All about breastfeeding

[janicelly 0]

my BM supply got increase a bit, not too much but better than none. I pressume it will increase slowly...the taste actually like Sirap.

I guess THe first different btw seed n capsule is the price lor... i bought tat seed less than RM2 for 1 pkt. May b capsule one is more effective la bcs concentrated.

Bumblebee, how much is the capsule? what brand u bought?

hi emmanual,

sorry i am not bumblebee ah, hehe. you can get fenugreek capsule at GNC pharmacy. it's only available there (from what i read in other forums).

[mflim 0]

it's normal to feel hungry for breastfeeding moms. like myself i breastfeed my bb exclusively, not only feeling hungry all the while and thirsty too! u body needs the energy to produce breastmilk, thus u tend to feel hungry fast. actually, it's easier to reduce weight for breastfeeding moms. don't worry, u'll be getting back to ur pre-pregnant size very soon.

oh ya, mee too, I also always feel hungry & thirsty...I feel that i eat almost the same volumn while I pregnant although I eat a lot but I still look slim :P , same as the size of pre-pregnant size....so bf is very good.... ;)

[suee 0]

my BM supply got increase a bit, not too much but better than none. I pressume it will increase slowly...the taste actually like Sirap.

I guess THe first different btw seed n capsule is the price lor... i bought tat seed less than RM2 for 1 pkt. May b capsule one is more effective la bcs concentrated.

Bumblebee, how much is the capsule? what brand u bought?

Hi Emmanual,

I have bought the seed and tried this morning. Honestly, I don't like the fragrance too. I put 2 rose buds (a kind of rose flavour tea) into the tea, hope that the smell can be covered up by the rose buds. But, too bad, the smell is just too stong and thus it's still there. It's even worse cause the rose tea smell also there. So, you can imagine 2 strong smells fellas add up together to become??? I guess tomorrow I should try honey.... ???

I have not had consistenet (timely) pumping session for the past 4 days, and this make my supply drops about half. Why is it when increasing milk, it's so difficult, while decreasing it, it's so easy?

[emmanual 0]

hi suee,

I normally make the tea with milo, so its cover up the fragrance. I have tried to add some sugar too, the taste is ok, like sweet tea lor. If u really cant bear the fragrance, better you try the capsule type.

I do feel more milk supply as i always feel my breast engorge and feel hard, but when i express it only little bit flow out. then i let my bb suck, i can see she can suck a lot of milk from it. I suspect my nipple has been block. any method to clear it?

[bumblebee 0]

hi emmanual

lately, i actually experience the same too.. i feel that my breast still has milk, but when expressed, very difficult to flow out. so i learn to relax and massage lor.. and pump longer. usually, i'll have a few let downs before my breast empties out. but when my gal sucks, the flow is better. no wonder they say the best pump is still our babies. plus the motherly instinct and the close proximity do work wonders, don't you think?

[cheerio 0]

hi mummies out there, i'm counting down to my EDD in 1.5 months time, and i am planning to fully breastfeed my baby. is there anything i can do now to ensure i have enough milk supplies later on? thanks...

[janicelly 0]

hi mummies out there, i'm counting down to my EDD in 1.5 months time, and i am planning to fully breastfeed my baby. is there anything i can do now to ensure i have enough milk supplies later on? thanks...

hi cheerio,

congrats to you! must be cant wait for the little one to pop out right, hehe.

you do have enough for your baby. it is very rare that we dont have enough milk for our babies unless we have some medical condition. most of the time we doubt we dont have enough milk is because we cant MEASURE how much our babies are eating cos our boob dont have markings to mark how many oz our baby took. have more confidence in yourself. learn more/read up about breastfeeding before you give birth.

How Does Milk Production Works

go to Kelly Mom & La Leche League to read more about breastfeeding. there's tonnes of information there!!!

if you have any other questions, do post here, will try our best to answer them. good luck!!!

