the first few hours...first three days

Ok so what I am afraid of is the baby being born and then trying to nurse and being nervous that there is no milk and then the baby cries and I get nervous and go to formula. So I would like to know what to expect before I reach that nervous stage. I know at first it is just colostrum. How much does the baby need to eat that first day through the 1st three days? I say three days just because that is how long I will be in the hospital. And then when during that first few days do I pump? Is there ever a time during those initial days that I am not supposed to pump? Or am I to be sure I do pump in those first days? Thanks for any tips!!!


Also, something that has been on my mind...I have been craving a beer since the day I took my pregnancy test! How does that work with nursing? How limited is it? I assume it is all about timing..,

 

I only have the twins for reference, but my colostrum didn't start coming in until about 12 hrs after they were born and I didn't attempt nursing until the next morning. But I did have a nurse that was wonderful and forced me up to pump every couple of hours after my c-section. So basically, I would go and visit the twins in the NICU at least every 3 hrs and try and nurse them both.. and then I would go back to my room to rest in between and give the pump a go.

If I had it all to do over again, I would ask for the baby to be put on my tummy right after my c-section and attempt nursing as soon as possible. Then I would nurse on demand (or every 3 hrs at least while baby is sleepy) and pump in between feedings for a few minutes to encourage supply. Basically the more you stimulate the better chance you have with your milk coming in. Your baby won't need a lot of extra nutrients the first few days as they're living off of fat reserves, but obviously the quicker your milk comes in the better.

I was also told that pumping at night was quite important as your body is producing the right hormones at night for supply. I don't know how true that was... but it did get me awake a few times at night to pump even when my kids were in the NICU and I was VERY tempted to start formula and I had a really good supply established by the time I left the hospital just 4 days later. We didn't have to introduce any formula until I got mastitis and had supply issues several months later.

Just wanted to add.. it will all seem a lot more natural when you're actually doing it! And :youcandoit:

 

Thanks!

So if I am pumping, am I saving it in those early days or is it just to get me going? I assume nothing really actually comes out since it is the beginning??

 

My singleton experience was MUCH different than with my twins, so I'll give you my singleton experience since that is what you are having!

Lennon was a vaginal birth and went straight from exiting my body to laying on my chest. He rooted around a bit but I only had him for a minute or two before they took him away to check his vitals, etc. I got him back within 15ish minutes and started nursing right away. He roomed in with me and I spent the majority of the time in the hospital nursing him - I had a great nurse who really showed me how to ensure that he had a good latch and was doing everything that he should. His blood sugar was borderline and this nurse even told me to turn down any offers of formula until it became critical for him to lower his blood sugar. Sure enough, within a few hours his blood sugar was lower despite not giving him any formula. I was so appreciative to that nurse for all of the help and encouragement she gave me - I would have been clueless regarding the blood sugar had she not said something.

Anyway, Lennon was a voracious nurser, but he also fell asleep quickly any time he latched on. So, I had to always keep him going - through feet tickling, chin rubbing, stripping down to his diaper, etc. I never pumped with him until I started my graduate classes in the evenings and my DH was staying with him. At that point he was 6 weeks old and I would just try to squeeze in little 10 or 15 minute pumping sessions while he slept then I also pumped halfway through my 2 hour class which gave me a nice stash for the next night. Had I not been taking those classes, I'm not sure if I ever would have pumped - I never had any supply issues, but I nursed on demand pretty much forever! :laughing:

You can totally do this, Nicole!!! :hug: Don't even think about how much the baby needs/is getting. Focus on the wet and dirty diapers, that's it. If the baby is having the right amount of diapers, you know she (right?) is getting plenty. And if the baby is crying, just offer your breast. You really can't nurse too often (especially during the first few months), you will be building your supply and you will feel more confident that the baby is getting what she needs. a win-win! :hug:

 

Thanks so much girls! So much thought into your posts! This has been very helpful...it gives me a good visual for what is to come!

