Co-sleeping/Breastfeeding questions

Jenny - posted on 06/11/2010

Hi Mia,
Brenda gave you some awesome advice, so I'll just add on my thoughts. I'm a B/C normally, and a C/D when nursing, so on the smaller side. At the beginning I still had to hold my breast (especially the first few weeks when I had way too much milk). Emma is 5 months now and does it all her self. I barely even wake up when she wants to nurse.

I found it takes a litte experimenting to get a comfortable position to sleep in. I've got it figured out now, but it definitely took a little trial and error. I sleep with a pillow behind my back and I lie on my side, with my weight slightly back against the pillow. I have my arm above my baby, but because my weight is shifted slightly backwards there's no pressure on my shoulder and my arm doesn't go to sleep. Sounds kind of confusing, but basically just experiment to see what works best for you.

I did have to burp my baby for the first month or so after she nursed because she was prone to spitting up and holding her upright and burping her really helped. After the first month though, there was no issue with having to burp her after.

For the first 6 weeks or so I had to wear a bra to bed so I could wear nursing pads because otherwise the bed would be soaked! By 2 months my breasts finally figured out they didn't need to feed an army and I was able to go to sleep without a bra. I still usually wear nursing pads, because the breast I'm not nursing on always leaks and I'd rather not have to worry about a big wet spot in public. If I forget though, as long as I put a little pressure on the nipple it doesn't leak. Sometimes tricky to do discreetly, but not so bad.

Stick with it! To me there is NOTHING better than waking up in the morning and having my baby right beside me. I love that I'm the first thing she sees when she wakes up. She blinks a couple times to adjust to the light and then gives me the biggest smile. I wouldn't trade that for anything. I've slept so much better for not having to get up to nurse. I can go to bed at 10 and sleep until 7, without having to get out of bed or really wake up. It's definitely trickier in the beginning, but stay with it, it gets SOOO much easier once you get the hang of it.
Cheers!

Mia - posted on 06/10/2010

thanks brenda so much for your very insightful reply! I think we're in a similar situation. My first was bottle fed and slept in his own cot from day dot. So i beleive you when you say co-sleeping is easier, as you have been down the other road too. That is every encouraging to hear.

Thank you for answering all of my questions :) I cant wait to try again tonight to see how it goes, am so glad i got a response before night fell (Im from Australia just for info.) Im definatley going to try the sleeping on stomach and feed from top boob, sounds like it could be easier than side feeding. And good to hear from another big breasted mummy (although im only a E, so you've got two up on me :)) At same time im curious to know if its easier for smaller breasted mummies...

Thanks again for your reply!

Brenda - posted on 06/10/2010

Well, let me see here, just to let you know about me, I'm a fully cosleeping mom (he's never slept anywhere else, even slept in the bed with me in the hospital), fully breastfeeding, no bottles, never even took pumped bottles, and I have size G boobs, so these suckers are huge.

"Is it ok to have bubs fall asleep at breast after a night feed without burping her? (i.e to keep her sleeping) "

Yes it is. Breastfed babies do not take in as much air, and if she falls asleep on you, just let her sleep. Believe me, if she has too much air, she won't be asleep. I even went so far as to not changing a diaper unless it was poopy or leaking out.

"Should i unlatch bubs if she fell asleep on breast or just leave her to eventually detach herself? "

Up to you. You don't have to. Unlike bottles, boobs only give milk when they actively suck on them, so there is no reason to unlatch. Once teething or teeth come in, you may want to because they can bite down in their sleep and woo does it hurt.

"Is it a good idea to feed from one breast only at a time during the night feeds? "

It is always a good idea to nurse from one side. You can always offer the other, but don't switch unless done with the first. Same goes for at night. If you are larger breasted, you can lay on your stomach and pull the breast to the side and hold it for nursing. Larger breasted women often have to hold the breast even after the baby is older. We still do, even at 13 months.

"I'm a bit concerned with baby's nose squashed against my breast to feed, and i try to hold my breast away from nose to let her breathe. Is this unnecessary or is it coz im not positioning her right, or my boobs are too big? "

The nose naturally makes a pocket around itself when it is against the breast tissue. If you hear snuffling or something, scoot your body down to a different angle. Side lying nursing is sometimes the hardest to master. But once you get it right for you and her it is so easy.

"I find it hard to fall asleep with baby in the side-lying breastfeeding position. My arm goes dead and i cant get comfortable coz i cant move, otherwise baby will wake. Any suggestions? "

It may take a while, but you'll find eventually once she is asleep good, you can pull away and reposition yourself. I often pull away and lay beside him on my belly. I also feed from the "top" breast like I mentioned above by laying on my belly and reaching my arm under myself to position the breast with my hand. I then sneak my hand out from under myself and then go to sleep on my stomach. I lay my other arm on top of the bedrail or tent it over the baby.

"Sometimes she does a long sleep - about 4 hours straight - and i find that my breasts get engorged and i get all sweaty as i usually feed her 2-3hourly during the day. Will this go away with time or should i wake her up to feed more regularly during night?"

Your milk supply will even out. It is a suppy and demand system, so the longer the sleeps the more likely to get engorged you'll be. If you want you can try dreamfeeding when you are engorged and she's sleeping. Just slip the nipple near her mouth and she'll latch on when she smells it and may never wake up. Either that or you can express some milk when it happens. I just waited it out.

"I find that my breasts can leak at random during the day and night. Is this because its still the early days or is this just what happens with breastfeeding in general? If its something that goes hand in hand with breastfeeding, how do you cope with it? (Yes i know there are breast pads but i find these annoying - they can look funny through my shirt and they get unstuck when i bring down my bra cup to nurse) I'm hoping there are other ways to deal with it? Or could it be that i don't empty them properly at feeds? Or is it because sometimes i feed too often (at times i feed her every 1.5 hours if she is real unsettled) and i have too much milk? "

Leaking varies from woman to woman. Some women leak all during nursing, others just at the beginning. I leaked so much during the first three months that I could drench four pads a day. If you buy reusable ones, they don't look as bad through your clothes. Or the playtex ones, I think, are the ones that have two strips of adhesive on the back, and they stay on better. I never wore them at night, I just slept on a towel or a baby blanket, and left my flaps open. I still do the same. But you may stop leaking. I only leak when I'm really full of milk these days. In fact, I don't even wear breastpads anymore.

"gosh, it just all seems so hard, really need some encouragement to keep me going."

I know, but it does get easier! The first six weeks are the toughest, but you are already making things easier on yourself by choosing to cosleep. I can't tell you how much more likely you are to succeed at nursing because of that choice. I have been so much bettter rested with cosleeping this time than last time when I formula fed and crib slept with my first!