[cheerio 0]

hi mummies out there, i'm counting down to my EDD in 1.5 months time, and i am planning to fully breastfeed my baby. is there anything i can do now to ensure i have enough milk supplies later on? thanks...

hi cheerio,

congrats to you! must be cant wait for the little one to pop out right, hehe.

you do have enough for your baby. it is very rare that we dont have enough milk for our babies unless we have some medical condition. most of the time we doubt we dont have enough milk is because we cant MEASURE how much our babies are eating cos our boob dont have markings to mark how many oz our baby took. have more confidence in yourself. learn more/read up about breastfeeding before you give birth.

How Does Milk Production Works

go to Kelly Mom & La Leche League to read more about breastfeeding. there's tonnes of information there!!!

if you have any other questions, do post here, will try our best to answer them. good luck!!!

thanks janicelly, this is very encouraging! hopefully i would not have any sour bf's stories to share later on. :) ya i am very much looking forward to see the baby, always imagine how my life gonna to be having her around! many friends ask me to enjoy the quiet moment now as i will be busy like bee later! :P

[janicelly 0]

thanks janicelly, this is very encouraging! hopefully i would not have any sour bf's stories to share later on. :) ya i am very much looking forward to see the baby, always imagine how my life gonna to be having her around! many friends ask me to enjoy the quiet moment now as i will be busy like bee later! :P

cheerio,

you are welcome :). apart from having faith in yourself, you must be determine also. it's very important especially when everyone else kept pouring cold water on you :P.

as for busy like a bee, i second that cos i've been spinning like a top non stop since the birth of my girl, hehehe.

[cheerio 0]

hi, does anyone knows if green papaya soup will cause newborn to have jaundice?

i delivered 5 days ago and being stressed out wanting to breastfeed my girl, i have asked my confinement lady to cook green papaya soup for me but my gal's jaundice getting worse from day to day. until today during check up at the clinic, i was told by my pead that she need to be admitted for UV light. her bilirubin gone up to above 300 (normal range is 0-200). my heart so aching keep thinking if there is something wrong with my food that i took or if i have mis-handled her. i feel like crying now leaving her alone in the ward. i misses her so much... :(

[happi 0]

cheerio, if u're breastfeeding don't take any ginger or alcohol for now. if possible, ask yr confinement lady to take yr bb out early in the morning to get some morning sun, it will help clear the jaundice.

[cheerio 0]

happi, my confinement lady take her out under the sun for the last 2 days but her jaundice still very bad. to be on the safe side, we have admitted her for UV light treatment.

i asked my pead what are the things i should avoid during confinement and she said ginger, rice wine etc are fine, but not to take un-necessary chinese herbs which ingredients are unknown. i forgot to ask her about green papaya until my confinement lady asked me. also, my pead said some mothers have this enzymes in their breast milk that will aggravate jaundice, but she would not encourage me to stop breastfeed. she said i should just wait and let her jaundice clear before i continue breastfeed again.

[cheerio 0]

i remember after delivered when she was sent to me, she was so tiny and i was clueless on how to hold newborn baby. nurses in the hospital didnt stay back to help me. so my gal just keep on crying and crying and crying and i just struggled getting her to latch on and failed and latch on and failed. at the end i only managed to feed her 3 times over 24 hours on the 1st day and i was so restless. (i am still angry with how the nurses in hospital manage her feeding and has complaint to my pead).

after discharge home on 2nd day, i still had trouble getting her to latch on though my girl can suckle very well. my MIL asked me to hand-expressed and there is nothing and she concluded i have no milk. i forced myself to wake my baby up every 2hrly just to get her suckle cos i know she need the colostrum and i need her to stimulate milk production. i didnt care about all the pantang during confinement of needing to rest well and not to expose to wind etc, i bare breast under the fan and i just want her to have my milk. but bein stressed up with everyone saying my gal didnt had enough, i gave in and see them feed her with formula using bottle. at that night i broke down and cried front of hubby. amazingly my girl is like understand mummy is sad and she latched on very well on the night itself.

