Breastfeeding Break | Thriftanista in the City

1.29.2011

Breastfeeding Break


Yesterday I took a breastfeeding break. I've been whining so much about it. Little Miss nurses every 2 hours or less during the day. She receives bottled breastmilk at night so I pump and then I feed her when she wakes up in the middle of the night. I'm so over it. Yesterday I spontaneously decided not to do it. Well, I gave her a little bit of bewb (intentional misspelling to decrease the changes of appearing in a p0rn search) but mostly bottles yesterday.

Bad Mommy Confession:

I've been feeling trapped lately. She's been really clingy so I've been overwhelmed with the constant holding, rocking, bouncing, and feeding. She also claws at my face, lips, and hair so I'm pretty jacked up by the end of the day. Burnt out.

I'm glad I took this break. I feel refreshed.

I also had some epiphanies:

She may not be getting enough to eat. I only pumped about 6 ounces. Maybe that's why she always wants to eat.

I can feed her less often. She was able to take in more ounces from the bottle because she stays away so i was able to space out her feeding to every 2 1/3 to 3 hours. I think this will be helpful for overnight. We'll see.

She sleeps better at nap time. She didn't fall asleep on me as she normally does during a feeding. I have to remain perfectly still (no coughing, no bathroom, no food or drink) so that I don't wake her OR place her somewhere else. This is likely to wake her up.

Will I continue?

Yes. I'm going to start taking fenugreek again, drink more water (a constant battle) and supplement with my stored supply. I'm also going to make sure her naps don't coincide with feedings hopefully breaking the association.

I will continue to try the rice cereal. Different day, different baby. I want to make sure she getting comfortable with solids in case my supply is in fact dipping.


Now you. Bad mommy confession? Breastfeeding advice? Any advice?

5 comments

Ellen Stewart (aka Ellie/El/e) said...

Do what works for you!

Wilma said...

Check Kellymom.com if you're concerned about supply. There's a lot of fact/research based information there to help you decide.

Oatmeal helps supply too, even oatmeal raisin cookies. Do you pump while nursing? A pump (even a good one) is never as effective as a nursing baby. I used to pump while nursing first thing in the morning. Having a baby nursing helps with let down on both sides, even though the other side is attached to a pump! It saves time too of course.

And also did you pump 6 ounces at once? That's a lot. I don't think supply is your issue. BM is digested within 2 hours, that's why it may take a nursing baby longer to sleep through the night.

When a baby drinks from a bottle she's forced to keep drinking because it just comes automatically. It may seem she's super hungry, but she's really just drinking differently.

If she has 6 wet diapers a day, she's getting enough to eat.

She's so lucky that she's a BM baby!

Claudia Almandoz Gerbolini said...

i breastfed on demand for over a year... that was 4 years ago...still i can remember how difficult it was at the beginning of it all... but i know for a fact that it someohow (don´t ask me why) get´s easier and easier...or maybe that´s just me idealizing those breastfeeding days cause i miss it to death!

V dot said...

God bless you.
I can't even imagine what it's like for you...a tiny person attached to your boob, several times a day, treating you like a milk cow.
I know it's a beautiful thing but I still can't imagine it.

Mama Violet said...

Kellymom.com just discredited all of my epiphanies! I'm always anxious about supply. I'm always wondering if she's getting enough (even with weight gain and wet dipes). I will be glad when she starts eating solids.

@V dot I kinda feel like a cow when I pump not while breastfeeding though.

I will continue to take a "break" every now and then to refresh.

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