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Offline tammyg

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too sleepy to feed!!
« on: October 22, 2005, 19:36:38 pm »
My little boy, Tariq (our first), is almost three weeks old.  We have had a rough go with the bf so far and I am soooo frustrated!!!  On top of cracked and bleeding nipples, he is difficult to keep awake to eat.

Any tips on how to keep him awake.

Also, I am constantly having to wake him for his feed times (trying to stick to every three hours during the day)....is this normal and what is the best way to wake a sleeping baby to eat?
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annamum

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too sleepy to feed!!
« Reply #1 on: October 22, 2005, 23:32:10 pm »
Are your nipples healing now, or do you still have pain while nursing? I am asking this because if you are still in pain, it is possible your latch is not OK and needs to be corrected. If you suspect this to be the case, let me know, we will help.

As for a sleepy baby... We tried nursing our dd in diaper only so she wouldn't get too cozy soon, massaging her neck, or patting her hands. Some keep their little ones awake by rubbing their face with a wet washcloth, I never tried this. However, at this age it is sooo normal that they fall asleep on the job. Try this and see if it works but soon, he will be less sleepy and more alert, he will become more efficient nurser and if you keep EASY cycle he won't fall asleep while nursing. My dd started to be super fast nurser at around 7 weeks, she was usually finished in 5 minutes.

Good luck!
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Offline MCGoldsmith

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too sleepy to feed!!
« Reply #2 on: October 22, 2005, 23:35:48 pm »
It is very normal that babies are hard to wake during the first weeks. Enjoy it while they are little sleepy-heads. :wink:
But it's so important to wake them for feedings. I would try tickling feet, you can gently rub the spine, you can sit baby in an upright position when they have really drifted off. I have also heard of blowing in the face and touching the forehead w/a damp cloth.

I had an EXTREMELY hard time,too. If you are determined hang in there. My lo is 14 weeks and he & I finally got the hang of it at around 7 or 8 weeks and now it's hard to even believe I had trouble. Purelan nipple cream is a life-saver. Good luck to you.  :)
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Offline Erin (redstarfalling)

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too sleepy to feed!!
« Reply #3 on: October 23, 2005, 12:59:12 pm »
Definitely get your latch checked - your nipples shouldn't be cracked and bleeding anymore if the latch is ok! And if the latch isn't great, then he might not be getting quite enough and he'll be more likely to fall asleep on the job.

That said, I had to do everything Monika suggested as well as use a washcloth with very cold water for the first few weeks.  Both dd and I were stripped to the waist, I'd burp her often, change her diaper between sides AND use the cold water, along with breast compression when she slowed down.  It worked!  And after a few weeks of this (maybe 3 or 4), she started staying awake better and eating fuller feeds.
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Offline tammyg

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too sleepy to feed!!
« Reply #4 on: October 24, 2005, 00:38:17 am »
My nipples are healing okay....I've received some cream from my doctor, and was also advised to use a nipple shield to feed with.  One of the nipples is healed completely, the other has just one small crack left but is coming along good...so it feels...

My next issue, however, is regarding the shield....it went MIA on me during an early morning feed so I thought I would just get him onto my actual nipple.  The latch was an issue, we're still working on that, but he also seemed to not even want to take my own nipple.  Not a good thing to happen to frustrated mom at 2 AM....

I'm wondering a few things here...did we dig ourselves a hole by using the shield to begin with and now he's only used to that?  Tariq was slightly tongue tied, and got snipped, but still is said to have a short tounge...is this perhaps causing a problem with the latch?  And I'm not sure if my nipples are big enough for him to latch on properly...how do you tell?

Thanks everyone for your advice on keeping him awake...we've tried pretty much all of those and things are ticking along....we'll keep it up for sure.

Tammy
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Offline Erin (redstarfalling)

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too sleepy to feed!!
« Reply #5 on: October 24, 2005, 00:56:41 am »
Nipple shields can become problematic with some people...Can you check again with an lc to help with the transition away from them?  As for the size of your nipple, I suspect that won't be a problem with a good latch - most nipples end up getting pretty expanded with a bit of nursing!  :wink:
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Erin
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