on day 3, a fren who had successfully breastfeed came for visit and give encouragement, and i decided to persist. on day 3 of her birth, i started to hear swallowing sound when she suckle. i am so happy esp see her dozzing away in my arms after milk.

now with her having jaundice, i really do not know if i will be able to continue breastfeeding. i want to persist but i also heard of stories of people stop breast feeding because baby jaundice. i hope i am not one of them! mummy out there, appreciate your chances of able to give the best to your young ones. after these i know the disheartening feeling when u r not able to do so. :(

[Gunners 0]

i remember after delivered when she was sent to me, she was so tiny and i was clueless on how to hold newborn baby. nurses in the hospital didnt stay back to help me. so my gal just keep on crying and crying and crying and i just struggled getting her to latch on and failed and latch on and failed. at the end i only managed to feed her 3 times over 24 hours on the 1st day and i was so restless. (i am still angry with how the nurses in hospital manage her feeding and has complaint to my pead).

after discharge home on 2nd day, i still had trouble getting her to latch on though my girl can suckle very well. my MIL asked me to hand-expressed and there is nothing and she concluded i have no milk. i forced myself to wake my baby up every 2hrly just to get her suckle cos i know she need the colostrum and i need her to stimulate milk production. i didnt care about all the pantang during confinement of needing to rest well and not to expose to wind etc, i bare breast under the fan and i just want her to have my milk. but bein stressed up with everyone saying my gal didnt had enough, i gave in and see them feed her with formula using bottle. at that night i broke down and cried front of hubby. amazingly my girl is like understand mummy is sad and she latched on very well on the night itself.

on day 3, a fren who had successfully breastfeed came for visit and give encouragement, and i decided to persist. on day 3 of her birth, i started to hear swallowing sound when she suckle. i am so happy esp see her dozzing away in my arms after milk.

now with her having jaundice, i really do not know if i will be able to continue breastfeeding. i want to persist but i also heard of stories of people stop breast feeding because baby jaundice. i hope i am not one of them! mummy out there, appreciate your chances of able to give the best to your young ones. after these i know the disheartening feeling when u r not able to do so. :(

Hi Cheerio,

Don't be upset.. it is very common for baby to get jaundince. My baby was jaundice too and has to be put on biliblanket for 2 days. I was asked to continue to breastfeed.. make sure at least every 3-4 hour to keep him well hydatred so the jaundice can clear up quickly. The main thing is to make sure baby is well hydrated when they are jaundice so they can pass the bilirubin out in the urine .

[janicelly 0]

cheerio,

my baby had jaundice too & was admitted for treatment as well. i am encouraged to continue to breastfeed her all the time. in fact i even pump & send my milk to the hospital for her. try not to bottle feed her & if need to supplement with formula, try to cup feed instead. if your paed is encouraging, just continue to BF her cos since BF babies tend to poop a lot, it will be clear out of their system fast. initially my girl was supposed to be admitted for 2 days cos her reading was high but after 1 night of treatment, the reading went down. dont be so worried cos like Gunners said, it's quite common. babies jaundice usually peak during day 6-7 of their life.

i have never heard of green papaya causing jaundice in babies but my paed did caution me about chinese herb (especially so hap yuen). she told me not to take if i am planning to BF exclusively.

sometimes it is very hard when you feel like nobody support you in your BF journey (not to mention everyone kept saying you don have enough milk). have faith in yourself & keep counting wet & dirty diapers. if they meet "target", dont worry. i was like you too during confinement cos nobod support me on BF & hubby was a few hundred KMs away. being deaf & dumb helps me a lot during the 1st month :P. remember, during early days, babies will wanna suckle a lot (that's when "they" think we dont have enough milk :P). as long as your diaper count is ok, dont worry so much.

GAMBATE!!!! we are here to support you!!!!! here is a link for you to refer to :-

Is My Baby Getting Enough Milk?

