Jan 10, 2007

Breastfeeding Tyler - Update #1

Well, being a mother of two is one way to ensure that I have very little time to post. But I'm happy to report that Tyler is thriving and that breastfeeding is going well. We did get off to a bit of a rough start, however.

When Tyler was four days old, I felt like breastfeeding was going pretty well but I decided to have my lactation consultant, Ellen Steinberg, come to my house to reassure me that was really the case. It turned out I was wrong. Ellen brought a digital baby scale, which is sensitive enough to measure the amount a baby has consumed, down to the tenth (or is it a hundredth?) of an ounce. In the two hours she spent with us, Tyler ate only one ounce, indicating I might have another supply problem on my hands. At least we established that Tyler and I both had our mechanics down.

I immediately started taking More Milk Special Blend again, the herbal supplement which boosted my supply when I was breastfeeding Alex. I also nursed Tyler constantly. By the time we went to the pediatrician for Tyler's one-week check-up, he had gained five ounces since Ellen's visit. Crisis averted!

I've posted previously that breastfeeding Alex didn't save me any money over formula at all. So far the financial tally for breastfeeding Tyler is $100 for Ellen's visit, plus $60 for some nursing tops.

Hopefully things will continue to go well . . . stay tuned.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hi Kathy. Congrats on Baby number two. I have popped in occasionally on your blog. Glad to hear nursing is going better with this little guy!

Anonymous said...

Breastfed babies have strong immune systems and there is no price that you can put on that!

Find some other moms who are breast feeding to support you through this special time with your baby.

Mom of two grown daughters who were breastfed.