I will send prayers and also Essene healing hands "sending", if you wish it.
My mother is a lactation consultant, who has a 24/7 guestroom set up for newly lactating mothers to be observed and assisted with breastfeeding problems. She lets them get comfortable, and stays within reach to come and observe/help if/when the infant is wakeful and hungry, otherwise leaving them alone and private. If I may, what I set out here is some of what she has shared with me. You may already be familiar with much of this, and if it is redundant, please accept my apology.
The most common problems are: 1. correct latching on (correct latch-on results in the entire aureola of the breast being completely within the infant's mouth, if the infant takes only the nipple into its mouth, milk cannot flow and it can be very painful. If an incorrect latch on takes place, use a finger to break the suction by letting air in between mouth and nipple (this can be very strong), and reposition the baby. Whole baby in close, and gently stroke its cheek to help it find the breast again. (baby will turn towards the stroking). A good latch-on positions the nipple at the back of the baby's mouth, and most or all of the aureola will not be visible at all. This is still a bit startling, at first, but will not produce pain. 2. Not learning how to recognise the "let down" reflex and patiently wait for it to occur. There is a knack to learning how to read the difference between a child sucking the scant foremilk (suck, suck, suck, suck, swallow) and sucking the abundant aftermilk (suck, swallow, suck, swallow, suck, swallow). (These different rhythms relate to the time it takes to fill the mouth before swallowing.) Sometimes, in new mothers it can take a long time for the let down to occur, especially when being watched by others, or when anxious about "doing it right". However the change in rhythm is the "tell" that a let down has occurred, and after this the infant will feed until full, which can happen quite quickly, at which point they simply relax their suck and (often) succumb to sleep. 3. Engorgement can also cause problems if the newly stimulating milk-making glands in the breast fill it so full that it is painful to touch. In addition to the usual "cabbage leaf in bra" advice (this is *really* useful for helping relieve the pain and swelling), it can help to adopt a temporary policy of completely emptying one breast before nursing from the other, on the basis that new milk production will not be stimulated as long as one breast continues full. One can "take the top off" the overfull breast with a bit of squeezing for relief, but very often, once each breast is emptied one at a time (this may take several feeding sessions over the course of a day), the engorgement is gone.
Anyway, all of these tips were hugely helpful to me, and - I hear - to many, many of her clients.
Best wishes to you and your small 'un, whatever happens! Many blessings on your lives together!
Re: Ecosophia Prayer List Update
My mother is a lactation consultant, who has a 24/7 guestroom set up for newly lactating mothers to be observed and assisted with breastfeeding problems. She lets them get comfortable, and stays within reach to come and observe/help if/when the infant is wakeful and hungry, otherwise leaving them alone and private. If I may, what I set out here is some of what she has shared with me. You may already be familiar with much of this, and if it is redundant, please accept my apology.
The most common problems are:
1. correct latching on (correct latch-on results in the entire aureola of the breast being completely within the infant's mouth, if the infant takes only the nipple into its mouth, milk cannot flow and it can be very painful. If an incorrect latch on takes place, use a finger to break the suction by letting air in between mouth and nipple (this can be very strong), and reposition the baby. Whole baby in close, and gently stroke its cheek to help it find the breast again. (baby will turn towards the stroking). A good latch-on positions the nipple at the back of the baby's mouth, and most or all of the aureola will not be visible at all. This is still a bit startling, at first, but will not produce pain.
2. Not learning how to recognise the "let down" reflex and patiently wait for it to occur. There is a knack to learning how to read the difference between a child sucking the scant foremilk (suck, suck, suck, suck, swallow) and sucking the abundant aftermilk (suck, swallow, suck, swallow, suck, swallow). (These different rhythms relate to the time it takes to fill the mouth before swallowing.) Sometimes, in new mothers it can take a long time for the let down to occur, especially when being watched by others, or when anxious about "doing it right". However the change in rhythm is the "tell" that a let down has occurred, and after this the infant will feed until full, which can happen quite quickly, at which point they simply relax their suck and (often) succumb to sleep.
3. Engorgement can also cause problems if the newly stimulating milk-making glands in the breast fill it so full that it is painful to touch. In addition to the usual "cabbage leaf in bra" advice (this is *really* useful for helping relieve the pain and swelling), it can help to adopt a temporary policy of completely emptying one breast before nursing from the other, on the basis that new milk production will not be stimulated as long as one breast continues full. One can "take the top off" the overfull breast with a bit of squeezing for relief, but very often, once each breast is emptied one at a time (this may take several feeding sessions over the course of a day), the engorgement is gone.
Anyway, all of these tips were hugely helpful to me, and - I hear - to many, many of her clients.
Best wishes to you and your small 'un, whatever happens! Many blessings on your lives together!