[oxford_bb 0]

cheerio,

FYI, my bb had jaudice end up 3+ mths. paed also ask me to send my bb back to hosp for UV or ask me rent the machine home. cau the reading exceed 250++. since I want to cont BF and dare to send my bb to hospital, so I must observe my bb very well. Ihave observe his stool and his actions. His stool must not be white/beige colur. Then make sure ur bb is active. I mean not sleep whole day & night. and I tears when the paed took the blood test from my bb if not mistaken about 4 times.

try dont take ginger, wine and chinese medicine at the beginning confinement since you wan to fully BF. when the reading gone down, should be ok to take ginger etc.

Dont worry about your milk supply at first. Must be +ve and not so tension all the time and make sure your Hubby is always support you. As my experiences, this is a very challenging task in my life!!!!!

You are not only tiring, emotional but also mentally ......

anyway, when u see your kids compare to others, u will be proud to be a BF mom!!!!

HAPPY BREASTFEEDING!!!!!

[cheerio 0]

hi janicelly and oxforb_bb, thanks for all the encouragement. its really helps!

my baby has been discharged from hospital yesterday. i have stopped BF for one day while she is in the hospital, cos doc advised so. she said let the BF clear from the body as some mothers do carry the jaundice-causing enzyme in the breast milk, which i am not sure if i am one of them. her bilirubin normalized within a day after UV and cup-feed formula milk and when i went to bring her back from hospital, the first thing i did was to rush to BF room and start BF her. she seems so hungry and eager looking for mummy's nipple. that's the proudest and happiest moment for a BF mummy i can tell you.

after we went home, she started to be cranky and has difficulty latching on again. i am not sure if she is confuse with the various feeding method. she doesnt seems to suckle when i put my breast into her mouth. she always struggle and cry for a while before she latch on, and with that she only suckle for 5 min then she will dozz off. her faeces also turns brownish and not as yellowish as she used to have on day 4 and 5 of birth, which i suspect is due to formula milk.

i have been having lots of milk supply due to the green papaya soup (leaking all the time) and i am wondering if that makes my milk flow too fast for a newborn baby, thus she only suckle for 5 min? she always finish feed with coughing and i am worried if she got choked.

also my girl sleeps most of the time. i see from kellymom's website that newborn should be waken up every 2-3 hourly, in order for mummy to establish good milk supply. however, my gal just does not wake up for feed, sometimes even tickle and calling also she just open her eyes for a sec and fall asleep on my breast. for e.g. today, her feeding schedule is like: 1am, 4am, 7am, 11am, 12noon, 3.30pm (and its all 5 min sucking). the last cluster feeding at 6.30pm seems to be longer, about 10min in total.

is she doing alright? i am worried... or if i am just paranoid.

one more question, how do u feed expressed milk to ur baby? i have been lookin for nursing bottle with mummy-nipple-alike baby teat but don't seems to see one online. any recommendations?

also what is the correct method to thaw frozen breast milk? because she dont demand for feed every 2 hrly and 2 breast whenever i feed, so i have been pumping out to ensure there is continuos stimulation. i am just hoping my breast milk supply will not decrease.

[Siow fui 0]

My milk flow also very less now. My milk came very late. Only came at the 5th day. My baby refused to suck. I need to pump out to bottle feed her. Moreover my nipple also a bit short? Anything can let the nipple become longer?

[oxford_bb 0]

hi janicelly and oxforb_bb, thanks for all the encouragement. its really helps!

my baby has been discharged from hospital yesterday. i have stopped BF for one day while she is in the hospital, cos doc advised so. she said let the BF clear from the body as some mothers do carry the jaundice-causing enzyme in the breast milk, which i am not sure if i am one of them. her bilirubin normalized within a day after UV and cup-feed formula milk and when i went to bring her back from hospital, the first thing i did was to rush to BF room and start BF her. she seems so hungry and eager looking for mummy's nipple. that's the proudest and happiest moment for a BF mummy i can tell you.

