For me, the answer was no. I tried so hard to breastfeed. My milk came in late, and so during that time we supplemented Julia with formula. And then once my milk did come in, it wasn't very much. I did everything I was supposed to: I pumped after every feeding (and usually didn't even get 1/4 of an ounce after 20 minutes...ultra depressing), I took Fenugreek, I drank Mother's Milk herbal tea, and I did breastfeeding boot camp which consisted of nursing around the clock. I was completely unprepared for the insane desire I felt to nourish my baby, and the utter devastation I felt when I couldn't.The end result? A starving baby and a depressed mom. Julia started off being such a perfect baby, but after a week of breastfeeding boot camp she was fussy and inconsolable and wouldn't sleep, and I couldn't stop crying. Greg and I kept arguing about giving her a bottle, and Greg kept sneaking her formula at night.
Finally, I remembered from my earlier blog post:
2. Sleep deprivation = Insane and irrational behavior and thoughts
3. Always trust Greg who is sane and rational at all times
So on Sunday April 1st, the three of us went to the hospital to see a lactation consultant. She weighed Julia before I fed her, then I breastfed for 30 minutes, and then we weighed her to see how much milk she got.
After 30 minutes of hard work, sweet Julia hadn't even gotten an ounce. This is after my milk supply was at its highest.
The lactation consultant said it was medically necessary for me to supplement as she was just barely making her weight goals with formula and breastmilk. She also gave me a Supplementary Nursing System (or SNS), pictured below...but that boob isn't mine, and before you think this is really weird, that's not Julia either.
Yep, that's a tube of formula going into the baby's mouth, allowing the baby to get formula and breastmilk at the same time.
I lasted for about 24 hours on the SNS, and then I decided life was too short to sit in my bedroom with a tube taped to my boob, and life was WAY too short to be pumping every feeding and getting only 1/4 of an ounce.
And to add insult to injury, we were diagnosed with thrush on Monday.
So Julia is a formula baby now, and can I just say, she is soooo happy! She has gained almost a pound this last week, weighs 7 lbs finally, is sleeping 6 hours during the night, never fusses, and in short is a perfect baby.
So here's my parenting advice for any new moms out there. Starve your child the first two weeks of life, and then when you finally start to feed them the third week they'll be so grateful for the food that they will automatically be perfect children!
I lasted for about 24 hours on the SNS, and then I decided life was too short to sit in my bedroom with a tube taped to my boob, and life was WAY too short to be pumping every feeding and getting only 1/4 of an ounce.
And to add insult to injury, we were diagnosed with thrush on Monday.
So Julia is a formula baby now, and can I just say, she is soooo happy! She has gained almost a pound this last week, weighs 7 lbs finally, is sleeping 6 hours during the night, never fusses, and in short is a perfect baby.
So here's my parenting advice for any new moms out there. Starve your child the first two weeks of life, and then when you finally start to feed them the third week they'll be so grateful for the food that they will automatically be perfect children!
8 comments:
Jaimee was telling me about all of your troubles. It sounds like you did everything you could. I am so glad that she is happy, sleeping well, and gaining weight! I look forward to finally meeting her one day!
Very smart parent decision Lara (and Greg)! Formula babies can do everything breastfed babies do...and sometimes better:)
Great Job Lara! I am happy to hear your baby is happy, healthy, and sleeping 6 hours during the night! Sounds like you are all doing great!
I can understand how you feel. Nursing is so personal. Formula is a godsend! So glad to hear it was the right decision. I'm laughing because Geoff is the sane logical one in our relationship, too. I get frustrated sleep training Genevieve when I myself getting up with her 4x during the night between 1am & 6am. He'll say "just put her in her car seat" and sure enough! She sleeps through the night!
Well, that sounds all too familiar. I worked around the clock, and finally when she was about 6 weeks old I was able to switch to only breast feeding, but even at that, some months she didn't gain any weight until solids were introduced. My supply (if we can cal it that) picked up and left at about 9-10 months. Just gone. I spent way too much time crying about not being able to nurse the way it should happen. Supply and demand and all that garbage that people that forget the high mortality rates of infants in years past try to shove down your throat.
Congratulations on wising up faster than I did. I'm glad that I can't even be tempted next time. I think nursing is wonderful and I truly wish that it always happened for everyone, but I'm very grateful for formula. Cause life is just gonna happen that way sometimes.
Whatever you do, do NOT beat yourself up over this. It doesn't make you less of a mom because your baby is formula fed. You already have enough to deal with without adding that! Great job! Can't wait to meet her!
Oh gosh. I wish you would have called me. Would have told you to save the drama and go to the formula. My boobs don't produce milk well either and I did the exact same thing you did with Emma. (crying, irrational, etc.) yu really do feel like such a failure when you can't do the feeding thing yourself. Anyway, so glad you and she are both happy now and well fed. She is just beautiful!!! Can't believe she is already one month! Congrats!! You have survived the hardest part. All down hill from here. Love and miss you! You get my package?
It's definitely the right thing to do and I'm proud of you for doing so much that first month - you are a trooper... that's for sure. Both of you!... ok, all 3 of you!
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