 

this is all great advise. i would encourage you to not pump at all, and just focus on getting the baby to the breast as often as s/he wants. milk supply is established in the first 6 ish weeks, so its important to nurse often during that time. which won't be a problem, lol, as most babies want to nurse pretty much all the time! :laughing: its totally normal for them to want to nurse every 30 mins, or even more often than that. not all babies do, but just wanted to mention it because when it happens lots of moms worry that they aren't making enough milk. not that case at all. watch the diapers. what goes in must come out.

as far as a drink goes, its fine to have one now and again, some even say once a day. beer specifically is actually good for milk supply, so i say go for it! obviously you shouldn't down 4 or 5, but 1 isn't going to hurt anything. of course you have to be comfortable with it and maybe you want to read more about it before making your decision, or maybe you want to only drink at night right after baby goes to bed so there is a longer period of time before nursing again.

your body starts making colostrum while you are still pg--some women report leaking in the later weeks of pg. you might be able to squeeze some out to see for yourself. new babies only take in teaspoons of colostrum, typically, and that is all they need. they have tiny tiny tummies, and don't need a lot. the colostrum will help close the gut, and is full of antibodies. good stuff. :ibiggrin:

i haven't posted here for ages, so forgive me for seeming like an intruder/newbie. i am currently nursing my singleton, and nursed my twins for nearly 3 years. i was here getting some links for someone who is expecting twins in may and saw your post and had to respond.

best of luck to you.

 

here's a great article on colostrum & the size of a newborn's tummy - i especially like the visual at the bottom of the page.

i wouldn't worry about pumping in the beginning unless there's a medical need to (if baby needs to spend time in the nursery, for example) - otherwise, putting her to the breast often (every 2 - 3 hours) is the absolute best way to stimulate milk production.

here's an article from kellymom on what to expect in the first few weeks of nursing - the information on wet & dirty diapers is especially helpful. as PPs have said, what goes in must come out, and that's the best way to tell if baby's getting enough. keep in mind too that if for some reason baby wasn't getting enough milk, supplementation is usually not the solution you want to try first. your best bet is to meet with a good lactation consultant who can evaluate baby's position & latch & make sure that milk is transferring well from breast to baby. they can also help you with finding ways to supplement that will protect the breastfeeding relationship if it is necessary.

and here's what Jack Newman (a respected doctor who runs a breastfeeding clinic in Ontario) has to say about alcohol & breastfeeding:
"Myth: A mother should not drink alcohol while breastfeeding. Not true! Reasonable alcohol intake should not be discouraged at all. As is the case with most drugs, very little alcohol comes out in the milk. The mother can take some alcohol and continue breastfeeding as she normally does. Prohibiting alcohol is another way we make life unnecessarily restrictive for breastfeeding mothers." read the whole article here.

 

PP have given AWESOME advice so far. the only thing I have to add is stay away from pacifiers until BF is well established (4-6 weeks) so you have no nipple confusion and you don't miss any feedings. and on day 2/3 when that baby starts really waking up and crying think of this article Babys Second Night

All the nursing you do in the first 2 weeks is what sets you up for the LONG TERM so nurse EARLY, OFTEN!

 

Nicole- you and me are in the same boat. THANK YOU for asking this! I'm going to memorize it! I'm nervous, too!! I just feel like it won't come naturally to ME! I'm excited tho! I will be thinking about you! When is she due? What are you naming her? I find out what i'm having on Saturday (15 week private u/s) and I BET it's a boy!

 

I started putting Coop on the boob as soon as he was weighed and cleaned off, before we even went to our room. Of course, I had never BF'd a baby before so I was NOT latching him on. :lol:

What surprised me about BF'ing is that I didn't need to worry about it as much as I did. My baby was taken away from me and put in the NICU and given formula. I wasn't given a pump until the next day. I was sure this was going to keep me from being able to BF, so although I did pump, I sent him to the nursery over night the 2nd night we were in the hospital and let them give him formula again. It didn't interfere with BF'ing him at all. I pumped often on that 2nd day at the hospital b/c I felt more confident on the pump than I did latching him on. After the LC's came in a few times and showed me how to get him on the boob it helped me a lot. I was way more worried about it than I needed to be. I did buy a pump and the first few weeks I pumped in addition to feeding him a lot. And I did get a good bit of colustrum with the pump in the hospital, which they mixed with the formula when they fed him.

