How do you pump and bottle feed and do everything else in the day?
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It was a nurse who specialised in breastfeeding. How would I get in contact with one? Do I just Google?
Where are you located? I’m in California but yes I just googled lactation consultants and found one that accepts insurance. I would absolutely get a second opinion though. Them just saying your nipples are too small and that being the end of that is crazy to me
I feel exactly the same. My little girl was 5 weeks early and spent 2 weeks in NICU. She’s only just past her birth weight at 4 weeks when she was still only 4lbs 10oz. She needs feeding every 3 hours but because she has had weight issues, we need to supplement with bottle feeding my expressed milk. This means every 3 hours is nappy change, breast feed, EBM bottle top up, breast feed again (as the bottle wakes her up) and then double pump. I feel like I only end up with about an hour between feeds where my boobs aren’t in use! It’s so difficult when all you’re told is “sleep when the baby sleeps”- I wish I had time to!!
Have you tried wearable breast pumps? So convenient to pump and not have any tubes or machine to carry around. You aren’t strapped down and can get so much done while they work their magic!
Also good to note you can get different sized nipple shields and guards for pumps - elvie, mam and medela sell them. I've got one nipple smaller than the other apparently 😆 and getting different guard sizes helped me to pump more and reduced nipple damage x
@Courtney I haven't. My worry is that they won't stay on. The pump i have currently doesn't stay on, i have to hold it or it loosens and falls off. Would you recommend any?
@Elizabeth this is so helpful! Thank you x
Look up the M5 by momcozy! They fit comfortably under nursing bras and have different attachments for size so that you can find your perfect fit to keep it secure! My nipples are not the same size and this has made it so nice to customize fit to stay on, and I just throw them under my bra or tank top and it holds it in place and I can do my errands around the house or throw on a hoodie and go get groceries!
I don’t really know if having small nipples matters honestly. When you say nurses said this, were these the nurses at the hospital when you delivered? I would highly recommend talking to a lactation specialist asap. I exclusively pumped with my first baby but with my second, I had so many issues breastfeeding in the beginning. She could not latch on without a nipple shield. That worked for a little bit but even that stopped working after a while, then I was nursing with a nipple shield then pumping and bottle feeding back to back all day. I saw a lactation specialist when she was 5 months old and she helped me but she also saw my daughter had multiple lip/tongue ties. If your baby can’t latch, that could very well be the issue. We got my daughter’s lip/tongue ties released at 6 months old and she was immediately able to latch on without a nipple shield and has gained so much weight. She’s 13 months now and is chunkier than my son was at this age.