Having a newborn after four years has been quite a challenge for me. However, I definitely feel more relax and not so-by-the-book kind of mom like I did with my first born. As I cleaned up the nursery, I found the old chart that I made for my oldest son during the first few weeks after he was born. Then I remember not having enough milk during the first few weeks that I had to nurse him, fed him with 1 oz of formula since he didn’t have enough breast milk, and pump to increase my milk supply. Usually somebody else would feed him with formula while I pump. But still, by the time the whole process was completed, it was time for him to nurse again. I seriously couldn’t do anything but feeding him! It was so exhausting and mind boggling, I don’t think I could do that again.
This time I knew better and this is what I did differently:
Day 1: The first day after my second one was born, I nursed him as soon as he was ready even though I was so drugged up from the anesthesia (I had C-Section on both of my kids).
Day 2: My son was circumcised. Typically after babies are being circumsized, they are into a sleeping mode. It’s hard enough for them to drink formula, let alone nursing! Don’t even bother trying to nurse him because it’s just going to make you feel frustrated. Let the nurse feed your baby from the bottle, and you pump! If you borrow breast pump from the hospital, they will give you free accessories such as breast shield, tubing, and a couple 1 oz and 2 oz bottles. Usually the hospital use Medela Lactina, but the tubing works just fine with Medela Pump in Style (the most common Medela pump that people have). So if you’re like me who had not use my pump in a while and need some replacement, you can get it for free. Once your baby is awake from his sleeping mode, then you can start nursing again.
Day 3: By this time your milk should be ready. You can test it by squeezing your nipple and see if some milk coming out. Your baby should nurse approximately 15 minutes on each breast. You can tell the difference between pacifying your breast versus nursing by the movement of his neck. Babies who really nurse, the movement of their neck is deeper when swallowing. I typically nursed my baby during the day and let the nurse bottle fed him at night so I can get some rest.
Try the above method and you will get your breastmilk ready right away. Keep in mind that it’s a lot easier for a second time mom to get breastmilk than a first time mom. Keep trying and don’t stress yourself. If all fails, just remember that Breast is Best but Formula is not a Poison. Your sanity and moments you spend with your baby is much more important than being able to breastfeed him.
Tags: breastfeeding tips , increasing milk supply
August 3rd, 2011 at 2:33 pm
Great article but I am not sure I agree with your advice to don’t bother trying to nurse your child the second day in the hospital because it’s just going to make you feel frustrated. Successful breastfeeding starts in the hospital. At the hospital you have access to nurses and lactation consultants who can help with latch, position, etc. How do you know if you have any problems if you pump while you are in the hospital!
Also, breastfeeding is not “easy and natural” like many people think. It’s a learning process for both the mother and the baby! In my opinion there is no need to pump at the hospital and you should try to get your baby to latch as often as possible.
Thanks again for posting about nursing and congratulations on your baby!
August 3rd, 2011 at 9:35 pm
Hi,
Thank you for commenting. I think I didn’t make myself clear when writing this post about Day 2. I’m talking specifically about moms who are having boys and choose to circumcise their boys. Circumcision typically happen in day 2 and cause baby boys to be in sleeping mode. As I said before, it’s hard to bottle feed them, let alone expecting them to nurse. Once the baby is awake, then you can start nursing again with no problem. In fact, I only pumped once and nurse him the entire day on day 2. Outside this circumstances, I would agree with you.
I also agree with you 100% about breast feeding is a learning experience for both mom and the baby.