after we went home, she started to be cranky and has difficulty latching on again. i am not sure if she is confuse with the various feeding method. she doesnt seems to suckle when i put my breast into her mouth. she always struggle and cry for a while before she latch on, and with that she only suckle for 5 min then she will dozz off. her faeces also turns brownish and not as yellowish as she used to have on day 4 and 5 of birth, which i suspect is due to formula milk.

i have been having lots of milk supply due to the green papaya soup (leaking all the time) and i am wondering if that makes my milk flow too fast for a newborn baby, thus she only suckle for 5 min? she always finish feed with coughing and i am worried if she got choked.

also my girl sleeps most of the time. i see from kellymom's website that newborn should be waken up every 2-3 hourly, in order for mummy to establish good milk supply. however, my gal just does not wake up for feed, sometimes even tickle and calling also she just open her eyes for a sec and fall asleep on my breast. for e.g. today, her feeding schedule is like: 1am, 4am, 7am, 11am, 12noon, 3.30pm (and its all 5 min sucking). the last cluster feeding at 6.30pm seems to be longer, about 10min in total.

is she doing alright? i am worried... or if i am just paranoid.

one more question, how do u feed expressed milk to ur baby? i have been lookin for nursing bottle with mummy-nipple-alike baby teat but don't seems to see one online. any recommendations?

also what is the correct method to thaw frozen breast milk? because she dont demand for feed every 2 hrly and 2 breast whenever i feed, so i have been pumping out to ensure there is continuos stimulation. i am just hoping my breast milk supply will not decrease.

actually is normal bb tend to sleep longer. I think it depend on each bb. as I know bb boy tend to be big eater. like my son, since newborn he drink every 2 hrs and each time about 15-20min. so during confinement time , i'm not really have enough sleep. and his feeding time change graduately as he grow up. later 2.5hrs, 3 hrs....and the volume he drink as well. i'm using the avent nursing bottle since the nipple alike mummy. i start intro nursing bottle when he was about 1 mths. but I still cont breastfed. at beginning stage, he faced the nipple confusing problem. after few days is ok.

just my experience and advice, try to pump out ur milk and make sure empty after every feeding.as my son sometimes he is very fussy, he refuse to drink right side breast.actually should try let bb drink both side,but even just nursing side he is enough provided the milk supply is good. u can freezer ur milk for future use. it can keep up to 3 mths. for my son, I did train him according to the feeding time. 1st 2 mths, 2oz every 2hrs. then, 2.5 oz, 3oz,...until now 5-6 oz every 3.5-4 hrs.even nite time he is slepping, i still cont the feeding.

[janicelly 0]

cheerio,

i replied you at the other thread about your baby sleeping through feedings!

as for cluster feedings, for now keep counting diapers. if wet & dirty diapers are adequate & no green poop, should be ok (green mucousy poop + fussy baby = fore & hindmilk imbalance). your feeding time is so short, that's what i worry. keep monitoring.

for now, try not to bottle feed your baby. is it possible to cup/spoon/syringe feed her expressed milk? i am using Breastflow bottles at nanny BUT it is not BPA free. that's the only bottle i can find that baby can use similar method to drink from bottle & nurse. you can give it a try if you want. can find it at 1U Parkson. you can have a look at the bottle HERE

as long as you are pumping to stimulate your breast, your milk wont dry up. dont worry so much & keep up the good work!

if you are expressing to feed your baby the next feed, dont freeze your milk cos fresh is always better. you can put your milk to cool in the fridge & just warm it for the next feed. fresh milk can be kept in the fridge for 5 days (this guideline is for full term babies). as for extra milk, you can freeze & keep as backup stock when you go back to work. frozen milk can be kept up to 6 months (depend on type of freezer etc).

[janicelly 0]

siowfui,

the length of our nipples does not affect how we feed our babies cos they have to latch on to our areola & not on the nipples alone. is it possible to meet up with a lactation consultant to assess your situation?

keep on pumping to maintain your supply. good luck!

[noturningback 0]

drink more water and see the difference !

