The road to exclusive breastfeeding through tongue-tie/frenotomy/supplementing and managing engorgement.
Immediately after the birth of my baby I realized that he had indeed had a restricted tongue. This did not prevent me from breastfeeding but it did present some issues that I was able to overcome.
1. Sore nipples: I quickly noticed that my nipples were really sore and I did not remember this with my other children. I use expressed breast milk and lanolin to improve comfort until I was able to have the baby's tongue released (frenotomy). Once clipped I noticed an instant improvement in comfort and milk transfer.
2. low wet diapers: Because of the difficult latch baby had low wet diapers and when approached by the RN to supplement with formula (although it had not been 24 hours yet), i asked for a pump kit and started pumping and manual expressing to supplementing with my own milk, Baby finally had a wet diaper!
Breast Fullness is a normal part of breastfeeding. I just so happen to get engorged under my arm (ouch). What i used to help with emptying my breasts was a Silicone Breastfeeding Manual breast Pump Milk Collector Suction (purchased on Amazon). This thing is amazing!!! After latching the baby, I attach the pump (squeezing it to create suction) and it collects milk on its on! No extra work necessary. And within 24 hours my armpit engorgement was gone with the use of ice as well.
Tips:
change breast pads regularly - with each feeding,
practice good positioning and latch techniques,
consult with an IBCLC
(photo from https://www.tophealthdoctors.com.au/tongue-tie/)
Tongue-tie (ankyloglossia) is a condition in which a thin piece of tissue under the baby’s tongue (the lingual frenulum) is abnormally short and may restrict the movement of the tongue, often leading to problems with breast-feeding.
IMPACT OF TONGUE-TIE
It may interfere with a baby’s ability to latch and suckle at the breast leading to:
Nipple pain and trauma for mum, during breast-feeding
Poor breast milk intake, which in turn leads to
A decrease in milk supply over time.
There is usually breastfeeding problems such as:
Nipple pain and damage
A misshapen nipple after breastfeeding
A compression/stripe mark on the nipple after breastfeeding
The baby often loses suction on the breast whilst feeding
A clicking sound may be heard while the baby is feeding
Associated poor weight gain