Dianne-TX Posted April 20, 2010 Share Posted April 20, 2010 What exactly is a "vigorous" suck or "actively sucking" for 15-20 minutes? Our new son has gotten better, but I wouldn't say his suck is vigorous or active for that long. He does continue to suck and I let him stay on for at least 15 minutes or 20 minutes if he seems interested. I'm just wondering if I'm mistaken that he is doing okay since I wouldn't say his suck is vigorous or active. I'm also not feeling my milk let down strongly like I did. Is that normal? He's almost 2 weeks old. Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Mungo Posted April 20, 2010 Share Posted April 20, 2010 Can you see him swallowing? How is his output? If you're really concerned, counting wet and dirty diapers is one of the best ways to track whether they are getting enough. eta: and it's very normal for the let-down feeling to gradually feel less strong. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wee Pip Posted April 20, 2010 Share Posted April 20, 2010 I got my bottle-feeding preemie to breastfeed when she was 2mos old (at about the time she should've been born). I also expected vigorous and continuous sucking, but her lil preemie suck was so gentle and intermittant, and she kept popping off every few sucks, and then latching back on! A LLL leader said she was doing exactly what she needed to do, though. She pointed out that you could see the ear wiggle slightly. The baby would do about 4-6 rhymthmic sucks and then stop and take a few breaths. Then she'd start sucking again. I did breast compressions (massaging and gentle squeezing) to help her get milk. She is my spit-up baby, so I knew she was getting milk by the large mess that came back up:) Because I was used to pumping milk, I didn't experience a let-down feeling when the baby would do her oh-so-gentle nursing. Anyhow, that's my experience. Look for the slight ear wiggle, jaw movement. And as the pp said, count wet diapers. If you have an LLL leader near you, that can also bring some reassurance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
juelle Posted April 20, 2010 Share Posted April 20, 2010 Can you see him swallowing? How is his output? If you're really concerned, counting wet and dirty diapers is one of the best ways to track whether they are getting enough. eta: and it's very normal for the let-down feeling to gradually feel less strong. :iagree: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted April 20, 2010 Share Posted April 20, 2010 Does he have lots of wet diapers? How often does he nurse? And I think it would be better to let him nurse as long as he wants to. Not all women feel a strong let-down reflex. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mommylawyer Posted April 21, 2010 Share Posted April 21, 2010 I am (currently, literally) breastfeeding my almost 4 month old - my fourth child. I've noticed that he doesn't nurse as long as my other children did, but I think he somehow gets out more milk at one time than my others did. He actually gets a bit choked almost every time he nurses, but he's always nursed less than 15 minutes at a time (10 minutes is the norm for him). Also, it wasn't until he was closer to a month old before I felt a letdown WHILE feeding him. Even now, about half the time he nurses, I don't get a letdown, but he's fine! Just watch his output... make sure that not only is he making several wet diapers a day, but that his poopy diapers are seedy (if they don't look seedy, it could be that he's not getting enough milk fat). Also, now that he's two weeks old, he should be gaining weight again - you know, they usually lose weight the first week. As for the letdown, maybe you can put a warm damp washcloth to your breast for 3-5 minutes before you start nursing, or try to gently massage the breast (gently pushing toward the nipple on all sides) before you nurse. It may be that your letdown isn't as strong with this one or your body isn't ready to make a noticeable letdown yet. Good luck - and congratulations! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LibraryLover Posted April 21, 2010 Share Posted April 21, 2010 What are his diapers like? Oops. Mrs Mungo asked that already. Sorry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leila Posted April 21, 2010 Share Posted April 21, 2010 If you're concern about how much milk your baby is getting, aside from counting wet diapers, the only thing I can advice is to breastfeed as frequent as you can. I breastfed all my children and the first 2 mos, I don't try to schedule the feeding. I try to feed as frequent as I could. It also helps to make more milk. The more the baby eat, the more milk you produce. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
junepep Posted April 21, 2010 Share Posted April 21, 2010 My milk letdown was very quick. I'd get them to take 5-8mins and then bang we were done. Both girls grew completely normally (I never supplemented with formula) breastfeeding every 3 hours. 20 minutes is a guide for the average baby. If your baby is sucking vigorously for the first 2-3 minutes (ie swallowing well every second or two) and then sucking intermittently after that your milk may just come out quickly like mine. Keep an eye on warning signs, fussing after an hour or two (trying to nuzzle towards your breasts), lack of wet diapers (6-8/day is normal I believe -maybe more from 2-4 weeks, I felt like I was changing 20 diapers a day some days ;)) and most critical of all - lethargy. Baby should seem more alert as each day passes, if you're not seeing slight increases in awake time on a week-to-week basis it would be worth calling your Doctor and scheduling a weight check before your next scheduled appt (most offices will not charge for this quick check by a nurse, but confirm prior to the appt). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dianne-TX Posted April 21, 2010 Author Share Posted April 21, 2010 Thanks everyone. He has enough wet diapers every day, but today his dirty diapers have been more yellow, wet toots. However, in 24 hours, he's had two substantial (or I would say more substantial BM diapers, yellow and seedy). I can see him sucking and hear his swallowing. He has his marathon feedings in the evenings. He is staying awake more often than before. I guess he's doing all you all mentioned. I'm just concerned now that he's not producing good BM's. Maybe tonight he'll catch up. Let me know what you think about the yellow, wet toots without the seediness. He goes for his two week weight check on Thursday, so hopefully he's back up to his birth weight which was 6 lbs. 1 oz. He was a little guy born at 36 weeks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LibraryLover Posted April 21, 2010 Share Posted April 21, 2010 I think it sounds great. Remember too, that milk volume is greatest between midnight and 6 am. Nice, huh? ;) Just when we need to sleep. (If you think about early humans, that makes sense. Mamamals are kept close to their mothers at night for protection from predators). Nurse him, nurse him, nurse him. It sounds like you are doing awesome. If you can get any help during the day with chores or the other children, get it. If someone offers to help, let them! :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supertechmom Posted April 21, 2010 Share Posted April 21, 2010 Remember the bms begin to change from every feeding to once and now. My ped told me to not get concerned even if he goes 5 DAYS with out a movement because that would be normal for a BF baby. :001_huh: Mine has just turned 4 months and went from a bm every feeding to three times a day to once a day and now every other day on the BMs (and yes it is a ton of poop at once!) Maybe he's starting to change up on ya??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TengoFive Posted April 21, 2010 Share Posted April 21, 2010 Don't panic if he starts wanting to nurse round the clock soon too. It's about time for marathon nursing to begin in preparation for a growth spurt. Mine always started to do what I call "tanking up" in the evenings. They would nurse for basically all evening. They'd nurse and then show signs of wanting to nurse again 5 minutes later. That generally lasted about 2 hours and then they'd go to sleep for their long spell. I agree with others who mention not trying to schedule nursing. Babies know when they're hungry and different babies have different metabolisms and storage capacity. Just follow his cues and watch the diapers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted April 21, 2010 Share Posted April 21, 2010 His BMs are not all that important. It's the wet diapers that are, as well as a general well-baby look, KWIM? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phathui5 Posted April 21, 2010 Share Posted April 21, 2010 Here are good video clips from Dr Newman's website: http://www.nbci.ca/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&layout=blog&id=6&Itemid=13 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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