I talked to a mom of a one week old baby this week who said this, but this is not the first time I have heard almost the exact same comment.

This mom has been trying to nurse, and doing lots of skin to skin, but has been pumping and feeding by bottle for the last few days.  The baby seemed to nurse well until her milk came in on the 4th day.

With this mom we talked about relieving engorgement and letting the milk spray into a towel or diaper until the flow slows down, as this sounded like the problem to me at day 5 when I talked to her.  Now baby is one week old and I talked to the grandma (who is a friend of mine) today and baby was continueing this behavior.  Mom was seeing a lactation consultant today.

Why do moms have babies who have so much trouble latching on?  Why would a presumably hungry baby become so distressed after only a few sucks that he lets go an can't be persuaded to try again?  (This mom was induced and I suspect that this may be a factor.)  As an LLL, I feel this problem is beyond my range of expertise.  I do remember struggling with latch on with my first, but what exactly I did and how I muddled through is beyond my memory nearly 12 years later.

Is there a checklist of factors anyone could suggest which  I could discuss with a mom to help her get a handle on the problem.  With this particular mom, I wonder if a nipple shield might be warranted, but as a LLL leader, I don't feel comfortable suggesting it.

Jeanne Schrank
LLLLeader in WI, USA

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