Nursing, that is. This kid likes to eat - a LOT - and my poor nipples are getting so beat up. We had our appointment yesterday at the Post Partum Care Center yesterday. This is a regular part of OB care at my hospital and everyone is encouraged to be seen by one of the nurses/lactation consultants about 4-5 days post partum to catch any issues early. Even those who bottle feed and had normal vaginal deliveries can benefit. Anyway, turns out that while Tristan starts out his latch well enough with a wide open mouth, after a few sucks, he's been letting a lot of the areola slip out and ending up with just the nipple and it's starting to take a toll on my breasts. Part of it was doing the side-lying position during the night - I couldn't see very well how his latch was and he was lazier than usual during the night. Last night, I ended up not going to bed at all and slept in the arm chair downstairs with him in my arms when we weren't actually nursing so I could leave a light on dimly and be able to see better what was going on. I ended up only getting about 2 hours of sleep in total - that sucked. Hubby got up at 6am and took Tristan so I could go to bed for a couple more hours which really helped.
The LC that we met with yesterday had us tally up the number of wet/poopy diapers as well as the number of nursing sessions in 24hrs. Turns out, he fed 21 times in 24 hours. No wonder my nipples are killing me! We worked on his latch issues and I'm hopeful that things will improve quickly. I also have a very small spot on my incision that is opened up a tiny bit. OB took a look and said it's not a problem, just keep the spot clean and it will heal up just fine. The only problem for me is that I never know what movement or position is going to make that spot feel like my skin is tearing apart. Hoping that heals up quickly too, I'm sure it will.
I have another blog topic swimming around in my brain (a few actually) but time is limited right now so they'll have to wait. One topic is how things are going with the emotions this time around. I'm feeling 180* different from last time which makes me so unbelievably happy. I'll elaborate soon, but for now, I'm not worried about PPD coming back and hopeful that it will continue to be this way, even with hard nights like last night.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
5 comments:
I have to admit, I am quite eager to read your post about emotions...sore nipples and your skin ripping open is just too painful to read about! My stomach and chest hurt now.
Nickie - Thanks for taking the time to comment on my blog. I know you've got your hands full these days! I hope that the LC's advice re: latching makes things easier from now on - and that you can catch up on a few Zzzs at some point today. So glad to hear that you're feeling happy, if a little sleep deprived! :)
Glad to hear you're not worried about PPD for now. I'm sorry about the BF'ing hurting so bad. As a first time mom I was shocked about how badly it hurt. Hope you get the latch "issues" worked out and your bbs get feeling better!
Ouch! Sorry your nipples are sore. Hope they feel better soon. Very glad to hear that you are not feeling like PPD will come back.
I understand the 180 degree turn with #2! I felt like a completely different - and better - person with #2 than with #1 :) The first couple weeks bf'ing are the hardest and it's good you have help to make sure the latch is correct! I laughed out loud at the post above about 5 diapers in one diaper change - been there, done that! :) Sounds like week 1 is going well overall!
Post a Comment