP, midwives, infant feeding team, health visitor and chiropractor - realistically all we had left to explore was an IBCLC but by this point it was too late; my anxiety was too high about him getting enough milk because my shields had wrongly been blamed when actually the issue was his twisting that occurred during delivery. Once this was resolved, bottle preference had started to settle in and like I say, I was far too anxious about making further changes and worrying about the amount he was getting sadly. The issue is very much mixed advice in my opinion. I was wrongly informed he wasn’t getting enough milk by breastfeeding peers/admins in support groups, I was told to top him up when it wasn’t necessary, and all the given advice pointed to it being an issue with what he was getting for different reasons by different people. The support lacks because there’s so much misinformation. We did the best with what we could and given our journey I’m incredibly proud to have got to 4.5 months. I think I would have struggled to still be EBF at this point as my husband’s input and being able to feed our baby so I can have a break has been vital during this time. Well done on reaching almost a year! Xx
Using a nipple shield increases your chance by 3 to stop breastfeeding by 6 months, so statistically women who use them are less likely to continue breastfeeding. I’m not saying this is what happened with you, as you mentioned there were other issues with baby’s nappies etc so I can see why formula became a preferential option. At the end of the day, you should be very proud of yourself for trying so hard and continuing to pump (which is an absolute nightmare from what I’ve heard!)
And thankyou btw! Breastfeeding is such a magical thing and I would’ve been happy even if I only do it for 2 weeks. I am now trying to wean him off the breast as I’ve had enough of it, but he is well and truly a boob boy so it’s proving difficult haha x
@@lottoc7548 formula wasn’t ever preferential - we exclusively pumped for a while, my supply just completely dropped and he wouldn’t latch without a shield, so we reached a point where we didn’t have much of a choice. I get it can increase the stats so I get they are often an issue - but it certainly isn’t the case for all and in many cases, as with ours, saves a journey. We wouldn’t have got past the first 2/3 weeks without them xx
The Chiropractor info is so interesting! So useful for others to know that’s an option. Thank God he could help Joey 🤍
Nobody ever tells you how difficult breastfeeding can be. I found it impossible with my first baby (23 years ago) but so easy with my second. My midwife told me with my first that because I was fair skinned, therefore my nipples were paler (🫤), it was harder to breastfeed? Apparently women with darker nipples find it easier? God knows cos like I said, I had no troubles with my second child! It’s such an emotional rollercoaster 🤍
I was a bit reluctant seeing the chiropractor- we had both been seeing him for a long time for ourselves so trusted him implicitly, but it was worth EVERY penny for Joey. I honestly think BF has been the hardest part of motherhood for me, and I’m so sad it didn’t work the way I wanted it to. Maybe one day I’ll get to try again, but I refuse to put as much pressure on myself as I lost so much precious time to tears and frustration. I wonder if the nipple shade has to do with baby’s eye coordination and it’s easier for them to find? Similar to why black and white is great for sensory? The contrast? I’ve never heard that before! Super interesting! Xx
@@AmberIzzo Ohhhh, good point! I’d never thought of that black/white thing either? So maybe there’s something in that theory then?
I totally hear what you’re saying Amber…I followed your breastfeeding plight on Instagram and really related with your struggles. I have so much admiration for you and how you were so determined to give it everything you had. It’s a long time since I went through it but listening to you brought it all back…the sense of dread when baby cried and I knew that toe-curling painful feed was coming 😩
Also, you mentioned Joey is petite…my first child was 6 weeks prem so she was tiny too…maybe that could be a factor why they struggled to breastfeed? As you’ve said, as he’s gotten bigger he seems to latch easier? Who knows! It’s literally a minefield 😂
Go gentle on yourself…you’ve been through so much. Thank you for sharing and being so honest 🤍xxx