All about breastfeeding

[amyliq 0]

What about your HB? Is he supportive?

[janicelly 0]

ophelia,

Most of us here don't have supportive parents & in laws either. You just have to persevere! Having a thick skull, turning deaf & dumb when they starts giving negative comments helps too (cos you said can't educate them). Just try your best, your baby is still very small, can try to "lure" her back to the breast. Try more skin to skin contact & "reward" system (picit some milk & rub on your nipples before latching her on etc). Have to agree with amyliq, some BM is better then totally no BM! Gambate!

amyliq,

Since you know the hospital is not very BF friendly, request for baby to room in with you if possible. If you can afford in, stay in single bedded room instead. It will help a lot with BFing if you have baby in your room OR be ganas a bit, tell the nurses & mid wife sternly EACH time baby cries, bring her to you for BFing & IF they feed FM, will kena from you. I know of a mommy who gave birth in Ipoh Pxntxi (which is totally not BF friendly cos I kena 1st hand before - long story but I sorta "won" :p) who spoke to her obgyn & told the nurses repeated of her intention to BF & IF they DARE to feed 1 drop of FM, they will kena from her. End up the nurses all very "cooperative" & she managed to BF successfully. No need to be rude but BE FIRM, keep repeating & repeating. Good luck!

[amyliq 0]

Janicelly

I think its just some of the nurses...coz the hospital did have a workshop before and the head nurse was all for breastfeeding. Thats why I was so surprised when my friend told me abt her experience with some of the nurses.

Yup I have discussed with my gynae (who exclusively bfed her own 3 kids btw!) that I only want to bfeed my baby later and she has wrote on my card to inform the nurses. I will be getting my own room as part of my medical benefits so I hope to be able to room-in.

[sumsum2202 0]

sumsum2202,

It is important for you to pump more than twice a day at this early stage to establish your milk supply. Pumping during the middle is very important too.

My baby didint want to suck too for the first 1 mth, but i pump every 3 hours. After one month, she started to latch on.

Breastfeeding is hardwork, but its worth the effort. Although so far i have only been breastfeeding for 7.5 months and counting, im proud of myself.

Dont give up.

Hi Sheep,

I don't think I have the patience like to to feed baby 7.5 months. even now i am super lazy to do that. Taking care of baby also not an easy job for me. I always thought that i am a capable mummy, actually i am not.

[yvonne118 0]

ah? so no one have successfully wean off can advise me on this? I'm same as the rest.. initial thought was 6 months.. but i too enjoy bf my son directly but not expressing by using pump lor.. i also afraid once i stop i will miss this feeling a lot.. but nvm will still bf my second one ma.. hehe.. i got my own reason to stop bf la.. one of the reason is i want no. 2 ma.. or else i also will continue till 2yrs old

Janice,

stop bf completely by 1 year.

[bunnyNwife 0]

yvonne,

I have successfully wean off since 2 weeks ago. I cut down the pumping session from 3x to 2x a day and eventually 1x a day and then just hand express during shower every 2 days to release tension if necessary. All in I took 2 weeks to achieve this. Dun empty your boobs during each pump. It's easier to start the weaning process 1 week b4 menses due as milk production will reduce naturally due to hormone changes. This will mitigate the possibility of blocked ducts when we cut down the pumping session and not emptying our boobs.

[yvonne118 0]

Sharon, so long didn't hear from you. Busy with work?

Thanks for your advise.. it really helpful! OK, I will take note of this, start weaning 1 week before menses. Hope it will be easy for me, scared half way I will continue bf again.. argg..

[bunnyNwife 0]

I am dying over here... my immediate boss is leaving bcos he beh tahan our new white boss. I also beh tahan the new white boss. Now i have no more place to hide from the white boss and to make it worse, I am asked to take up the part of my imemdiate boss's portfolio of work. No promotion, no increment but more work & responsibilities. Must demonstrate tat I can perform with the new role before I will be promoted.

[janicelly 0]

yvonne,

Then you stop pumping gradually just like Sharon said. You can skip night pumps too. If cannot tahan (the night one), then only pump a little to relieve engorgement. After some time, your body will adjust. I believe you are on the right track now. Good luck!

[meiteoh 0]

I too am wondering when I should start weaning. Hm...

