Please HELP! Baby is refusing breast. Did great in hospital....

[smallestangel]

We just arrived home last night. Jacob was born via c-section @ 1:30am Thrusday. Everything went great in the hosptial. He roomed in with me and was only in the nursery for awhile in the morning and at night for ped rounds and check ins. So I know that he received no kind of artificial nipples since he was hardly ever out of my sight(and when he was, they knew not to give him anything in the nursery). Even yesterday morning as we were being discharged, everything was going great. He has a great latch and the bf'ing was just fine, no problems at ALL.

Then around 2:00am he just stopped latching on. It's like he's decided to refuse the breast. I offer him each nipple. He just cries and turns his head. I don't know what to do. He needs to eat but it's as if he's decided I'm not what he wants anymore. How could he of "forgotten" how to latch? He's so upset right now, he won't even let me hold him. He cries hysterically and only calms down when his dad holds him. Nothing I do soothes him, I only make him more upset.

Please help, I'm at my wit's end and I don't know what do to.


Amanda

[sntm]

Amanda,
Is your milk coming in now? The sudden engorgement can change the shape of your breast and make it harder for baby to latch on. If so, try hand expressing a little milk first to soften things up. Is he positioned the same way as in the hospital, on a pillow or whatever? See if dad can hold him and help position him. And don't forget that when he opens his mouth, really quickly ram him on the breast so he doesn't have time to turn his head.

Call your hospital nursery and see if the nurses have any suggestions. Try the lactation consultant also, though they may not be available on a Sunday. The sooner you get someone with experience to watch you and see what the problem is, the better.

The problem is probably something simple, but it is hard to figure out without being there or having more information. You will be fine with help. Don't be discouraged -- he is not rejecting you or your breast on purpose and he can breastfeed, it'll just take practice.


Call someone this morning. if you don't get answers, email me at shannontierney @ excite . com (remove spaces) and I'll send you my phonE number
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
shannon
not-even-pregnant-yet-overachiever
trying-to-conceive :)
PREGNANT! EDD 6/9/03
mama to Jack 6/6/03

[caleymama]

Congratulations on the birth of your son! Shannon gave you some great advice and I don't have anything to add. I just wanted to send you a (((hug))) and let you know we're all here for you.

[Imperia]

I agree your milk might be coming in and 1) that might make it harder for him to latch OR your letdown might be 1) to slow or too fast for his liking.

Sometimes my DD used to pull off and look horrified like I was trying to feed her poison; I read that is usually a let down problem. If he pulls off sputtering or you see milk spray out you can figure the let down is too fast for him. You can try expressing for a couple of minutes before puting him on the breast so he doesn't choke,also certain positions make it easier for the baby if the milk is coming down too fast. Lying on your back with the baby on top of your tummy (Australian posistion) that way teh milk has to travel "uphill" to get to the baby. If your let down is too slow expressing or pumping for a few minutes can help also because then the milk will be right there waiting. Taking a hot shower or using warm cloths on yoru breasts before a feeding can help your letdown.

I know this is very hard and frustrating, but you are doing great! IF you can get ahold of an LC who could come by TODAY that would be the best option. YOu might also call La Leche League (phone book should have them) or have an experienced breastfeeding mama come by and help you. Usually all this sort of thing takes is a little while with someone experienced and things work out really well.

Good luck!

Imperia

[Puddy73]

Amanda,
Hang in there - I know how frustrating it is because I went through the same thing with DD. Have you tried using a nipple shield? We saw an LC right away when I had problems with DD, but the only way she would latch on was with a nipple shield. I know that some LCs are against the use of a nipple shield, but it helped us and she is nursing like a champ at 6 months.

Best of luck - I hope everything works out.

Jennifer
Mommy to Annabelle Mae 9/8/03

[sntm]

If you use one, though, definitely see an LC. They are ususually reserved for special situations. I had flat nipples so whenever I was the slighted bit engorged, Jack couldn't latch on without the shield to "pull" the nipple out. But they can affect milk supply, so best used with guidance.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
shannon
not-even-pregnant-yet-overachiever
trying-to-conceive :)
PREGNANT! EDD 6/9/03
mama to Jack 6/6/03

[quikeye]

Congratulations on the birth of your son!

My ds would often struggle at the breast after our first attempts at bf'ing-- he would thrash and turn his head back & forth, which I thought meant he was refusing the breast. But, he was actually really rooting for it, and couldn't get it into his mouth (engorgement, plus he's since always needed at least a little help getting the nipple into his mouth). I had to learn to make a "nipple sandwich" for him, in addition to following all of the advice you've already received on getting him latched on. When you present your breast, squeeze the nipple btw your thumb & forefinger in order to make it flatter/squished-- it's much easier for baby (at least mine) to latch onto a flat nipple. (Edit: I don't mean nipples that are really flat or inverted in any way, just regular non-squished nipples! :)) I have wide nipples, so I am pinching right above where the areola ends in order to get it "flattened" enough (and ds has a good latch now, taking it all in; there is just a tiny bit of areola left outside of his mouth when bf'ing-- I pinch right above where that area is). Also, my son couldn't get a latch on when I was super engorged, b/c his poor nose would get smashed and he really couldn't breathe & feed-- he would pull off or turn his head and pop off the nipple, then get mad (I don't have large breasts at all, but he bf's with his face really pulled into my breast)-- so either hand-expressing a little as well as making sure the top part of my breast doesn't cut off his air supply (using my finger to gently keep it pressed down) has helped us as well.

I'm also not an expert @ babies in the least, but don't feel down that he's "rejecting" you and is only soothed by dh-- if he's hungry and can't latch, my son will scream bloody murder and still will thrash about, even though I'm offering him the breast. Your son may also be picking up on your frustration @ feeding him as well-- I know Kai knows when I'm frustrated (either my worried face, holding him in a different way, trying to manipulate him too quickly or differently, etc.), and will struggle with feeding when I'm upset or trying "too hard". Trust me, when you get this down your son will look to be comforted by you first :)

Best of luck-- you may want to consult a lc as well (I was going to, but was able to resolve my problems without one-- a lot of help from these boards was my key). My main problem was the early latch as well and this place was where I was able to read about the "nipple sandwich", if you do a search you may be able to find more posts on it. It was really my saving grace with my son (and I hadn't read about it's importance in any of my nursing books I had read either!)-- I still do it at least @ the begining of each feed and now ds is a champ at eating. :) Good luck & congrats again, I know it will work out for you!

Aija y Kai, 1/25/04

[cvharris]

I also suggest going to see a LC. They helped me early on at the hospital but once we were home we struggled when my milk came in. I went back to see a LC and learned how to get him to latch correctly again. It made such a difference!

Good luck!

Carolee and Ben (6/14/03)