Just don't put too much stress on yourself. If you want to BF you can do it, even if things don't start off perfectly. Just keep putting the baby on. I had so much doubt in myself at the beginning that we probably did 50% of his feeds from bottles just so I could be sure he was getting enough. It didn't hurt anything. Now he's is 3.5 months old and will only eat from a bottle if I'm not home and he's starving. If I try to feed him a bottle he gags.

I like to have a glass of wine at night after he's in bed! After a long day with 3 kids 3 and under you can bet I look forward to my glass of wine. :lol:

 

Great advice from the pp's. I second the rec to not pump unless there is a medical reason to. I never pumped for my twins until I went back to work. Just nurse on demand. Also, remember that babies cry for reasons other than hunger. I love the article on stomach size! It is so true. It is actually more common in the first 2 days for baby to be sleepy and uninterested in feeds than it is for baby to be crying due to hunger.

My best advice is to not overthink it, trust your body, and enjoy your baby.

The estimated time for a beer to get out of your system is 2-3 hours, so you can definitely have some. Just drink it right after a feeding and you'll be good by the next! LC's often recommend Guinness as one that is really good for milk supply

 

Like you I was really nervous about BFing this baby. I had only partially bfeed my twins and I wanted to EBF the baby, but also thought that it would be okay to give him some formula. I didn't want to set myself up for failure or to be disappointed. In retospect I think the whole previous twins experience makes us too quick to think something won't go smoothly.

I think you've already got the best advise, feed as early and as often as you can. What I can tell you is it worked for me. I has some intial problems due to inverted nipples. But I never pumped and I didn't supplement. I exclusively breastfeed until starting solids at six months and I've continued to breastfeed and plan to until around 18months.

 

HELEN!!! So good to see you here!!!

Nicole, you have received some great advice. I really cannot add to it. Helen was a moderator here some years ago for the breastfeeding forum. She has some AWESOME advice! I would try to nurse as soon as possible... the baby does not need much, but there will be something there for her. Get as much help from the nurses as possible or as much as you can tolerate! Great questions! Just keep nursing! Great questions!

 

Most moms have better luck with hand expression in the early days and collecting it via spoon or syringe. Colostrum is just so thick and sticky it often sprays and sticks to the flanges and thus you don't get any of that liquid gold!

Also, an article Im not sure you've read: The virgin gut especially important if you have allergies in your family.

 

I replied this morning but it looks like it vanished into cyberspace!!!

Meredith, on April 26th, I have a scheduled csection and we will name her Katherine Sophia.

Thank so all so much. I am so much at ease now just knowing that feeding her on demand very often is key. Thank you for all your support! I truly appreciate it! I think that after my negative experience with the boys, it has made me nervous but I am really thinking/hoping it will be different this time!

 

I just wanted to add.. the biggest key is not beating yourself up either. If things don't go well right away and you resort to formula because you have to, just move on from it and get back on that horse. I spent too much time stressing about bf'ing all the time whether I was doing it right nor not, and not enough effort establishing good bf'ing habits in the beginning. If I had relaxed a little I would have focused more on learning how to get a good latch and what that felt like.. but instead I was always feeling like I was just desperate to make sure they got fed.

So many if's! But I guess what I am trying to say is just set overall goals for bf'ing and understand that there will be deviations along the way.

 

I really think twins make you over-think breastfeeding. With my first son, I didn't even consider that I wouldn't make enough, that he wasn't getting enough, that he could still be hungry, etc. I just nursed him all day long, he was peeing and pooping like he should, and that was that! I trusted my body a lot more with him and was much more at ease. Try to "forget" as much as you can about your negative experience with nursing your boys and start new and fresh with her - in reality, it will probably be a completely different experience for you! :hug: