Breastfeeding/Lactation Consultant

Like any health care provider if your LCs are not having success in helping you then maybe it's time .......more

Here is how to find someone else if you think it is time for that:

http://boards2.parentsplace.com/messages/get/ppbreastfeeding176/11/1/1.html

I don't blame you both for being very frustrated. I agree that the forceful attempts at latch are probably negatively impacting your baby's desire to come to the breast at all. Here's a past post of mine on breast or breastfeeding aversion that may give you some insight:

http://boards2.parentsplace.com/messages/get/ppbreastfeeding231/2/3.html

Certainly give lots of skin to skin at the breast so he can learn to enjoy being near the breast, just for fun without any pressure to bf. Try to feed him at the bare breast via his bottle. I would certainly avoid any forceful attempts at breastfeeding and use only a very gentle approach. Also, I find it helpful to feed the baby first or feed at least part of the feeding so the baby is more comfy before trying at the breast. This is a situation where a nipple shield may help you to make the transition. I usually fill it with expressed milk prior to the latch attempt to make sure the baby gets that fast burst of milk. If you get the baby to take the breast toward the end of a feeding then you can try to work him up to taking it sooner and sooner into the feeding and eventually taking the breast without being primed by the bottle first. But first the baby has to be willing to approach the breast and that may take some time and very gentle handling at the breast and lots of relaxed low pressure feedings in general. (many hospital LCs don't have large amounts of time to devote to each case and the rushing can impact their style of working. I have the luxury of spending as much time as I want with each mom and baby.....often 2 hours or more)

I would ask the LCs at the "shop" what they are going to do that is different from before and why do they think it will work? Listen to see if you think their reasoning seems to make sense. I am assuming you are not paying for this "service" b/c it is part of your hospital stay. I am aware that some hospitals are doing this and I don't know if it is the case where you are but sometimes it is worth it to pay for a more experienced provider or someone with a different approach. I am so sorry you are having a negative experience with your LCs. Please be aware that there is a wide variety of skill levels and experience. Many hospitals are sending their nurses for what I would consider "quicky" courses to be "LCs". These LC's may not have a wide level of experience outside the hospital. What occurs in the weeks after the hospital stay is often a very different experience and they may have only limited exposure to those differences. I probably shouldn't say this but many times I hear of nurses "blaming" the baby by saying things like, your baby is "an instant gratification child". When really they don't know how to help so that gets them off the hook. It sound more to me that they are "instant gratification nurses" expecting your baby to overcome the trauma he now associates with feedings quickly and on their schedule.

Even if you can not get him to latch, you can consider exclusively pumping. But lets not get into that yet, just wanted to make you aware that is an option if you can not (understandably) stand to try anymore.

Please get back and let me know how you are doing. ((((HUGS)))) again I am soooo sorry you are getting off to such a rough start, you are such a trooper for hanging in there.

Warmly Kathy