[cheerio 0]

hi janicelly, thanks for ur reply! does it mean that i should continue breast feed my gal on one side of my breast until its sorta like empty, before i switch her to another breast, in order for her to get both the fore milk and hind milk? her poo has been yellowish and touch wood*, today has been a good day for me and baby. she latched on well and demand for feed consistently. i am so happy and hope this will continues!

as for the nursing bottle, have u surveyed this brand called MAM? they have the ultravit baby teat that claimed its similar to mummy's nipple, and its BPA free! i asked my pead if there is any way to prevent nipple confusion and she said no... it depands on baby. some baby able to adjust well and some don't.. she suggested me to use NUK's baby teat but i am not sure if the bottle is BPA free. she claimed that the NUK's baby teat has softer texture so similiar to mummy's nipple...

what type of freezer that can store breast milk up to 6 months? mine is the 2 door domestic fridge with freezer at the bottom. i have been storing my breast milk in chicken essence bottle and my husband asked me to throw away if i am not going to use it, its always better to direct feed, cos its at the right temp and all the antibodies are preserved... but i just feel its a bit of waste... ;) .. if touch wood* later no milk then how? :P

oxford_bb, can share ur experience on how you overcome the nipple confusion stage? i remember avent bottle is not BPA free right? and why do u want to train him to be fed on schedule? sorry me new mummy in town :o

thanks for all the replies, its so good to know someone having the same 'passion' as you do

[janicelly 0]

cheerio,

if your baby's poop is yellow (like mustard/scrambled eggs) you are on the right track. so dont worry!

as for bottle, i cant change now cos it's already almost 10 months she's been using Breastflow & she's too used to it already. we are now trying to teach her to use sippy cup instead, hope it'll work! for you, you have the luxury of choosing a BPA free bottle! if you are not sure which brand is BPA free, you can have a look here - The Z Report. they have a comprehensive list of which product is BPA free. different babies have different preferences, some switch to & fro from breast to bottles without any problems & switch teat without batting an eyelid, hehe.

deep freezer can store up to 6 months. for me, i dont have a deep freezer BUT i dont cook at home. so, the only time i open my freezer is when i put in/take out milk (max twice a day i open freezer). so the temperature is quite constant. thats why i am not too worried. do try not to throw away unused milk cos it's like liquid gold! it's takes a lot of work to pump out. moreover, when you are back to work, you will feel more secure if they are back up stock in the freezer. trust me, i have been there (no back up stock) & it's very stressful! i have been feeding milk from my freezer (warmed up, of course!) with no issues at all. here is some guidelines for storing milk (copied from here) :-

Storage Guidelines

All milk should be dated before storing. Storing milk in 2-4 ounce amounts may reduce waste. Refrigerated milk has more anti-infective properties than frozen milk. Cool fresh milk in the refrigerator before adding it to previously frozen milk.

Preferably, human milk should be refrigerated or chilled right after it is expressed. Acceptable guidelines for storing human milk are as follows. Store milk:

at room temperature (66-78°F, 19-26°C) for 4 hours (ideal), up to 6 hours (acceptable) (Some sources use 8 hours)

in a refrigerator (<39°F, <4°C) for 72 hours; up to 8 days (acceptable)

in a freezer (-0.4 to -4°F, -18 to -20°C) for 6 months (ideal) up to 12 months (acceptable)

always do the taste test IF you are worried whether the milk is still ok. milk turned bad WILL taste bad.

i practise feed on demand (hehe, sorry oxfordbb). as baby grow older, she more or less have settled into a routine - all by herself. during growth spurts/developmental milestone/she's unwell, she will demand to be nursed more. i just follow baby's cue. you can read more about it here - Does My Baby Need To Be On A Schedule?. just do what feels right FOR YOU. there is no right or wrong way. we can just take the guidelines given & work it out ourselves.

keep up the good work!

[cheerio 0]

hi janicelly, can i ask how do u defrost frozen milk? do u place it in warm water and wait for hours for it to tuns liquid? i read somewhere that boiling water may kill the antibodies in breast milk.