Warning - lotsa baby stuff I wouldn't have had a clue on or been interested in before. But I know there are some preggos reading, so thought I'd update. Will post pics later...
I had a bit of (okay, a lot of) a breakdown yesterday. It wasn't pretty. We had a great first few days and I was on a high. Then poor Riley weighed in 15% down on his 5-day and then continued to lose weight on his 7-day. In between he was super fussy and would "feed" for a few hours, constantly falling asleep on the breast, then fuss for an hour before wanting to feed again. Eventually we'd both fall asleep for a few hours in the morning exhausted. And while we had my nan here to help and she would take him while he slept I am just too programmed to do "stuff", especially with visitors over. Oh, and his poor bum was raw and he had constant (every few minutes) squirts, so it was impossible to keep clean. It was a downwards spiral (so fast!) of his being too tired to eat, so not getting sustenance and therefore being tired. So yes, I was falling apart.
Humbling.
Thank heaven for midwives. Leah came yesterday, spent three hours with us, took control and we now have a plan. He's not sucking right even though the latch looks good. He's not getting enough milk and especially hind milk (the creamy stuff) - so he's not gaining weight and he's got the runs since the balance is off. First, we're getting his weight up by pumping after he feeds for half an hour on the boob. While I pump, Simon feeds him the pumped stuff in a little tube (avoid nipple confusion). At least 8x/day (every three hours). Once he starts gaining weight, we'll deal with the longer term fix.
Leah left at 4pm after our first pumped feeding. Immediate results. He had a bunch of pees, poos are more solid and further apart and he sleeps. Also, Simon's helping with the feeds so is now getting up at night as well. Last night he was responsible for the alarm which made such a difference just having someone else change his diaper and wake me up when he is ready. Thanks Simon.
Okay, this was long and way too detailed. My heart goes out to people with sick or premie babies - a tiny taste of it and I was a wreck. Will keep you posted. For now, bed.
3 comments:
Tessa, I can't read and not comment:) Big hugs to you, Simon and Riley. I'm glad that he's getting more hindmilk now and hopefully helping out his tummy and diaper situation. That's awesome that your midwife can support you guys so much. Hoping he's happier and more content now. I know how hard those 8 X 3 hour feeds are, you can do it!! See you soon. Louise
Hang in there guys, you're doing great! I'm glad you have such a helpful midwife too. Sammy was a skinny little guy when he was born and lost over 10% of his bodyweight in week one too because he wasn't feeding properly. I remember having to pump for him for a little while but eventually he got the hang of the breastfeeding thing, and so will Riley. I remember Sam falling asleep while feeding - we used to take his socks off, then eventually most of his clothes just to wake him up so he'd feed a bit longer!! (A midwife suggestion for us)
I hope he continues to do poops and wees like he's supposed to!
Love to all of you, erica
Brought me to tears- I can so relate. The non-stop feeding, on top of the worry, on top of sleep-deprivation crazy. I understand.
Just keep going, you can do this, it gets better.
It doesn't matter how ugly it is. Keep breast feeding, the 3 of you need to just get through the first months. It's like a nationals final- you played beautifully all season long, but winning at nationals is only about getting through it- it doesn't have to be pretty.
Sending all our love
beck, jane, finn and emalia
Post a Comment