[cutegal2424 0]

i have been exclusively bfeeding my gal for 5 months .... and she has not tasted FM until now

I plan to do so (only BM) until she's 1 yo

however, my frens who have been bfeeding advise me to start introducing FM now (one or twice a day) so that weaning is easier next time ...

one of my fren actually had a difficult time bcoz she did not introduce FM earlier ... when her milk supply start to drop and eventually stop (after 1 year), her son just refuses FM ... end up just taking biscuits & water daily with some solid ... now, he is very much underweight

for mothers out there who have been exclusively bfeeding, could you share - when do you plan to / when did you introduce FM?

[meiteoh 0]

I know Bunny introduced FM for one feed and EBM/frozen BM for the rest of the feeds. Her baby's reaction was okay so she proceed with one feed first before slowly replacing with the rest.

For me, I was thinking of waiting until she's around 10-11 months, then slowly introduce whole cow's milk instead of FM. If all goes well, I'll replace BM with whole milk when she's 12 mths old.

[L&J 0]

Ah...i'm in the same situation.My stretch goal was 1.5yrs but recently my supply dipped coz my girl wakes up less at nite plus the busy work schedule.I think stress plays a role in milk production.

So I think I'll start weaning soon. My cousin too had a hard time weaning her son coz she intro FM too late.Her son just didn't want to drink FM and would cry every time they force it on him :s

Mabel,may I know why do you want to intro cow's milk instead of FM? I thought FM will have more benefits what with the DHA,this and that....

[meiteoh 0]

Well, the recommendation is that you can slowly replace FM or BM with cow's milk from 1 years old onwards coz by then, a toddler's digestive system can handle digesting components in cow's milk like casein. I guess it's to wean them off the bottle and the formula - after all, they cannot keep drinking formula forever. HB and myself together with his nieces and nephews grew up on cow's milk so I don't think it'll be a problem in terms of nutrition. If you want to obtain whatever that's in FM, you can take it from its natural source. After all, most FM out there is just cow's milk with added "stuff". Over here, the practice is to take formula for a long time because it's not in our diet to eat foods like flaxseed and salmon (high in DHA) or even yogurt (probiotic).

By 12 months, Eva would already be introduced to a number of nutritious foods (avocado, wheat germ, brewer's yeast, salmon, flaxseed, yogurt) so going on cow's milk will not be an issue in that aspect. Milk is very rich in protein, calcium, Vit D and A plus phosphorus which is very much needed in a growing toddler. More info here - http://www.babycenter.com/0_cows-milk-when...e-it_1334703.bc

But I read online that toddlers from 1-2 years old don't need a lot of milk - only 16 ounces a day.

[joeythc 0]

hello, to those who interested to go for breastfeeding classes, you may try to visit the link below;

i've not been to the classes before, but i plan to do so 1 day :)

http://breastfeeding.weebly.com/index.html

[chonglisa 0]

Hi all,

I haven posted anything for so long..I'm going to wean off soon as supply is getting lesser. Ethan has cow's milk allergy so i slowly introducing FM to him, initially i read that goat milk is better in digestion, so i tried on him but he doesnt like it. Right now, he will be on FM during daytime (2x FM, 1x EBM) but if my EBM is more he will have more EBM then 1x FM but night time fully latch on as i still find it easier as i get to rest my eyes while he latching on.

Sometimes i feel bad too when thinking i'm going to wean off because the lack of milk is due to my laziness in pumping as i only pump 1 full session (8am) then about 3pm (half session) reason i pump half session (just 7mins each breast compare to full = 7m+1m(massage)+7m each breast) normally i get home about 7pm & Ethan will want to latch on about 8pm, sometimes i feel the breast still not full therefore he will need to latch on few rounds 8pm then 9pm...so tiring for me or maybe he misses mummy's boobs..hahaha

But i do realise my milk is more during night hours maybe because Ethan is latching on more & therefore its producing more milk...so is there a possibility that i still get to direct latch on during night time even though in future daytime i'm not pumping anymore>???

Btw, do you mummy's still wakes up 2-3times during night feeding? Ethan still do (last feed = 9pm, 1-2am(milk), 3-4am(milk), then 6-7am (milk) he will wakes up about 7:30-8am...

