Small packages
Stardust and I have been having a tough time.
He's all hungryhungryhungryhungryfeedmefeedmefeedmehelpmemummyhelphelp. I'm stressedstressedstressed and stressed out mummy means poor milk supply which means hungry baby which means stressed out mummy ad infinitum.
So, I had to supplement some of his feeds with formula milk. This made me feel lousy and inadequate...but eventually I got more sleep and became less stressed.
I thought that my doctor training with all the oncalls and irregular working hours would prepare me for the sleep deprivation and stress. But it doesn't because there is no post-call afternoon sleep on this job.
I live continually in the hope that tomorrow will be a better day.
posted by tscd at 1:15 pm
5 Comments:
Are you on maternity leave or are you off work for a couple of years or..?
I devoutly hope it gets better and that he soon begins to sleep through the night.
(Wait till he starts walking!)
Hi, don't let the breastfeeding stress you out.
I was highly depressed & stressed because I couldn't produce enough milk for my first child. I also had a lot of pressure from well-meaning relatives & lactation consultants saying pure breastfeeding is the only way.
When my second child came along I was determined not to let it bother me this time ... I just gave her as much breastmilk as I could (which wasn't much) and the rest was formula.
A happy Mommy means a happier baby, and you can enjoy your baby a lot more too. :-)
Hey tcsd,
I'm not sure if this will help, but my wife had an excellent lactation consultant (NUH) when she had our little one. It really helped because the consultant helped her to learn how to prepare the breast and there was a lot of info we didn't know like clearing the nipples, then the ducts, then the region behind the ducts before allowing bb to suck. And what not. So it might be an option, esp where you work (I think every hosp has attached lactation consultants)?
And agree with kim - if that doesn't work, babies have survived on formula milk and grown up perfectly fine. My entire family is a good example - non of us were breastfed. At most I turned out a little crazy but what the hey.
Will be praying for you. Take a break if you have to and if you can afford to - throw Stardust to someone who can take care of him for an hour or two - and go for a walk with your hubby. It really helps.
hey, dont worry, tomorrow will definitely be a better day. Things can only get better if you relax a little! Formula milk will not do much harm to the baby.
jobeth: Maternity leave. :) It'll be a few weeks before he sleeps through the night. Right now I'm resigned to waking up for feeds every 2-3 hours.
kim, stay-at-home mum: thanks for the encouragement! I feel happier now that I don't see myself as a cow.
hamster: A walk with hubby is a very good idea!
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