Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why are you waking him up to eat? Unless weight is an issue, that is one stupid thing to do.

OP here. The pediatrician advised us to wake him if he goes more than 3 hours between feedings during the day. He often wakes up on his own crying and mad because he’s hungry. I don’t wake him at night.

breastfeeding newborns need to be fed every 3 hours. it is what it is. mom also needs to nurse, to keep her milk coming in.

hang in there! just like everyone says, it will get better.

i had a really rough time of the newborn phase. we had to triple feed, baby was a preemie. ugh. it was so demoralizing and i was SO tired.

but, four years on, i kinda wish i would have been just a teeny more present. a teeny more patient. DS is four now and wont sit still for anything! i kinda almost miss when it was just us and snuggles all the time.

you are doing a great job, mama!

Anonymous wrote:Why are you waking him up to eat? Unless weight is an issue, that is one stupid thing to do.

OP here. The pediatrician advised us to wake him if he goes more than 3 hours between feedings during the day. He often wakes up on his own crying and mad because he’s hungry. I don’t wake him at night.

Everyone says "it gets better," but my motto is it gets different. Sometimes it's easier, sometimes it's harder.

And it's different for everyone. I didn't feel sleep deprived at all. But breastfeeding was a nightmare. Dealing with crying was simple for me. But other basic things seemed impossible.

You sound like you're doing great.

A mother of a newborn in my family expressed much of what you said but also said, rather panicky I must add, that you have to do everything while also trying so hard to keep the little human alive!

Why are you waking him up to eat? Unless weight is an issue, that is one stupid thing to do.

Anonymous wrote:You're 100% right - and you also don't have the knowledge that, no matter how the day goes, you'll be off the clock at a certain point and you'll get to sleep. That was one of the hardest things for me - never being fully off the clock.

I promise, it gets better.

Yes, at the end of every day I needed a break, but no, then I had to feed all night.

Newborn phase absolutely sucks. My first almost killed me. My expectations were so out of whack with reality plus I had a bad recovery from birth and a tough time getting the baby to gain weight at first.

Now I have a 4 week old and it doesn’t seem nearly as bad the second time… partially because I spent my entire pregnancy expecting that this would be the worst period of my life. Surprisingly, it isn’t. Partially because I have the perspective to know that it ends, and because I deal better with sleep deprivation now than I did with my first. Hang in there, and just repeat to yourself it gets better, it gets better, you will survive this because you are tough!!!

APNO is great for the chapping.

I felt we really turned a corner at 6 weeks and had more of a handle on things. Feedings and sleep were more consistent, hormones subsided, etc. Hang in there.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Get a script for APNO or go to Target and make your own APNO- do it now!!! Breastfeeding should never be painful or make cracks. Sure it might be a little sore at first, but as long as the cracks and bleeding don't form it won't be painful.

Be gentle to yourself OP. Not everyone likes every stage. Some of us rock the newborn stage and others of us excel at Toddlers or Teens.

OP here. I heard it’s totally normal to have pain for the first 2-4 weeks.

What kind of pain? APNO even helps with rubbing pain or swollen nips. No, it only hurt with my 1st and 2nd babies. Zero pain with my 3rd. I supplemented a tiny bit in the beginning so she wasn't just shredding my nipples (my milk comes in around day 5 which is late) and then after everything was copacetic.

This is you. People have different experiences. My LC told me it was common for it be sore, painful, and chapped. This happened with both of my babies and took about 4 weeks with each baby until my nipples toughened up. Everyone’s experience is different.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Get a script for APNO or go to Target and make your own APNO- do it now!!! Breastfeeding should never be painful or make cracks. Sure it might be a little sore at first, but as long as the cracks and bleeding don't form it won't be painful.

Be gentle to yourself OP. Not everyone likes every stage. Some of us rock the newborn stage and others of us excel at Toddlers or Teens.

OP here. I heard it’s totally normal to have pain for the first 2-4 weeks.

What kind of pain? APNO even helps with rubbing pain or swollen nips. No, it only hurt with my 1st and 2nd babies. Zero pain with my 3rd. I supplemented a tiny bit in the beginning so she wasn't just shredding my nipples (my milk comes in around day 5 which is late) and then after everything was copacetic.

OP here. It’s sore and sometimes feels chapped. I have sensitive nipples in general and this has not been helping. I think the constant feedings and trying to get him to breastfeed has caused it.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Get a script for APNO or go to Target and make your own APNO- do it now!!! Breastfeeding should never be painful or make cracks. Sure it might be a little sore at first, but as long as the cracks and bleeding don't form it won't be painful.

Be gentle to yourself OP. Not everyone likes every stage. Some of us rock the newborn stage and others of us excel at Toddlers or Teens.

OP here. I heard it’s totally normal to have pain for the first 2-4 weeks.

What kind of pain? APNO even helps with rubbing pain or swollen nips. No, it only hurt with my 1st and 2nd babies. Zero pain with my 3rd. I supplemented a tiny bit in the beginning so she wasn't just shredding my nipples (my milk comes in around day 5 which is late) and then after everything was copacetic.

Anonymous wrote:OP here. I’m trying to remember back to my nanny days when I would tell parents during hard times “ it’s just a phase, it will pass”. This does help during hard times and when I’m so exhausted.

A lot of times when things are SO hard- I focused on things that I enjoyed. For instance with my newborns I loved dressing them up. Bows, cute jammies, cute bibs. With one baby I loved stroller strides so much- seeing other moms was what I looked forward to all week. Your baby won't remember this time, you will. So do whatever it takes to make it enjoyable to you (clearly while still making sure baby is safe, healthy and doing okay).

Anonymous wrote:Get a script for APNO or go to Target and make your own APNO- do it now!!! Breastfeeding should never be painful or make cracks. Sure it might be a little sore at first, but as long as the cracks and bleeding don't form it won't be painful.

Be gentle to yourself OP. Not everyone likes every stage. Some of us rock the newborn stage and others of us excel at Toddlers or Teens.

OP here. I heard it’s totally normal to have pain for the first 2-4 weeks.

OP here. I’m trying to remember back to my nanny days when I would tell parents during hard times “ it’s just a phase, it will pass”. This does help during hard times and when I’m so exhausted.

Get a script for APNO or go to Target and make your own APNO- do it now!!! Breastfeeding should never be painful or make cracks. Sure it might be a little sore at first, but as long as the cracks and bleeding don't form it won't be painful.

Be gentle to yourself OP. Not everyone likes every stage. Some of us rock the newborn stage and others of us excel at Toddlers or Teens.