[L&J 0]

thanks mabe for the explanation.i know tat lots of parents feed their children wif FM till abt 4/5 yrs old.then after tat give cow's milk

[tinkerbelle 0]

Btw, do you mummy's still wakes up 2-3times during night feeding? Ethan still do (last feed = 9pm, 1-2am(milk), 3-4am(milk), then 6-7am (milk) he will wakes up about 7:30-8am...

ah.. if it's not for this forum, i would have gone insane at times. yea, my kiddo's one of those who still needs frequent feedings ie. last feed 8ish, then 10ish then midnite then 2+ then 4+, well, u get the drift. not sure if he's really feeding himself or just comfort sucking esp around dawn.

anyone with insight in this matter?

btw, i have one important question, does it matter WHAT (quality of food) we eat affects the quality (rich/watery) of our breastmilk?

cheers.

[janicelly 0]

cutegal2424,

I've not give any FM to my gal but she's taking fresh milk & organic soymilk apart from my EBM. My reason is same as Mabel. Once our child hit 12 months, majority of nutrients should come from solids instead of milk.

chonglisa & tinkerbelle,

I'm in the same boat :p. I've spoken to LC & my problem is her last solid meal for the day is quite early 5pm (at nanny's) & her bedtime is around 8/9pm. I've been trying to coax her to eat at 7pm (our usual dinner time) but failed. I guess she's just not hungry. According to LC, she could be genuinely hungry because from 5pm till the next morning is quite a long stretch & it's logical she can't last that long without any meals. Since your babies are much younger, maybe once they are established on solids, you can adjust the meals timing (later dinner)? Do remember 1st 12 months milk is still main food for babies :). Good luck!

tinkerbelle,

Our milk is "designed" to provide & protect our babies even in times of hardship & famine (which I doubt any of us here are facing). Poor diet on mom's side will most likely affect the mom rather then baby BUT having a well balanced diet have lots of advantages :). Please go here to read more about it.

[Sheep 0]

Im also wondering the same time, whether is my gal hungry or she just wants the comfort of the breast.

She is almost 8 mths now and just started having porridge. But the minute my parents bring her home, she will start asking for my breast at about 8plus and again between 10-11pm....Then she will wake up at least once more during the nite and her next feed is around 6 plus in the morning.

[janicelly 0]

Sheep,

Since we are away for work most of the day, it's normal for them wanting to nurse the minute they saw us lo. From what you described, her routine is not too bad (at least you wake up only once in the middle of the night *touchwood* hope I didn't jinxed you XD )

[bearbear 0]

Hi,

Just wondering how do u girls keep your EBM in office fridge? Do u girls put the EBM in the cooler bag and put into the freezer / fridge, or just leave the bottles inside and collect after work?

I found out that most of my colleagues kept their EBM in cooler bag and keep in the freezer until the end of the day. But mine, I just put my bottles there as my cooler bag won't fit into the fridge... and one day my hubby's coliq asked him if those milk are mine...

So just wanna see how do the rest keep their EBM in office

[Baby 0]

I just keep the milk in the cooler bag. The ice pack that I am using will only start to defrost after 12 hours..

[Sheep 0]

janice, yeah i know it feels like she misses me since we working mothers are away at work. I think 2 nights ago, the minute i put her on the bed and started to open the buttons, first time i really noticed how happy she look...for these last few nights, she woke up only once as i feed her again close to 11pm...touchwood la

but b4 that it was like a 2-3 hr interval .

bearbear, i leave my ebm in the office fridge during the day

[sumsum2202 0]

Hi everyone,

I gave birth 4 weeks ago. few days after i gave birth, i totally do not have milk and i can't breastfeeding at all. so, i had to give my son formula. however, because i am new mummy and i doesn't know eventhough i do not have milk, i should let my son suck my nipples. i didn't do that can caused my son doen't want to suck my nipples already. i was so sad and have to pump out my milk.

Well, i am not a good mother because i do not have patience. I only pump my milk twice a day. i know this is not good and i am support to pump every 3 hours. well, after 4 weeks now, my milk is getting lesser and lesser. initially i can get 3oz each time i pump and now is less than 1.5oz. will my milk getting lesser and lesser and will stop within 2 months time?

please advice. I am lost here.

Thanks.