Since we have been supplementing with some formula, Anistynn's weight has continued to go up. We've been taking her in to the pediatrician's office every 2 days to get her weighed. She was up 2 ounces today, which means an ounce a day. Dr. Eki said that was great. But it also states that we indeed need to supplement for her to gain weight. Apparently, I just cannot produce enough. This makes me sad, but again, I will do whatever is best for Anistynn, and that means supplementing so that she can put on some pounds! We actually tried only breastfeeding one day and she went down an ounce, so we know we've got to continue supplementing. It makes me sad that I cant be fully what she needs, but Dr. Eki said this happens with lots of mothers and it's not my fault, nor does it make me a bad mother. I admit that sometimes I think that, even though I have no control over it. I was actually using a pump too so that I could see what I would be giving to Anistynn and it's really not much. It varies daily, but I guess I just have low production?? Anyway, Dr. Eki gave us a couple options: 1) breastfeed and then supplement; 2) pump and give her the expressed milk and then supplement; 3) or just switch over to complete formula. He mentioned that if we continue to use a bottle with the supplements (which we'll have to do regardless), she might eventually not want to breastfeed anymore so I'd need to prepare for that. If I decided to just pump, I'd have to do it every 2 -3 hours and with baby's schedule so up in the air, there's no guarantee that Icould even do that. And I know it wont be enough to rely on to get her through the whole day.
Before I had her, I was always wary of breastfeeding. I know it's a natural thing to do but I was really nervous about it, which I'm sure is a normal feeling. But after I had her, it wasnt near as weird or bad as I thought it was going to be and truthfully, it hurt me to know that I couldnt give her fully what she needs from me alone. But I'm not so dead set on it that I'm freaking out about giving her formula. I know plenty of babies who were formula-fed that turned out just fine. So if we had to eventually go to that only, I would be okay. But for now, I will continue to do all three: I will breastfeed, pump, and use formula. As long as she wants to breastfeed, I will let her do it if she asks for it. Right now, it kind of seems like she gets a little from it, but mostly she uses me as a pacifier. It's probably mainly a comfort thing. She drinks fine out of a bottle and I've been pumping as often as I can. We then switch out between expressed milk and formula. If she eventually stops breastfeeding, I will probably continue to pump every so often so she can at least have some breast milk. We'll just take it day by day.
1 comments:
Hey there. I've been reading your blog for a few weeks now, and we are in similar circumstances. I had a baby about a month before you. Hopefully this isnt creepy!
My baby wouldn't latch, so I've been exclusively pumping. She just latched last week, but it's shallow and wrong, and she only uses it for comfort, so I'm still basically pumping all the time. I had low supply at first, but I took fenugreek supplements ( mothers milk plus brand) found at health food stores. It really helped boost my supply, along with eating real oatmeal.
Keep it up. The first month can be tough, but it sounds like you're doing great!
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