Breastfeeding, that is. For sure, I thought with all the milk I had (colostrum, whatever) ahead of time, that it would be a piece of cake. I didnt count on a baby who refused to latch on for more than 2 sucks at a time. Or that would eat 4 or 5 ounces at a time, when really, they’re only supposed to have an ounce or two (according to the lactation consultants), and also, she sleeps for 4 or 5 hours when they’re supposed to be up eating every two.
My mom came and helped re-pack our kitchen. God bless her, she deserves a medal of honor. She helped me for almost 2 hours, and yes, we finally got a couple of sucks, but not enough to feed the poor baby’s belly. She took another or say 3 ounces out of a bottle afterwards. I finally had to pump to get that, as it had been about 7 hours since I had pumped and after almost 2 hours of the baby playing around, let’s just say they hurt like crazy.
I am in the position where I feel like breastfeeding would be best for all of us. Dad doesnt have to do more than make sure mom hears the baby or maybe goes and gets the baby, mom just pulls out the prize and offers it up, baby eats for 20 minutes and goes to sleep. Not the pump while daddy feeds the previous bottle of pumped stuff and counting hours to make sure it’s still good, or having to warm it up if it had been in the fridge, taking an hour and a half because she continually falls asleep, etc. etc. The nurses pegged her as a ‘lazy eater’– you got that right.
And after being kept awake for almost 4 hours, which she normally eats and goes back to sleep, she wouldnt sleep in her crib and I needed to make phone calls, so I put the little munchkin in her carseat in just her diaper on the floor, and you know what, she’s asleep. Little stinker. But I had to make those doctor’s appointments before I completely forgot. My health care is important, right?
Lord have mercy, has anyone else gone through this? Because I know my mom probably thought I had ‘given up’ after 2 hours, but I was sore, swollen and both Keeley and I are soaked in milk from head to foot, plus a pillow or two. So has anyone else had a lazy eater, and did they ever ‘grow’ out of it? Because I’d like breastfeeding to work, but I don’t have 2 hours every 4 hour period to try and get her to end and then end up pumping and bottle feeding her anyway. Does that mean I’m giving up, or just should I try it when I am able to and hope she gets it soon?
Stop pumping for now. Easier for you all. Not pumping is better for your milk production and for your bazooms, too.
One thing I learned that really helped with my ‘lazy eater’ is to line him up properly. His ear, his shoulder and his hip all had to line up. Once we got that figured out, things were lots better.
Contact your local LLL (La Leche League) for all kinds of support.
If you want some online support -the Yahoo group PumpMoms was a tremendous resource for me – lots of moms, some LLL members, all sorts of different situations.
My son was a more spaced out eater, too – but not a lazy eater – we just found our rhythm after a while -but it did take a while.
I know it is not easy -…
We had breastfeeding issues because of Michael’s prematurity and it was something I struggled with for a long time. Just remember that you won’t be any good to Keeley if you are miserable and stressed out. At some point the sacrifice of your sanity may not be worth the benefit of breastfeeding, but only you can make that call. It’s early and things will almost certainly improve. Take advantage of any resources/support available to you and then take a deep breath and try to see what is best for your whole family.
Whatever you decide in the long run, it really does get easier!!!
The beginning is the hardest. Call if you want to. It usually gets better. Ally was kind of lazy, but just because she’d fall asleep. I had to strip her oftentimes, just to keep her awake. It got better. She nursed for a year. honestly, just try to look past the moment. It will get better one way or another. I hated pumping. It’s the reason I breastfed in the first place. Having to warm up a bottle was a PAIN and then pumping while she’s eating? Just didn’t make sense.
It’s definitely easier just to feed them straight off. ,make sure you have her body lined up. It can really make a big difference, and don’t let her be lazy. Don’t worry about her eating too much. That’ll sort itself out.
Seriously, if you want to talk about it, call. Sometimes venting is enough to make you feel better
I don’t think I stressed this enough – Strip her down to her diaper! It does wonders.